I was so bored by Kerouac’s ‘The Dharma Bums’ that I ditched it half way through. Just not for me.
sc2summerloud on
ready player one.
severely diminished my respect for the friend who gave it to me.
same thing for Ishmael.
Andjhostet on
The Fountainhead by Ayn Rand
I judge books based on 4 aspects: characters, themes, plot, and prose. This is one of the only books I’ve read where I consider all four aspects terrible. Tons of spoilers ahead so be warned if you plan on reading this terrible work.
Characters: They are all so, so bad. Very shallow with no depth, and any “growth” they have goes in the wrong direction and makes them worse people than they were before. The main protagonist rapes someone and she likes it and then they ruin their lives and everyone’s lives around them.
Plot: Some parts were pretty ok. Some parts were completely nonsensical and full of deus ex machinas. The main character commits an act of terrorism and the judge decides it was ok because he did it due to his beliefs. Utterly moronic. The “villain” (I was cheering for him) just does things inexplicably cruel with absolutely no reason to or any intrinsic motivation to, for the sole purpose of trying to paint collectivism as bad.
Themes: Morally repugnant in every way. Paints any form of collectivism as evil. You should never, ever think about what another person may want or how to make them happy. Only care about yourself. Absolutely disgusting and everything that’s wrong with our society. Some of the writings about the architectural design philosophy of designing a space that works for you rather than everyone else was interesting but the larger theme it was trying to impart on the reader is abhorrent.
Prose: Childish and low complexity. Written at a middle school level at best, it is very simple, but at the same time, the prose is repetitive and drags quite a bit. When writing about the architectural prowess, philosophy, and achievements of some of Howard’s designs, it had some moments of brilliance. But that was maybe 10 pages worth in a book of 900 pages.
3 Comments
I was so bored by Kerouac’s ‘The Dharma Bums’ that I ditched it half way through. Just not for me.
ready player one.
severely diminished my respect for the friend who gave it to me.
same thing for Ishmael.
The Fountainhead by Ayn Rand
I judge books based on 4 aspects: characters, themes, plot, and prose. This is one of the only books I’ve read where I consider all four aspects terrible. Tons of spoilers ahead so be warned if you plan on reading this terrible work.
Characters: They are all so, so bad. Very shallow with no depth, and any “growth” they have goes in the wrong direction and makes them worse people than they were before. The main protagonist rapes someone and she likes it and then they ruin their lives and everyone’s lives around them.
Plot: Some parts were pretty ok. Some parts were completely nonsensical and full of deus ex machinas. The main character commits an act of terrorism and the judge decides it was ok because he did it due to his beliefs. Utterly moronic. The “villain” (I was cheering for him) just does things inexplicably cruel with absolutely no reason to or any intrinsic motivation to, for the sole purpose of trying to paint collectivism as bad.
Themes: Morally repugnant in every way. Paints any form of collectivism as evil. You should never, ever think about what another person may want or how to make them happy. Only care about yourself. Absolutely disgusting and everything that’s wrong with our society. Some of the writings about the architectural design philosophy of designing a space that works for you rather than everyone else was interesting but the larger theme it was trying to impart on the reader is abhorrent.
Prose: Childish and low complexity. Written at a middle school level at best, it is very simple, but at the same time, the prose is repetitive and drags quite a bit. When writing about the architectural prowess, philosophy, and achievements of some of Howard’s designs, it had some moments of brilliance. But that was maybe 10 pages worth in a book of 900 pages.