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Eudora Inman's avatar

One Hundred Years of Solitude - also the approximate amount of time I tried to get into it…

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Joel J Miller's avatar

LOL

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Abigail Hummel's avatar

I double-loathe A Man Called Ove. I hated it so much that I’m refusing to read anything else by Bachman!

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Joel J Miller's avatar

I’ve only read one by Backman, Anxious People, and I hated it. I’d have a hard time working up to try another.

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Maggie O'Connor's avatar

I couldn't get through Ove. I read My Grandmother Said to Tell You She's Sorry because my bestie loves it so much and got it for me and I promised her that I would. It's fine. I won't be reading any other Bachman books.

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C O's avatar

I whole heartedly agree about Bachman but the book that sent me over the edge was Anxious People. Never again.

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Joel J Miller's avatar

Truly terrible.

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Lauren Flanagan's avatar

Gilead by Marilynne Robinson

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Joel J Miller's avatar

Ugh. Same. I can’t get into her work. I’m going to try the fiction again at some point, but her essays and nonfiction work (e.g., the Genesis book) really turn me off.

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Virginia Postrel's avatar

I recently tried listening to the audiobook and abandoned it partway through.

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Maggie O'Connor's avatar

I had to read it for a book club and I'm done with her now, too! Just brutal.

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Jayna Venturini's avatar

Yes! Same here. I couldn’t get through Gilead. Sometimes it’s all about timing, so I may revisit this one.

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Tracey Taylor's avatar

See, that is so funny, because there are plenty of books I just can’t slog through, but I’ve read Gilead twice.

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Joel J Miller's avatar

Mileage may vary :)

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Ryan Hall's avatar

For me, it would be Done Quixote and Catch 22. I guess I am just not a fan of that kind of satire

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Joel J Miller's avatar

I enjoyed Catch 22 but Quixote! I’ve started that four or five times.

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Dominika's avatar

Oh this is a fun one to think about. A Gentleman in Moscow is on my list too. It felt like there was something off about the fairy tale-esque telling of Count Rostov's gilded cage situation while millions of other people were suffering unspeakable horrors at the time. I didn't feel much sympathy for him.

Also: My Name is Lucy Barton, The Goldfinch, All the Light We Cannot See

And I just read John William's Stoner, which I've seen described as a 'perfect novel' multiple times, and while it was thought-provoking, I didn't find it as masterful as it was purported to be.

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Joel J Miller's avatar

Yes, I couldn’t work up any interest in the count. I just didn’t care about him.

Also: All the Light We Cannot See! That’s on my list too. I loved Cloud Cuckoo Land, but couldn’t get into All the Light.

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Milena Billik's avatar

I'm glad I'm not the only one who abandoned The Goldfinch. I gave it multiple chances, there was even one stretch that I was beginning to enjoy but that stretch was surrounded by what, to me, was bad prose, playing for time plot-wise, and implausible psychology.

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Dominika's avatar

I really want to love Donna Tartt but I never understand when people praise the beauty of her writing. So much of The Goldfinch was just tedious to me.

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Marta Kvande's avatar

Stoner really pissed me off. The title character is just a complete jerk. We're supposed to sympathize with him while he cheats on his wife? No thanks. I'm really over books that valorize assholes.

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Joel J Miller's avatar

I get that.

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Dominika's avatar

Agreed. I also found Edith to be portrayed in a very cartoonish way. There are some male writers who I just don't think write women convincingly.

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Shideh Mirashrafi's avatar

Mrs Dalloway🫢

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Joel J Miller's avatar

I’ve never even tried it.

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Rayna Alsberg's avatar

Aww, I loved it. But it didn't set my world on fire or anything.

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JK THOMAS's avatar

I recommend reading it along with The Hours (Michael Cunningham)

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Shideh Mirashrafi's avatar

It was a torturous read!

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Joel J Miller's avatar

Torturous! Yikes!

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Taylor D'Amico's avatar

I couldn't even finish reading Mrs. Dalloway.

