First up, I’ve had quite the busy week, and unfortunately I haven’t been able to get to many questions that have come in on the blog and via e-mail. Also though, I’ve been getting quite a few questions that have already been covered in the FAQs. Please please please check there first! And thanks so much to the regular readers who have chimed in with answers to some of these questions — you guys are life-savers.
This week’s You Tell Me is a fun one, and it comes via the Washington Post book blog Short Stack.
What book are you embarrassed not to have read?
As a member in good standing of the publishing industry (well, last time I checked), let me tell you that it’s not possible to have read everything, and yet there’s sometimes an expectation that an agent will have not only heard of every book ever published, but read every book published. Not possible, obviously, but there’s still pressure to be conversant about pretty much every book ever published.
But nevertheless, I’ll still answer. I’ve never read THE LORD OF THE RINGS series and I’m embarrassed.
What about you?
Lisa Melts Her Penn says
I, also, never read One Hundred Years of Solitude. After spending a year and a half in Spain, I brought back a copy in Spanish. I had read all of two books in Spanish, and decided I would try this classic in the original. Over the years, the paperback copy languished on the shelf, the pages turning yellow, the spine drying out. Everyone said it was difficult enough to follow in English. Your blog is now inspiring me to finally read it in English…then I can always give it a stab in its native language afterwards, right?
http://www.Lisameltzerpenn
Pepe Lepew says
I’ve never read “Catcher in the Rye.” that one always gets me looks of astonishment.
Amber says
For Whom the Bell Tolls, Ernest Hemingway, without a doubt.
and sometimes One Hundred Years of Solitude
AnarchyJack says
I wish there was only one.
The Lord of the Flies by William Golding
The Slaughterhouse Five by Kurt Vonnegut
To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee
They Wayward Bus by John Steinbeck
The Antichrist by Fredrich Nietzche
And I haven’t finished:
Pirates and Emperors by Noam Chomsky – though I’ve quoted from it dozens of times
The First Circle by Aleksander Solzhenytsen (in Russian – still reading it)
The Republic by Plato (actually I skipped ahead after Book 10 and read the ending)
All the King’s Men by Robert Penn Warren (couldn’t get past the first page – it made me dizzy)
The unabridged Notes from Underground by Fydor Dostoyevski (although I really shouldn’t be embarrassed, since I read the abridged version – WTF was up with that that guy?)
Joey says
I read the Hobbit ONE TIME! and then I found myself trying to correlate what happened in the book versus the classic cartoon created by Rankin/Bass…it made no sense to me whatsoever in the least..
Karen says
Anna Karenina. It’s on my bookshelf but I just can’t seem to motivate myself to start reading it.
kiddle97 says
There are a few that I am very embarrassed that I HAVE read, for instance, the first three of those crappy Twilight books and anything by Faulkner. Then there’s The Da Vinci Code, which I haven’t read and have no issues having not read it. Then there are such books as Catcher in the Rye or Les Miserables that do give me grief for not being read yet. I do intend to rectify that someday, but first, I have to get through all of Dickens, and there’s a huge line after that. Who knows if I ever will get through them all.
Brooke Hughes says
I have never read a Harry Potter book (or seen any of the movies). Although I’m not really emabarrassed about it, I do get those die hard Potter fans who just can not believe in their wildest dreams that I have no interest in the books.
Media audit says
I am so embarrassed just to think there is not only one (1) book I should have read, but tens of them…
But finally I read the Endurance of Ernest Shackleton. At leas one that I can cross on my list.
Did you read it?
Frank
Samie says
well…I’m only 15, and I still have a lot of time to read the so called classics, etc. And I make myself read classics too, just to avoid this later on in life. But I have Little Women on my shelf…and it’s been there for quite a while. A year at least, and I haven’t gotten around to it. Normally, something of this size draws me to it. (I have this thing for books with too many pages) but I haven’t gotten around to this one yet.
and for those of you who got steered off of the Bronte sisters by Wuthering Heights, Jane Eyre is a whole different kind of novel. I love it 🙂 (And I couldn’t make myself finish Wuthering Heights….I read sections of it, enough to help me pass my enriched english course last year)
Sparky Firepants says
Moby Dick. I have tried to get through that thing several times, but I always get stuck in the part where he goes into whale education.
Everything up to that is a fun read.
Diana says
MacBeth. Every single English teacher/professor I’ve ever had said, “Everyone makes you read MacBeth, so we’ll read Hamlet.” I’ve read six different editions of Hamlet. I’ve never read MacBeth.
nomadshan says
It’s a toss-up between Pride and Prejudice and The Kite Runner. I think I’m more embarrassed about the books I haven’t finished. Will blog later on that.
To anyone embarrassed by not having read Shakespeare, fret not, folks: ’tis to be seen, not read. Sure, reading the words may help you understand what you’re seeing, but the printed page wasn’t the intended format. Give yourselves a break. Check out your local Shakespeare in the Park when you get the chance.
