Frustrating Reads

Alright. I did read a book for this week, and I will talk about it. Hell, I even tried a second book. But – y’all – it was frustrating.

Attempt #1

I’ve thought about whether to reveal what book I’m talking about. I’ve decided not to. It’s an author that I enjoy and a book that came out a few decades ago; I was just late to the party on this book. I will give you a synopsis, though, so if you can identify it from that . . . well, congratulations, or my condolences.

The book is about a boy growing up in the 60’s. He comes from a long line of ghost-whisperers, all on his mother’s Native American side, which gives him the ability to help the dead cross over to the other side (wherever that is). He can also see when a person is near death. Unfortunately, he lives in the south where “racial equality” is a dirty word and “ghost-whispering” is less than socially acceptable.

He gets no help from his dad, who replaces his fear with his temper and believes Christianity is the end-all-be-all of everything. So his mom and grandma teach him everything they can about what his skills mean and how to use them. Life is hard, money is tight, and when his father is injured he has to grow up fast. After he graduates high school, he can’t help but take an opportunity to travel from home to earn money.

All the while, a popular Christian evangelical speaker is raising his son to follow in his footsteps. He’s built an empire on donations from poor people as he goes town to town holding tent revivals. He’s also convinced that his son has the God-given ability to heal people of their afflictions, which may or may not be true. He hates the idea of witchcraft, which clearly our protagonist must practice, and indoctrinates his own son to feel the same. When he dies of a heart attack, the son is asked to takeover his Christian empire but struggles with his own feelings of insecurity.

So, this whole book builds two story lines. On one side, you have a young man who is learning to control and use his ability to help others and, generally, trying to do what’s right. On the other side, you have a young man who was spoiled as a child and is trying desperately to uphold his father’s legacy despite his personal issues.

The book, let’s say, is 500 pages. For most of the book, you realize there’s going to be some kind of confrontation between the two main characters. How can there not be? Then there’s a little twist that’s shocking and you think “this confrontation is definitely going to be interesting”. And around page 350, you start looking for this confrontation. By page 400, you’re really read for it. But the characters don’t actually meet up for this confrontation until page 480. The confrontation lasts maybe 1 page, the insecure kid abruptly changes tune over the span of 1 page, they interact politely for 2 pages, and that’s it.

frustrating

Here are some thoughts I had at the end:

  • Really? That’s it?
  • No, really, that was it??
  • That wasn’t a confrontation. That was more like, “oh, now that I see you, yeah, maybe I’ve had the wrong idea, but don’t worry; I will completely change my opinion faster than you can blink an eye, and will do whatever I can to right the wrong”. This happened with everyone.
  • Seriously??
  • This is super frustrating.

If ever there was a book that felt like an author suddenly realized he was on page 480 and had a maximum length of 500 words and thought “holy crap, I’ve gotta wrap this up!” – this is that book. It was almost a little too tidy. And too rushed. I mean, yes, I suppose it’s plausible that everyone the protagonist interacted with might have a sudden come-to-Jesus moment, and without hesitation they abandon all their ideas and feelings that they’ve harbored for decades. But seriously. I just don’t buy it.

Attempt #2

Not to be deterred, I decided to read something else. Maybe if one book was so frustrating, another book would be more palatable. I have a book that I’ve been trying to read for over a year. It’s a book that has won awards and been optioned for a movie and my friends like it and it gets excellent reviews and I WANT to love it. I’ve tried to read it at least five times. Despite my best and legitimate efforts, I STILL cannot get into it. I get to page 30 and literally cannot take it anymore.

frustrating

And I know there are two sequels, and both sequels have gotten great reviews, and I really WANT to be able to read them without feeling like I’m dying a little with every page. I want to understand what all the fuss is about. I want to have the option later of watching a movie of a book I’ve already read (because the books are almost always better than the movie). Despite what I want, I just can’t. It’s very frustrating.

Usually, about 99% of the time, I will finish whatever book I’m reading. If I start a book, I have at least a mild curiosity about where the story goes or how it will end, and usually that’s enough for me to read the whole thing. Or, even if I think I know how the story will progress, I at least like the characters and want to spend some time in their world.

I would guess most of us have had some sort of similar experience, where the book we’re reading leaves us frustrated. Hopefully, these experiences are few and far between.

 

 

Discussion

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