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NO point reading more than 1 by any author

oldboy

oldboy

New Member
Let's face it everyone writes a book that completely stands head and shoulders over the rest of their works>>
With so much to read [so little time] there's not a lot of point reading the shmaltz

you might as well move on, ex to the next and pickup a new authors BEST book.


or not>>>>>
???
 
Just one book by H.G. Wells, Jasper Fforde, William Shakespeare or J.K. Rowling??? One by Stephen King, Michael Crichton, Jane Austen or Richard Mathewson?
You must be kidding! Most of the "bad" books of some authors are better than the best of others!
 
wells - war of the worlds
shakespeare - king lear
king - the stand [maybe shining]
crichton - jurassic
austen - all equally unreadable
havent read the rest im afriad

i think it's rare you get a sleeper book.


and i definitely dont agree that a good writers' bad books are often better than a genraly poor writers' best>>lots of people have wicked ideas / premises that they then simply cant better but neither can others beat their standout regardles of their genral ability
 
So what about The Time Machine, Hamlet and The Lost World?
How can you choose the best book of an author when you havn't read all of them?
You think King Lear is Shakespeare's best book, but that may not be the popular opinion.
 
But how do you know which book is the author's best, if you haven't read more than one written by him/her? :confused:
Besides a book I regard as the best written by an author, you might not.
You can't possibly know which ones are the best, if you haven't weighed them up with those you find “bad”. Right?
 
Plenty of authors don't have just 1 very best book, but a few. And the books aren't all the same, they all have different messages. Surely you can't say a great author is limited to writing only 1 book worth reading!
 
it doesnt matter which your perceive their BEST to be; thats irrelevant. i just tend to find i love one book so much more than any others that they just cant compare
so i figure why waste my time reading a second rate version of whateevr my fave might be>>u know


why have cotton when u can have silk?
 
But if you have not read them all, how can you know the one that you've chosen to be your favorite is actually the best? Perhaps you've left one unread that will blow away all others, but you never read it because you think you've already found the author's best.

For me, just because I may like one work by an author more than the others, does not mean their other works are not worth reading. Just the opposite, in most cases. If you truly wanted to only read one book by each author, for fear of reading something second best, then you might just want to read one book ever. I mean, what if all other books fail to meet the standards of your favorite book of all time?
 
If I read something by an author and really like it, my first reaction is to read more by that author! After all, if you don't like it, you don't have to let it waste your time, you can just stop reading it!
 
Michigan said:
If I read something by an author and really like it, my first reaction is to read more by that author! After all, if you don't like it, you don't have to let it waste your time, you can just stop reading it!
Click to expand...


I have this same reaction. If I find someone whose writing I love, why not read more of that writing? I voraciously read the works of favorite authors...its almost like I can't get enough of their writing. And there is the comfort factor...there are certain authors who I know I can turn to when I'm feeling a certain way, who will immediately satisfy the needs of my current mood.
 
i will read an author's catalogue if im diggin their stuff but generally I'll have initally picked the best [or will subsequently come across it - it doesnt matter]

BUT having sampled their stuff i would rather return to my fave time and again than read the 2nd rate stuff

so for eg - ive recently found sebastian faulks. read birdsong and LOVED it. then read lion d'or and am about to start charlotte gray. but I have a feeling birdsong is going to be the one i come back to whereas im not likely to bother with the others as i only want the real deal holyfield
 
oldboy said:
it doesnt matter which your perceive their BEST to be; thats irrelevant. i just tend to find i love one book so much more than any others that they just cant compare
so i figure why waste my time reading a second rate version of whateevr my fave might be>>u know


why have cotton when u can have silk?
Click to expand...

Did you actually think this through before posting or did you just post some random thoughts?

How did you find that one book that you love the most without reading them all?
 
oldboy said:
Let's face it everyone writes a book that completely stands head and shoulders over the rest of their works>>
With so much to read [so little time] there's not a lot of point reading the shmaltz

you might as well move on, ex to the next and pickup a new authors BEST book.


or not>>>>>
???
Click to expand...
I’d go with or not …
Most of the books I tend to read are part of series and as such I would find it very hard to read just one book by any given author. I would miss out on either the background, or where the story was heading,
Also I agree with Maya, how do you tell which is an authors best work? You have stated that Jurassic was (in your opinion) Michael Crichtons best book. Now whilst I am not denying that it was an entertaining read, it was by no means my favourite of his works. I happen to much prefer Timeline as it was written in a style that appeals to me. I also don’t consider King Lear to be the best Shakespeare has written, but again it’s each to their own :)
 
I agree with the consensus here, for reasons stated above (not being able to judge, wanting to follow a series' arc). Besides, let's face it, none of us are immortal. Even if all the authors in the world stopped writing now, there is probably little chance of ever getting through all the non-schmaltzy stuff. So I just read what I can read, and leave it at that. :)
 
I would like to echo everybody else... else... else... else... :D

How do you know which book is the best? Maybe they have written for books even and they have not written their best book yet? Maybe they will write it in 20 years??? How do you know?

Even of their written books. You cannot possibly know which book is their best book. You can't do it by reviews because everybody has a different taste in what they like.

Thirdly, maybe they have one book that you like the most but what about the other books? They maybe not better but they might be just as good. Are they not worth reading? Also, he might have other things to say that are important in those other books and so making them worth the read!
 
oldboy said:
i will read an author's catalogue if im diggin their stuff but

BUT having sampled their stuff i would rather return to my fave time and again than read the 2nd rate stuff
Click to expand...


did every1 stop reading after i explained myself further [better - lol]?
 
oldboy said:
did every1 stop reading after i explained myself further [better - lol]?
Click to expand...
I saw your response, but I think everyone was shocked by your first post, as you did not explain yourself clearly. I do tend to return to favorite books by a particular author more than others, myself; but I do at least give most/all of their other books a try before claiming I've found my favorite.
 
I will do that sometimes. I've been reading a lot of new authors lately and it's hard when you start out to determine which ones are your style or not. If I really like the book I'll read others by the same author, if it's just okay I'll consider reading more. If I hate the book, it's very unlikely I'll be able to read another by that author.

Recent personal examples:

Really liked: Clive Cussler, Sidney Sheldon - I just can't read their books fast enough now.
Okay: Mary Higgins Clark, Michael Crichton, Stephen King - Good authors, but not quite my style. But chances are, I will read more by them.
Abhorred: Nora Roberts. - Enough said.
 
it seems pointless to read finnegans wake if you haven't read ulysses, pointless to read ulysses if you haven't read a portrait of the artist as a young man, and pointless to read a portrait ... if you haven't read the dubliners.
 
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