Never Again, William Faulkner

I have now had my Kindle for over 6 months now. It has been a blessing with all of the interminably long road trips I have had to endure over the same period of time. The kids watch DVD's and I listen to audio books. I have really listened to some good ones. I have been the ultimate multi-tasker. 


 However, my selections have not always been top-notch. For example, I have really been pushing my comfort level, trying to tackle the classics of our time. I listened to I, Claudius by Robert Graves and I loved it. But this has not always been the case. 


Today, after plodding through one particular author, I have had to throw in the towel. It was just a horrific book. I couldn't take it anymore. The worst part is that I invested 9.5 hours into it and only had 3 more to go. But I think I would rather eat a plate full of lima beans while watching a bowling tournament, than listen to another minute of that book.

The book was Absalom, Absalom by William Faulkner.  It was the same small plot repeated over and over and over again with a whole lot of pronouns, so I was never sure who was talking or who they were talking about.  It was written in 1938, and so I guess that makes it a classic.  Here is another interesting fact from Wikipedia: The 1983 Guinness Book of World Records claims the "Longest Sentence in Literature" is a sentence from Absalom, Absalom! containing 1,300 words.   Yep, I think that sentence was the first 9 hours of my audio book, actually.

So here is my question...because a book is written by a well-respected, classic author, does that mean I am required to love and revere the book? I didn't care for The Hunchback of Notre Dame. I mean, it was just okay.  I totally don't get Ernest Hemingway and Anna Karenina was the longest. Book. Ever.

I keep a Goodreads list of all the books I have read. I love that website. I won't credit myself with reading a book unless I finished it.  However, since I invested so much time in this book and because I read the cliff notes to see how it ended, I am putting it down and checking it off. I mean, since I had to endure the 'n' word 300 hundred times, I think it is only fair.