From the dark side of the bookshelf

I already shared my favorite books from 2007, although I still have to narrow it down to a "top ten." For some perverse reason, I felt like making a list of the opposite. So, here I present you with a list of The Worst Books I Read in 2007. Some of them, I did not even finish.

Again, in no particular order,

The History of Henry Esmond, by William Makepeace Thackeray

The Getting of Wisdom, by Henry Handel Richardson (Here you can read what I thought about this story.)

The Charmers, by Stella Gibbons

Bee Season, by Myla Goldberg

Thirteen Steps Down, by Ruth Rendell (You can find what I said about it at the time here.)

Some psychological thriller I started, didn't like and didn't finish, but I can't remember the title.

This isn't going to be a "bottom ten" list--it just is what it is. These are the books that, for whatever reason, I did not have a favorable reaction to. Except for Henry Handel Richardson, I would still read other books by these authors, however, as I have read and enjoyed other books by them (Myla Goldberg excepted--that was her first novel. I might be willing to give a second one a chance, though.)

I was inordinately pleased to have an author's comment when I posted my "favorites from 2007" list a few days ago. I sincerely hope none of these authors reads my blog, although, again, I must reiterate that my distaste for these books is a reflection of my reaction to a given book at a given moment in time. Others may find these same books full of merit.

Fortunately, I guess, at least half of them are no longer living.