@doschicos Some HS & MS teachers seem to think that their English class has to have a syllabus that revolves around “25 books you must read before you die.” 
But as a middle school girl, I loved Love Story. I still remembering finding the Love Story book at a house where i was babysitting and hoping the parents stayed our really late so I could finish it (no books in my house) and I did (fast reader even then). At this point in my life, however, would likely feel very differently. Not sure young teen girl was the intended target for those books!
Yes, there are many book targeted for young females and also older females. I think there are more books written for women than men. In my extended family, the females are much more dedicated readers than the males.
Since Love Story was serialized in Ladies’ Home Journal, I’m guessing you were not the target audience.
I read Love Story sometime early in high school - it was on the best seller list for over a year and I figured I might as well see what the fuss was about. I remember being simultaneously sucked in by it and embarrassed at being manipulated by it at the same time. The “Love means never having to say you are sorry” line, though, that was so stupid I am sure I considered throwing the book across the room! Even at 14 or 15 I knew that was dumb and not true.
Dumb and not true, but with Ali McGraw and Ryan O’Neal… both in their gorgeous prime and beautifully dressed… and boy did my 14-15 year old tears flow when the movie came out!
My aunt took me to see Love Story for my 12th birthday. I had already read the book and thought it was stupid. That could, of course, have been due to the fact that I was an 11 year old girl who attended an Orthodox Jewish day school when I read it… and just didn’t get it. Anyway, at the movie, everyone - except me - was crying, even my 50 year old, sergeant in the WACs, probably closeted gay, favorite aunt. The only things i remember about the movie were thinking that Ryan O’Neal was really cute and that I had never seen my aunt cry except for when her roommate, my Auntie X, died 5 years earlier.
“Preppie.”
Eat Pray Love - It annoyed me to no end. Most of my book group felt the same way and we are usually not of one mind.
At 78, Ali MacGraw still looks gorgeous. But, Ryan O’Neal?? I’m tempted to start a Celebrities Who Have Not Aged Well thread.
so many of these titles bring back memories of my book club days. i miss that!
throw-down books: first reaction was Gone Girl. Ugh. and while i didnt throw it down, i loved/hated bel canto.
for Poisonwood Bible haters: @mom2and - had a good suggestion in post 138 i think. Read some of Barbara Kingsolvers older books. they are good.
when i go on vacation or trips, i usually buy 99-cent books from goodwill and leave them in airports or in hotel lobbies when done. I get all kinds of unknown books; some are good! just read randomly a book called Rise Up and cried and cried.
I have never been able to read Danielle Steele. The plots of some of her books sound OK, but her writing is AWFUL.
The Life of Pi.
Eat, Pray, Love (and the crap movie)
Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone. I must be a muggle…! I am quite enjoying Rowlings’ The Casual Vacancy, although I am not done with it so who knows it might hit the wall yet.
My Kindle says I am 35% of the way through Lehane’s latest book, Since We Fell. I think it is safer for my Kindle if I don’t finish it, rather than risking a damaged Kindle. Am I wrong?
@skieurope:
lol…I remember groaning through those books in HS humanities class, and the teacher telling me that it was important to read the ‘great books’…in response, I gave her one of my favorite quotes “The great books are books people think they should read, but don’t want to”, and it is telling that she didn’t know the source of that quote (Mark Twain). (Almost as good as his quote “I have heard Wagner’s music is better than it sounds” ).
I don’t have a specific book title, but I hate books that leave the ending ‘up to the reader’, that irritates the heck out of me, and quite honestly strikes me as either artistic pretension or the author being lazy and afraid to anger readers…as a friend of mine says “FTDB!” when reviewing books like this on good reads and other places.
MomJandL, I just finished Since We Fell. Yes, probably safer for your kindle if you don’t finish it. I loved Mystic River but this book is just a mess and the ending was just ridiculous.
Mentioned many posts ago but The Story of Edgar Sawtelle fit the title of this thread perfectly. It was an interesting story and I was enjoying the book most of the way through but then that awful ending! Really did make me want to throw it across the room.
Happy to say I never finished a book by Danielle Steele.
Another one my book club thought we should read, but I couldn’t finish–The Heart is a Lonely Hunter. Blech, blech, blech…
Ok, the book reviewers were all fawning over The People We Hate at the Wedding for summer reading. I got 59% through this one after abandoning Since We Fell. My rule for the rest of the summer is no more books with “We” in the title. Can’t stand the neurotic self absorbed inner thoughts of all the characters. Disappointed because we recently attended a wedding in London with some blended family stuff going on, but if the people involved were anything like this we’d have sent our regrets.
I loved The Heart is a Lonely Hunter in junior high. I also read Love Story around that time. I found a paperback edition from the library someone had dropped. I felt so grown up reading it.
I cannot stand Mary Higgins Clark. I read not one bit two of her books some years ago, hours of my life I will never get back.