Pick 3 most-despised books...

V by Thomas Pynchon Love and Guts in High School by Kathy Acker Anything by DH Lawrence Now that should put some cats amongst some pigeons! Pip pip

glamorama - Brett Easten Ellis....liked his other stuff, this was just bland and banal and I haven't got around to finishing it. Portrait of a Young Artist -Joyce - we were doing this for a'level many moons ago and forced the teacher to give us a Dicken's novel instead I'll agree that the Bridget jones rip off merchants must leave the building, also Irvine Welsh clones, and anything written about gap years in India....yawnnnnnn!!!

Bridget Jones? Who she?

oh, i remembered... she of the large underwear. Haven't seen it, but it sounds awful. I'd place the book last on my list of must-get-around-to-reading-that-one-of-these-days books.

I could quite cheerfully go the rest of my life without ever reading another Jane Austen. Fantastic Mr Fox (I was a lightening reader at school and the teacher would not believe that I had finished it, despite a (I think) well-crafted book report - so I had to read it nine times. Good as Dahl can be from time to time, FMF does not stand that sort of close proximity re-reading) Very few books that I don't finish, which has to be part of my criteria - anything Irvine Welsh did after the brilliant Trainspotting, purely for the huge crash of disappointment. Can't recall the particular novel but in one, after 500 pages, the only good bit was a one sentence cameo of 'a scots lad with red hair called Renton' - that's a pretty woeful highlight.

Anything by that purveyor of dog shite, Jeffrey Archer. Anything by the king of garbage Jeffrey Archer. Anything by lowlife swamp inhabitant Jeffrey Archer. Oh yes, and Jeffrey Archer!!!

The only book I truly depise is the The Iron Man by Ted Hughes. Not because I have anything in particular against the book itself but because, when I was in primary, we were subjected to at least four complete readings, in class and assemblies. I also dislike comedy fantasy books by the likes of Terry Pratchett (how do you spell his name) and Tom Holt. Because people always tell me they're funny but they always turn out to be so tedious that they're impossible to finish.

Hurrah Hurrah David.... At last a fellow pratchett despiser. I have to sit listening to someone sniggering and saying "Oh, this is so funny" whilst they read discworld dross.... I've tried, honest I have, but it IS tedious...its NOT funny..... I get the impression that Terry Pratchett has produced the Emporers New Clothes with this never ending discworld series.. *sits back and waits to be stoned to death*

I've never read any terry pratchett so there's no need to dck...no stones will come your way...i have no desire top read any, i beleive that they are a series of books and I just can't be arsed......

Thank you Liana and dave. I did try to read a few of Terry Prat @!#$'s "novels", and found that they were utterly boring. His idea is to ensnare a generation or two of Discwurruld readers to the point of addiction, ensuring his continued success. He can churn these books out at an astonishing rate - almost as quickly as some read them. I met him. He wears a black hat.

there is so much sh*tty, drossy, pulp out there that I cannot pick three, but I am quite lucky with books. i think I have a real shite detector. You can't really knock Ulysses or war and peace just because they are long or ambitious. Ulysses is a towering achievement (pun there for the initiate). better turn your gum gun on pants like all those awful, garish chick and lad novels with the flourescent covers that block up waterstones like lurid, co-agulating corpuscles in a diseased artery. revile the vile, not the deep. If it's not you're cup of tea don't read it but ulysses is a masterstroke and as for the name of the rose, fantastic. i went through that as if it was Just William. Surely this is just a cracking good atmospheric detective thriller with a few pervy monks thrown in for pepper and spice. Why are people put off by unusual ideas. that's what art IS. (here we go again)

fav's are 'Walden'-thoureaux' (might have spelled name wrong) 'Hitch-Hikers Guide To The Galaxy'(all of them)-Adams(may he feast in peace) 'Childhood, Boyhood & Youth'-Tolstoi books that I'd consider burning if they weren't holy 'The Inferior Sex'-(some feminist who's name I refused to remember on grounds of principle) 'Tale of Two Cities'-Dickens(sorry to all the puritans) Anything(word-up to Missisipi)by 'testical breath' jeffrey arch(hole)er (note the lack of capitals)

Germaine Greer?

I just LOVE myself!

anything supposedly written by a celebrity

Life is Elsewhere by Milan Kundera (except I love the title) A Prayer for Owen Meany by John Irvine (except I usually like him - especially Setting Free the Bears) High Fidelity by Nick Hornby (nothing new to say and no new way to say it. Why did he bother. Maybe the extremely large advance.) Anyone got any views on books they originally struggled with but ended up loving. Mine are: The Name of THe Rose by Umberto Echo. V by Thomas Pynchon (but see Tony Cook above who has the same book on his 'hate' list) Slaughterhouse 5 by Kurt Vonnegut. And the one book I've tried to read a thousand times and never got past page 10, also mentioned above in Emily Dubberley's hate list is ULYSSES.

Just a little tip on reading Ulysses, next time start on page eleven!

i despise the bible, it takes such a long time to get to the point.

What exactly is the point and when does it actually get to it? I must have inadvertently skipped that page.

Possibly it's all the 'begatting' that puts people off?

That was the bit I always enjoyed!

So John - you thought Name of the Rose and Slaughterhouse 5 difficult 6to get into but worthwhile. I leapt into both and love them to this day - especially S5. But V - I've had four goes at it and just can't get beyond the page 50. It's just plain impenetrable for me!

Blimey, Tony. I posted that so long ago I'd forgotten. To be honest, got into S5 not too badly - I just used it to make up my list of three. Sorry for the small cheat. On the other hand, must have taken me about 100 pages to get into The Name of the Rose. As for V, ages and ages but I just ended up liking the rhythm of the language without, admittedly, having the foggiest idea what Mr. Pynchon was on about half the time. What about Gravity's Rainbow - is this any easier? Anyway, has anyone solved the mystery of what 'V' actually stands for and is Pynchon just a pseudonym for JD Salinger which is a theory I have heard more than once. Must admit I can't see much in common between 'Cathcer' and 'V'.

Blimey, Tony. I posted that so long ago I'd forgotten. To be honest, got into S5 not too badly - I just used it to make up my list of three. Sorry for the small cheat. On the other hand, must have taken me about 100 pages to get into The Name of the Rose. As for V, ages and ages but I just ended up liking the rhythm of the language without, admittedly, having the foggiest idea what Mr. Pynchon was on about half the time. What about Gravity's Rainbow - is this any easier? Anyway, has anyone solved the mystery of what 'V' actually stands for and is Pynchon just a pseudonym for JD Salinger which is a theory I have heard more than once. Must admit I can't see much in common between 'Cathcer' and 'V'.

Ulysses Pride and Prejudice Anyone trying to write a Bridget Jones rip-off