Welcome to the Moonlight Library’s 30 Day Book Challenge!
This meme intends to generate discussion, so please feel free to add a comment.
This particular challenge is taken from the 30 Day Challenge Archive on Tumblr.
Day 08 – Most Overrated Book
I feel that the most overrated book I have read is
The Fault in Our Stars by John Green
This book is a cancer book. I originally didn’t want to read it (because I prefer fluffy books, and contemporary isn’t my favourite genre either), but I had a very dear friend who read it and loved the shit out of it, which made me decide maybe it was worth reading after all. Then my dear sweet lovely friend died – of cancer – and I read it as a tribute to her.
In this book, the main character Hazel is living on borrowed time – her cancer has been suppressed, but it’s going to come back. It’s only a matter of time. Hazel talks about her inevitable death as when, not if. Then she meets a manic pixie dream boy and they bond over pretentious shit and then something tragic happens that apparently breaks everyone’s heart but mine.
In the book Hazel jokes a lot about ‘cancer perks’, which are, you know, perks people get because they have cancer. Which is totally cool, I don’t have a problem with that, free stuff to dying people, but I feel that this book is asking for a perk because it’s about cancer. Which I am totally not OK with.
I wasn’t impressed with the book, I didn’t like it, and I don’t understand why it’s so popular.
There’s a film coming out, which, incidentally, I probably won’t see. The trailer’s not been released yet.
What book do you feel is most overrated?
Have you fallen for the hype and then been disappointed?
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About Nemo
A lover of kittens and all things sparkly, Nemo has a degree in English Literature and specialises in reviewing contemporary, paranormal, mystery/thriller, historical, sci-fi and fantasy Young Adult fiction. She is especially drawn to novels about princesses, strong female friendships, magical powers, and assassins.
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whitleybirks
I haven’t even read the book, but just from the hype I’ve seen and the stuff I’ve heard about, I’d still call it overrated. I understand the appeal, to a certain degree, but even just the quotes I’ve read of it are so ridiculously pretentious.
Nemo
LOL yes I guess you could call some of it pretentious, although I just didn’t understand why so many people were going so wild for this book.
dthom268
I guess it depends of prefrence. I think because you said you had a friend with cancer, well maybe that effected your view of this book. Personally I really liked it.
Nemo
I don’t really think my friend’s death affected my reading of the book at all, because I’m quite a critical reader. I did like the book, I just don’t understand the hype about it. I’m glad you liked it, too!
Eve
I liked The Fault In Our Stars, though I DO think it’s a bit overrated.
I probably liked it because while I can totally get down with the silliest of things, I definitely do have my pretentious moments, and it likely spoke to that XD
Nemo
Thank you for your honesty! I liked the book, too – 3 stars meant I liked it. But I didn’t LOVE it and I think a lot of people are being overly nice to it because it’s a cancer book and you have to be nice to cancer things. Or something. You know, cancer perks.
theredqueenhypothesis
I agree, haha! Definitely cancer perks. That’s why it’s winning all those awards. It’s like any other movie about a “challenging issue” (you see this with topics like homosexuality, race, etc.) which, you know, I have nothing at all against…I just notice that often these movies/books get more praise than they would have if they’d have been about something less…perk-worthy. Haha 😀
Nemo
It’s like the time in the Ricky Gervais TV show Extras when Kate Winslet took on the role of this nun in WWII because she wanted to win an Oscar! I know completely what you mean. I’m a bit more critical than loving a book just because of the issues it tackles (or the ‘hot’ guy).