The most lied about book....

[Lalwendë]

And almost half of respondents said that reading classic titles like Jane Eyre or Pride and Prejudice makes you appear more intelligent.

Thinking about it this quote makes me laugh. Makes you 'appear' more intelligent? Is that like this thing some people have of choosing the 'right' book to read on a beach holiday, based on what image it projects rather than if they actually want to read it?

I don't see the point in forcing yourself to be 'seen' reading something if it's a load of rubbish, personally! Yes, I'm not one of those people who would buy a Harry Potter in 'adult' dustjackets. Why hide it? Likewise, I hated that homes trend in the 80s for 'fake books', basically blocks of 'leather look' plastic which were made to look like sets of Dickens or Shakespeare and somehow make the homeowner look more intelligent.

[Nogrod]

Originally Posted by Lalwendë

I don't see the point in forcing yourself to be 'seen' reading something if it's a load of rubbish, personally! Yes, I'm not one of those people who would buy a Harry Potter in 'adult' dustjackets. Why hide it? Likewise, I hated that homes trend in the 80s for 'fake books', basically blocks of 'leather look' plastic which were made to look like sets of Dickens or Shakespeare and somehow make the homeowner look more intelligent.

But that's what people do / did! Why to deny the fact?

And at least I myself have to confess having given the impression of having read a book / seeing a film when the social occasion requires it. I don't think that is evil when it is for smoothing those social situations.

But these general lists of "what you must have read", and those who judge others by them, really make me angry. How hypocritical or fake can one get? So some people judge other people on the grounds of which books (movies) they deem important themselves? Well easy, but groundless anyway...

[Mithalwen]

I have read all but War and Peace and Great Expectations (but I have read Anna Karenina and some other Dickens). Harry Potter and Da Vinci code I read to see what the fuss was about and at first I thought both were overrated - while Harry grew on me, Angels and Demons confirmed my suspicions. Fine to pass a wet Sunday afternoon but I boggled that folk were taking it so seriously.
As for John Gray, well despite my Bridget Jones moments, it was while I was doing a Psychology A level "for fun" a few years back and had to do a project on attraction. I think my former sig "Men are from Earth.Women are from Earth. Just deal with it...." sums up my opinions on it .

Actually I agree with Lal ... I kept very quiet about my love of Tolkien in the university years... the odd mention in linguistics but that is all. Bit mean sinceI probably wouldn't have been doing that course without JRRT's influence

[Thenamir]

I'll say this: the furthest I usually go in bending the truth is responding "fine" to the ubiquitous question of "How are you?" when in fact I am not fine at all. But the book on that list I'd be most likely to lie about, is saying that I've not read Harry Potter, when in fact I've read most or all of 3 or 4 of the series. The shame, the horror...

On a more serious note, one thing that makes me wonder -- some years ago, having read LOTR meant that you weren't serious about literature at all. The literati (by which I mean the so-called "experts" in literature who either write books that are painful to read, or the critics who try to persuade us that such pain is "for your own good") used to look down their sky-pointed noses at JRRT and those who read him. They passed us off as too simple to comprehend the subtle nuances and obvious superiority of Chaucer or Bronte.

But now, folks lie about reading LOTR to appear more intelligent? What a wonderous turning of the tables! Rejoice, Tolkien geeks -- we have been recognized as the intelligent visionaries that we are!

For what it's worth, I've seen two different movie versions of Pride and Prejudice -- does that count? (And as an aside, I suffered through them both -- with the exceptions of Elizabeth and her father, all the characters are so insufferably silly and stupid that I find them painful to watch. I shudder to think how they are portrayed in print.)

For the record, on this list I've read 1, 5 and 10, and parts of 4 and 9.

[Mithalwen]

Pride and Predjudice is wonderful. Both movie versions are inadequate ..The BBC version with Jennifer Ehle is just about perfect.. but the book is better ...maybe it is a girl thing (Cloin Firth certainly is... - I told you I had my Bridget Jones moments....)

[Thenamir]

I will reserve judgement on the books until I find enough time to read several hundred pages of the literary equivalent of a chick-flick.

Is it an indication of my cultural illiteracy to admit that I have no idea who Bridget Jones is?

[Mithalwen]

Originally Posted by Thenamir

I will reserve judgement on the books until I find enough time to read several hundred pages of the literary equivalent of a chick-flick.

Is it an indication of my cultural illiteracy to admit that I have no idea who Bridget Jones is?

Bridget Jones' diary was chicklit then chickflick loosely inspired by Pride and Prejudice (long suffering father, batty mother desperate to marry off her daughterv and it's own Mr Darcy played in the film by the divine Mr Firth). Bridget has become a synonym (and heroine for) thirty something single women... especially those who drink too much chardonnay and are tormented by smug married friends.... ahem..