Therra Cathryn says
I had a boyfriend when I was 18 give me a copy of “Lord Of The Rings”. He gave it to me with such reverence you’d have thought he had given me an actual ring. I never read it,I’m sorry to say. Years later I was married and my husband proudly presented me with a copy of “Lord Of The Rings” for Christmas which I still haven’t read. I’m also embarrassed to tell this as this is a book that seems to bring generations together, makes geeks and freaks friends with housewives and harlots…it’s a common denominator for several decades of boomer and post-boomer babies…and I still haven’t read the dang thing! Shame on me!
Jeanne says
I’m so glad this was the blog of note today. It’s so interesting- and funny.
I’ve read the Bible cover to cover. Much more interesting read than I expected. But, I’m ashamed not to have read any other holy books of other religions. If I believe in my faith strongly enough I ought to be able to study what other people believe and weigh and measure it fairly. I just don’t have the time. Too many other things to read for pleasures sake.
Dante’s Inferno was also a much better read than I expected. Attempted and failed to read the LOR books. Too easy to be a lazy bum and watch the movies. Watched War and Peace for the first time today and don’t feel an ounce of guilt about passing on the novel.
Lady Glamis says
Never read To Kill a Mockingbird. It’s on my Goodreads list right now.
Alexia says
Too many to count. But those that immediately jump to mind:
Love in the Time of Cholera
The Life of Pi
One Hundred Years of Solitude
Catch-22 (tried; couldn’t)
mano says
For ending my embarrassment i’m fighting to finish the divine comedy.
Harbinger of Truth says
I haven’t read either The Sun Also Rises or the Book of the Five Rings, but I just started the latter. Who knows maybe I’ll write a novel that makes a list like this one day.
JuniWolfspirit says
You ninny. It’s pretty understandable to have not read the Lord of the Rings. It takes a lot of dedication to not only get through it, but really understand it. Plus, that sort of fantasy isn’t exactly a lot of people’s “thing.”
I did an LJ meme recently that starts with, “The Big Read reckons that the average adult has only read 6 of the top 100 books they’ve printed. Well let’s see.”
It then lists the 100 books and you show which ones you’ve read. I haven’t read To Kill A Mockingbird, 1984, Catcher in the Rye, Grapes of Wrath, Alice in Wonderland… shall I continue? Posting the list itself was quite embarrassing, but I did it anyways in an attempt to guilt myself into moving away from the Young Adult section and reading “real” books for a while.
Court says
Oh dear. So many wonderful titles to choose here…. Top of my list is anything Russian, specifically "Anna Karenina" and "War and Peace."
Also: "Wuthering Heights"; "Oliver Twist"; "The Once and Future King" (tried really hard to get through it but couldn't); and anything by Goethe other than "Faust 1&2."
I feel particularly embarrassed to be admitting this to a literary agent. Sheesh. ;o)
I'm Kim says
Wow! What a loaded Question. I am an formerly rehabilitated English Major who got through grad school not reading very much. Consequently, I have SEVERE Guilt. My whole blog is about my on going quest to read all the things, horrible or not, I was supposed to read in college… well sort of. I have 1 down (Native Son) and am now trying to decide what to read next. I have had suggestions. I am reverting back to my former ways and trying to look for the shortest one so I can check more off my list and feel a sense of accomplishment before I poop out and call it a day (figuratively speaking). See the Top 100 novels I am reading on my blog! 99 more to go! WOO HOO!
angelthenewyorker says
Nathan, I am deeply embarrased that I haven’t read the Holy Bible. For Christsake, it is the world’s best selling book ever. According to the British TIMES newspaper in 1996:
“Forget modern British novelists and TV tie-ins, the Bible is the best-selling book every year. If sales of the Bible were included in best-seller lists, it would be a rare week when anything else would achieve a look in. It is wonderful, weird … that in this godless age… this one book should go on selling, every month.”
I have tried several times to read it, but I can go beyond the first pages, and I don’t know why.
yours sincerely, EMBARRASSED-ANGEL
Alicia says
Oh dear~! Where do I start?
I’ll need to agree with Anonymous and say “The Bible”, I can never last past 1 page… half page through and you’ll definately catch me fast asleep!
BiggieKen says
I never read LOTR either. I am a little embarrassed to say that I’ve only read one Harry Potter book (the first), but not too embarrassed!
Perhaps I am most embarrassed that I’ve read very few classics! I am more interested in current events and funny, personal stories a la David Sedaris. Though I’ve really only read a couple of his books.
George Fripley says
Of all the books that I think I should have read, I think the most enbarrassing would be A Stranger in a Strange Land. I always feel I should have read it (like Moby Dick and Gullivers Travels, which are also on the list)but for some reason it just never happened.