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Shideh Mirashrafi's avatar

I literally cried trying to finish it!

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MB's avatar

Crime and Punishment. I stopped halfway through because I felt like reading it was punishment.

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C O's avatar

Crime and Punishment is one of favorite books. I have read it a number of times over the years. However a few years ago, I picked up a different translation and realized how critical the translator's role is. I could hardly make it through a quarter of the book before tossing it. Before writing it off, try a different translation.

After that experience, when multiple translations exist, I try to first assess the translations before selecting one. It makes that much difference, at least for me.

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MB's avatar

I read the Pevear & Volokhonsky translation of Anna Karenina and really enjoyed it.

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Joel J Miller's avatar

I tried the Oliver Ready translation. I struck out after 100 or so pages.

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C O's avatar

The Oliver Ready translation was the one I strongly disliked. If you are inclined to give it another try, I would recommend the Pevear & Volokhonsky translation.

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Abigail's avatar

I think you are on to something! Pevear &B Volokhonsky's translation made me a believer in War and Peace (vastly superior to the other two I read). I'm going to find their version of C & P and give it a final go.

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C O's avatar

Also, in case you are curious, YouTuber Cams Campbell Reads does a decent job comparing various translations. He has a comparison spreadsheet in the description: https://youtu.be/xdS2HWpMykg?si=W_2mov8WmosUECOh

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Joel J Miller's avatar

Excellent. Thank you!

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Joel J Miller's avatar

Same experience for me. I struggled through for a while but abandoned it. I’ll come back eventually and give it another go.

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Zina Gomez-Liss's avatar

Infinite Jest was infinitely boring to me. I was maybe 22 when I tried to read it, and I just couldn’t. Kept the book for a while then gave up and got rid of it. It was taking too much precious shelf space. Some people I admire really love this book and say incredible things about it. Perhaps I should try again but there are so many other long books that I think are much better.

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Joel J Miller's avatar

I’ve heard many people that say the infinite refers to the page count.

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Bellurgan's avatar

I always enjoyed D F Wallace’s essays, like “A Supposedly Fun Thing I’ll Never Do Again”, so I persisted with Infinite Jest. I remember the experience, and kept trying to draw some thread from it that would reward the effort. Sort of an Everest climb without anything left but frostbite: I can’t imagine recommending it to a friend.

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Zina Gomez-Liss's avatar

Thank you for saying this. You know, it’s so nice to hear it wasn’t just me.

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Marta Kvande's avatar

Agree about Wallace -- some of his writing is good, but just about all of it is so self-involved that it's just tiresome.

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Janice LeCocq's avatar

Kristin Lavransdatter

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Joel J Miller's avatar

I loved it, but I can understand why it doesn’t resonate with everyone.

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MB's avatar

I read it, but it left me flat. I couldn't get into her emotional drama. I didn't even keep the book. But I did love her father - he remains a memorable character.

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Joel J Miller's avatar

Yes, he was a long suffering man.

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Zina Gomez-Liss's avatar

I hate the character Erland. So. Much.

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Katy Sammons's avatar

Me too! I quit reading when I saw she would marry him.

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Joel J Miller's avatar

I struggled near the end as—spoiler alert—their relationship fell apart. No surprise. But her single life post Erland was inspiring.

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Zina Gomez-Liss's avatar

Yes! Exactly. I persisted to the end, and though I liked the intrigue and drama, the core family itself frustrated the heck out of me. I read because of Simon, basically. I loved his character and virtue as a man. And yet you see him wrestle with these complex feeling regarding Erland. Gah. I hate Erland.

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Joel J Miller's avatar

Yes, Simon was a good man, as was her father.

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Zina Gomez-Liss's avatar

Both Simon and Lavrans were good, and remember that Simon was picked by the good father. He recognized who among the young men could have provided a good, stable life for young Kristin. This is such a cautionary tale.

