So. I love books. Obvi.
Sometimes
I love a certain book for years. Sometimes I love a certain book for
years, then one day go, "Whoa. That's... not my thing at all."
This
doesn't happen often, but it's happened. Usually, it's because I've
grown as a reader, and the elements I once enjoyed in a particular book
become either meh or annoying. Or it could be because I've grown as a
writer and have learned how to improve my craft. As I re-read That Book,
I discover a lot of things I don't find as impressive anymore. It
doesn't have to be grammatical/structure concerns, but also
characterization and depth and emotional resonance. These are more
important to me, mainly because as a writer, I devote more care to those
three first and foremost.
So how about you? Do you have That Book in your life, too? Why do you think you loved it once upon a time? Warning: Name dropping and book/author bashing isn't necessary, so please refrain from doing so. I'm in a lovely mood today. :)
Definitely. It was a book I've read five time, but now realize that wasn't a good thing. I learned some bad mistakes from it, which took me years to unlearn. :P
ReplyDeleteI've had some of those. Mostly, it's the ones that I loved as a younger person but reread and now it just doesn't connect. I didn't have the maturity to understand certain things, or the things I connected to when I was younger would simply ring hollow later on.
ReplyDeleteI think this happens eventually to any reader who reads widely and rereads. But it doesn't have to be seen as a, "Wow this book was bad, only I didn't realize it back then." It could be more of a, "This book was just what I needed when I read it, so I'm glad I read it back then, because I'm in a different place now, and it no longer wows me the way it once did."
ReplyDeleteI have one book in which I experience a similar phenomenon. In my case, however, I find that, as my life experiences change I connect with different parts of the book. In this particular book there is a very sweet romantic subplot and I loved it as a young and inexperienced teenager pining for love. Now, as a married woman, the nuances on that particular romance no longer make me feel fluttery and excited, but I appreciate the political and social aspects of the book so much more now.
ReplyDeleteSometimes I strongly dislike a book that a majority of other readers ADORE. I often wonder what they're seeing that I'm not, LOL! I tend not to say anything.
ReplyDelete