Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly topic hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl. Each week she provides a topic, and you are free to use that topic and/or variations of that topic to make your top ten list. A full list of the weekly themes can be found here. This week’s topic is on books that I had VERY strong feelings about, and I’m actually going to focus on books that I didn’t like because I’m rude that way.
As of yesterday, 3 June 2024, Israeli forces and tanks advance into eastern Khan Younis (south) and Gaza City (north) with heavy gunfire and shelling. Khan Younis is now a “hub” for displaced Palestinians after the Rafah invasion which forcibly displaced over a million. In the past 24 hours (yesterday’s 24 hours), 40 Palestinians were killed, 150 injured. About 55% of Gaza’s buildings destroyed, damaged, or possibly damaged and north Gaza’s Deir Balah and Gaza City is mostly destroyed.
I’m just going to link everyone to John Oliver’s video talking about The Da Vinci Code because he summarizes my feelings on this book quite well.
If you’ve spent any time around this part of the book world, then you probably know that I did not enjoy the first book in the Grishaverse. It was boring, predictable, and so annoying!! But I do have to say I’m glad I gave Bardugo another chance because King of Scars and Rule of Wolves were probably my two favorite books of last year.
I’m embarrassed that at one point I actually applauded this book. This is a deeply problematic book and it seems like Talley doesn’t get better. While for the most part, I can pretty much handle any trope, the whole oppressed falls for the oppressor needs to fucking die!! The power dynamic is completely messed up, not to mention that Linda’s dad is head of the local KKK. Plus, Linda herself is RACIST!! There’s literally nothing here that would give a good reason for Sarah to fall in love with Linda! Linda definitely gives off Snape vibes because Linda firmly believes that Black people are inferior, except for a fair few, like Sarah. If that’s not the same as Snape, then I don’t know what is.
I know everyone praises this book and how it’s such a great book about mental health. I’m not saying it isn’t a good representation of mental health, it’s just boring. The middle is so repetitive, I couldn’t wait to be done with this.
Everyone sucks, people die, the end! I do not like anyone in this book and I still can’t believe this is touted as THE book to represent the 1920s. Its even more disappointing when looking into the history of the book. The Great Gatsby sold fewer than 20,000 copies by the fall of 1925; when Fitzgerald died in 1940, he believed himself to be a failure and his work forgotten. So, why do we continually read this book in English classes? During WWII, the Council on Books in Wartime distributed free copies of The Great Gatsby to American soldiers serving overseas and it experienced a surge in popularity. Due to this surge in popularity, it launched a critical and scholarly re-examination. Maybe it should’ve stayed in the past…
Self-help books written by cis, het, white, business men is a dumb subgenre of self-help books and it needs to stop, for everyone’s sake.
This book is only worth it if you have absolutely nothing wrong in life, typically white men. But even with that audience in mind, so much of what he discusses is worthless or dumb. One such story is the British Cycling team that won no gold medals at the Olympics until a coach came along with this only 1% improvement bit. Yes, sure making small changes like redesigning seats, massage gels for muscle recovery, and upgrading beds, all helps. You want to know what also helps and acquires all of the above improvements? MONEY! The British government in the late 90s had a new system of funding sports (through the lottery) and in 1997 all of that changed and cycling was able to hire coaches and buy better equipment. Also that one gold medal they won was in 2000 Sydney Olympics is the year they won the gold medal, you know after they get this huge amount of funding. Also the performance coach Clear references isn’t the first one to come up with these improvements
The level of frustration and annoyance I have in regards to this book is unmatched! Nothing in this book makes sense and then it seems like there will be some commentary or theme about men taking advantage of women (girls) but no it’s all just not really mentioned. For a full in-depth review of this book, go here.
Dan Brown made my list, as well — Angels and Demons ensured I never read him again!
The “Lies We Tell Ourselves” sounds ridiculous.
Yea, it was such a weird time when The Da Vinci Code came out and everyone was talking about it when it’s just not good!
“The Lies We Tell Ourselves” is definitely ridiculous, but I’m just glad that I’ve learned and grown since then.
100% agree with you about The Great Gatsby and Atomic Habits. I thought every character in The Great Gatsby was awful! When I expressed that opinion in my middle school class room, my teacher reprimanded me and told me I was not smart enough to understand the nuance of great literature (or something like that). As for Atomic Habits I did not even make through the whole book…I felt that the advice that was sound has been given over and over, but most of the advice seemed to be to the privileged…those who probably already have it together, and are men! That book just did not connect to my life or how my female brain works.
I have not idea why this posted as anonymous! This is A’Lisa Brooks. Me and technology are not playing nice today.
I love you 😂😂
All of this!! I also hated everyone in The Great Gatsby, and didn’t understand why it’s touted as this great American novel. Knowing the history and background has made more sense but still think it’s ridiculous we have to study this in school. I thought the same thing about Atomic Habits, on how it doesn’t work with my brain. I kept thinking while reading the book that this could’ve been a magazine article.
I think in part it depends on age and experience. The first time I read it, in my early 20s, it was nothing to me. In my mid-30s it was very different. Review from my second read:
https://readingfreely.com/2021/11/18/the-great-gatsby/
I thought about writing about books I disliked, and another of Matt Haig’s books would have made that list. I also really disliked The Maidens.
First of all, I appreciate your update on the situation in Palestine right now.
I’ll be steering way clear of Lies We Tell Ourselves, ngl never heard of it before but now I don’t need to hah. I am a self-help hater so I’m not surprised Atomic Habits made it to your list too.😅