California Girl says
How about last year's "Einstein" bio? I bought it. Read the first quarter of it; had to keep re-reading it to understand the science & math discussed; finally gave up in frustration.
Post topic for consideration:
Literary Masterpieces You've Read & Disliked"
I could go on and on with that…English Lit major.
Jaye says
Considering where I live – I’m a Kentish Maid – I’m embarrassed to admit I’ve never read a single Dickens novel! And also Pride and Prejudice, which is sitting, untouched, on my bookshelf.
I have read every Discworld novel though!
James Wu says
I have this gigantic book titled: The History of the Arabic Peoples.
I carry it around all over the place, wherever I move. I even read it sometimes on the airplane. But I’ve never read more than a few page.
I try to act as if I read in depth about matters, but the truth is I just ended up reading a short summary on wikipedia.
Lauren says
Moby Dick is my book. I finally read The Hobbit this summer and wanted to kick myself for depriving my world of Tolkien joy for years and years and years!
'wela says
Origin of the Species by Charles Darwin–and I have a degree in Biology!
The Crystal Faerie says
Pride and Prejudice.
esruel says
Hi Nathan
You haven’t read The Lord Of The Rings? Don’t worry about it: I wrote a fantasy partly on the premise that millions of readers had never read, and were never going to read, LOTR. I did some research on it – too long, written too long ago, Tolkien was dead, the film was coming out (long mooted), the cartoon film was not good and so on.
My book and proposal were rejected by everyone I approached in the UK! You are in good company!
I never read Wuthering Heights. I think it proves I’m a bloke lol
Anonymous says
I’d like to make a comment. About those Russian, French, foreign-writer books, it depends on the translation if they’re readable or not.
Lori Benton says
To Kill a Mockingbird
Chris Redding says
Moby Dick.
cmr
Stace says
I, too, have not made it through Lord of the Rings but have tried several times, in vain. Being from NZ (supposedly Middle Earth now, for marketing reasons) I felt a certain patriotic duty but meh, if you don’t like fantasy you don’t like fantasy!
However, I am a little embarrassed to say I’ve never made it past Genesis in The Bible. All the begats got a little repetitive.
Unfocused Me says
I am most ashamed to admit that I could not get past page 50 or so of Confederacy of Dunces, by John Kennedy Toole, patron saint of slush pile writers everywhere. I just, just, I’m sorry, I need a moment…
I can do this…
Okay, I’m all right, thank you. Here I go: I just didn’t think it was funny. At all.
There. I said it. Thank you for listening.
Seth Thompson says
As a heavy fantasy reader, it seems like I should have read any Narnia novel or Harry Potter book, but I haven’t. I may one day try the Narnia novels, but I don’t foresee buying a book in the Harry Potter series.
As for actual reading gaps that I am embarrassed about, I would have to say that it can be quantified in two words: Charles Dickens. I even participated in a stage musical based on Oliver Twist and STILL haven’t managed to read him. One day…
Dr Frau Dr says
So many things that I haven’t read. I’m chipping away at them though and am halfway through Don Quixote. At least I can console myself with the fact that I did get through Moby Dick and Midnight’s Children.
MusicJunkie says
Sadly, I have never read anything by Hemingway or any screenplay by Tennessee Williams.
June says
I haven’t read any of the Harry Potter books and not at all embarrassed about it. I actually read LOR aloud, twice to my daughters, maybe I SHOULD be embarrassed about that. The only one I’m a bit embarrassed about not reading is any of Proust.
June says
I haven’t read any of the Harry Potter books and not at all embarrassed about it. I actually read LOR aloud, twice to my daughters, maybe I SHOULD be embarrassed about that. The only one I’m a bit embarrassed about not reading is any of Proust.
katztales says
A Suitable Boy. Have started it at least 3 times and can’t get past page 30!
Anonymous says
Tennessee Williams wrote plays, not screenplays. His plays were made into movies, but he was a playwright, not a screenwriter. An important disctinction.
abc says
Well I know what book I really ought to commit myself to reading now. It’s time to pull Infinite Jest off the shelf. RIP David Foster Wallace. What a sad loss to the world–a major talent (I did read a number of essays) and from what I could tell through interviews, etc. a really cool, amazing guy. Really really sad!
airbabylonne says
I second that.
The bible. and im embarassed.
Even more so, since i grew up in a catholic school almost all my life and acually took a bible class or two.
mexh says
I’m embarrassed to have never read The Catcher in the Rye. I went to a small Catholic high school in the nineties. One of the parents had the book removed from the reading list mid-summer. I still haven’t gotten around to rectifying that little act of censorship. The most embarrassing part to me is admitting that I attended a school that banned books for religious reasons.
Amanda says
Same as you, Nathan! I’ve never read The Lord of The Rings series either. I’ve read The Hobbit, though, but only the first chapter.
The Cobbs says
Although I have “studied” The Scarlet Letter several times, I have never read it. And get this: I have a bachelor’s in English!