The book sold very well and the author in question has written some bestsellers. When reading Amazon and GoodReads.com reviews of the work (and I use that term lightly), mostly written by ordinary people, I see opinions divide largely into two camps: (a) the writer is brilliant and the book is great or (b) the writer is a talentless hack and the book is wretched. Given a sizable group are in the latter camp, it's reassuring to see at least I'm not alone in my opinion.
I was talking to The Husband about this, still mystified that people could think such wretched crap was fantastic. He had an interesting take.
More people have poor taste than good taste, he said. They come to their opinions quickly and without any thought, like a small child. That's why there's fast food. And moronic reality television shows. And people who follow Paris Hilton.
More people will enjoy crack than Proust's novels, he said. Ergo, just because something is popular doesn't mean it's inherently good or worthwhile.
"Too many people just love bad shit because they don't know any better," he concluded.
It may be an old saying, but it's still true: "there's no accounting for bad taste."
4 comments:
I was disappointed that you did not let your readers know the book that you read. I read your blog daily and though I don't agree with everything you have to say I would have liked to know where I stood in regards to the book.
I like you and your blog!!
So true. And what a clever way to explain it. I am rarely able to get beyond page 2 of most novels for this very reason.
Anon, email me at hypersexualgirl at gmail dot com and I'll tell you the book and author.
Amen!
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