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Nicki Broch's avatar

I almost didn't finish it because I could not get out of the flood of tears - finally finished it and the two following....liked them, didn't love them

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MEP's avatar

Yes. I simply cannot care about her arc. And I know it’s redemptive, so in one sense, it’s ’worth it’ but is it, really?

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Sue Likkel's avatar

James by P. Everett. The build-up was such that I expected to relish it but halfway through I quit bc my eyes just couldn't roll anymore. How it gets acclaim is a complete mystery. Is it bc I teach literature and it is pop fiction? Not necessarily a Huck Finn lover, so that's not it...glad others like it, but my borrowed copy was hucked across the room.

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Joel J Miller's avatar

I did appreciate it, but I had a few bones to pick with it. I actually found one feature so irritating I ended up not reviewing it. I just didn’t want to write about it.

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Allison Woods's avatar

Wuthering Heights is absolute DRIVEL. I wanted to rip my eyes out after reading that garbage.

And now I am afraid to read Jane Eyre because the authors are sisters...

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Eudora Inman's avatar

I can’t stand Wuthering Heights but Jane Eyre is one of my favorites! They are completely different! Though, I was listening to a podcast recently that suggested Wuthering Heights should be read as a warning against unhealthy love not as a romance and now I kind of want to try it again (though probably won’t). It should be read the way Romeo and Juliet should be performed. It’s a warning, not “the greatest love story of all time” as some people like to refer to it.

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Allison Woods's avatar

Eudora - thanks for this encouragement! I'm glad to know these stories aren't at all like each other. That gives me hope!!

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MEP's avatar

Charlotte Brontë is a much better stylist than Emily was. But it’s still high gothic romance. I don’t like Jane Eyre as a story because I don’t particularly like high gothic romance. But it’s very beautiful to read, and Jane is a remarkable character. Whereas Wurthering Heights is just dribble. And the characters are awful.

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Allison Woods's avatar

It sounds like they are very different stories, and very differently written stories, which is encouraging to me. I will give Jane E a chance. Thank you for explaining the differences to me.

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Joel J Miller's avatar

Haha! You’ll have to see if your impression runs in the family :)

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Allison Woods's avatar

LOL You are right! I should face my fear, be brave and jump in! Maybe read Jane Eyre with a friend so someone is holding my hand. 😁

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Joel J Miller's avatar

Sometimes reading with a friend is a really great idea, just to get you through the dryer bumpy parts.

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Ima's avatar

Jane Eyre is probably my favorite book of all times. Read it first when I was a young teen, and probably 4 or 5 times since then. My mother liked Wuthering Heights, so I tried it. Detested the characters, and the entire book!

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Allison Woods's avatar

Wow! That's a great endorsement for Jane E, especially since you didn't like WH. Proof that they are very different books!!!

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Elf's avatar

Anything by Virginia Woolf, though I see what people see in her from the movies, especially Orlando and Mrs Dalloway. I watch Mrs Dalloway every year, but I was only able to get through the (slim) book once, and would never have remembered it afterward!

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Joel J Miller's avatar

I think Woolf might be a love-her-or-hate-her proposition.

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Mrs. Erika Reily's avatar

I really want to love her because we share a birthday! but so far, I've tried with Mrs. Dalloway, and, I always seem to set it down in favor of others things. It's only a couple hundred pages so I should be able to make it work but it's not grabbing me, at all.

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Elf's avatar

Watch the movie with Vanessa Redgrave! She narrates all through it. Actually I bet VW might be better read aloud? Hmm …

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Mrs. Erika Reily's avatar

I also couldn't get through A Gentleman in Moscow.

Recently tried Piranesi and it was a total no-go. Abandoned ship around page 25 or so. Skimmed reviews and it seems it is a love it or hate it title.

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Allison Woods's avatar

Loved A Gentleman in Moscow, but I can understand why someone might not. In some ways, there really is no plot.

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Joel J Miller's avatar

That’s where I ran aground. I didn’t feel like anything was actually happening.

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Rayna Alsberg's avatar

OK, heavy sigh. We read Gentleman for Book Club 📚, and I agree that it's well written and has plenty of good points. BUT, and it's a big BUT, the whole premise is flawed. NONE of this would, or could, have happened. I get fantasy, and occasionally read it, but this is supposed to be realistic, unless I missed something, and it's not realistic in the slightest. This gentleman would have been shot summarily; he could not have lived on his "antique gold coins," because that constituted economic crime, which was punished most severely of all, and he could not have raised a little girl for x many years in his garret apartment, etc. [throws hands in air] It is just not believable.

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Mrs. Erika Reily's avatar

You sound like me talking as the only person in the world who thought that Where the Crawdads Sing was ludicrous in half a dozen ways! :D

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Rayna Alsberg's avatar

Groan. I've seen it on so many lists, Crawdads, that is, and it doesn't attract me at all.

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Lauren Flanagan's avatar

Yes to all of this! The cognitive dissonance necessary for me to read and try to believe aspects of the book were just *too* much.

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Joel J Miller's avatar

I just found myself bored out of my mind.

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Rayna Alsberg's avatar

I meant to say, if you present something as historical fiction, it should at least be plausible.

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Rayna Alsberg's avatar

That's what I'm saying.

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MB's avatar

I really loved Gentleman, too. I read it twice, almost back-to-back. It was my favorite Covid era book.

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Joel J Miller's avatar

My wife loved it! She kept after me to read it for a while. Just never sparked.

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Charlotte Shirey's avatar

The Road. The Cormac McSomething

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Joel J Miller's avatar

I LOVED that one! But I totally get it. Not for everyone, or maybe even most.

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JK THOMAS's avatar

Loved Suttree; on my All Time Favorites list.

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Joel J Miller's avatar

I’ve not read Suttree yet. But I do love most of the McCarthy I’ve read.

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JK THOMAS's avatar

I live near Knoxville where Suttree is set and the landmarks of the town were so much a part of the story. It gave me new eyes to see my town. I have a whole other perspective of Henley Bridge for sure.

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Joel J Miller's avatar

I just finished re-reading Child of God. I’m planning on sharing my review of that this weekend.

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Peter C. Meilaender's avatar

I would add his last two, The Passenger and Stella Maris. They were okay, but a little disappointing.

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Joel J Miller's avatar

I haven’t ventured into those yet.

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Peter C. Meilaender's avatar

There’s probably no rush. ; )

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TimG's avatar

As I Lay Dying. A description of me, slogging to the finish of this book. Stream of consciousness narration by 15 different characters, what could go wrong?

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Joel J Miller's avatar

A friend just finished reading that. I think he liked it. He said he a lot to process from it.

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TimG's avatar

Perhaps I just lack processing power. 😬

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Joel J Miller's avatar

LOL. Same here :)

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Virginia Postrel's avatar

Anything by Jane Austen. Intellectually I appreciate her accomplishment, but I just can't care about her characters.

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Joel J Miller's avatar

Alas. I was surprised how much I enjoyed Pride and Prejudice. I found the humor and snark delightful. That said, I’ve struggled getting up the interest to try another of hers. Eventually.

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Lauren Flanagan's avatar

Same! I grew up in an Austenite's house so this was a hard one to come to terms with 😆 I will say Persuasion is the only one that gave me *some* kind of feelings toward the characters, but even so it was a stretch!

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Joel J Miller's avatar

I’ve heard many say Persuasion is her best.

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Tessa's avatar

Yes. I love Austen myself, but contrary to most Persuasion is my least favourite. Only one I had to put down and start over again another time. By the time I finished I liked it but doubt I’ll reread that one.

Read Mansfield Park most recently and really enjoyed it.

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Haley Baumeister's avatar

lol same - I have tried and found her insufferable. so verbose! so chatty! I know she's somehow brilliant but I just cannot muster myself to care about her characters, either.

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