Aussie Readers discussion

Which kind of books do you simply refuse to read?

For some people, romance, political biographies, war stories etc may bore them to tears and they are simply unable to read them.

Are you too scared to read thrillers or the supernatural?

Do you disagree with certain authors or topics and avoid them out of principle or concern for your own mental comfort zone?

My personal challenge this year is to step out of my norm and try many new forms of writing and genre. The first book I'm reading is already a struggle because of the language (it was published in 1811 and is a nightmare to try and read efficiently).

I say I won’t read Paranormal, vampires and erotica but I have inadvertently offered to review some of these genres and actually enjoyed one vampire story. I still try to keep away from them.

I’m a big baby and cannot read or watch Horror.
I did avoid reading a book recently because I didn’t agree with the topic it was written about.

I will not read a book if the cover shows a woman wearing a cowboy hat. Sorry, not sorry.

Andrea wrote: "I will not read a book if the cover shows a woman wearing a cowboy hat. Sorry, not sorry."
What a coincidence! I will ONLY read books if it has a woman in a cowboy hat on the cover! :’’)

Veronica ⭐️ wrote: "I say I won’t read Paranormal, vampires and erotica but I have inadvertently offered to review some of these genres and actually enjoyed one vampire story. I still try to keep away from them.

I’m ..."

Strangely enough these days, vampires and erotica seem to go hand in hand haha. I think that speaks volumes for the folks reading them (and writing them for that matter!)

I refuse to read romance (too predictable); erotica (why read about it?); horror; and anything involving gratuitous cruelty to animals (I stopped reading Stephen King due to a passage in It which literally turned my stomach, and still upsets me to this day).

Last year, I stepped out of my comfort zone and read some time travel books — Time and Again and Kindred — which I really enjoyed, so I'm open to reading more in this genre.

I won't read Christian or Horror, not keen on Political.

But I love paranormal & urban fantasy. Have no problems with the erotica that goes with them on occasion, or the adventure & violence.

And no need to slag people Baz who have different tastes to yourself.

I don't like novels where there is assumed knowledge. Will read most things even if not in my preferred genres provided it is quality writing. I have a pet hate of people bagging authors if they step out of their usual genre as a book should be judged on its own merits. Authors should be able to expand their range just as we as readers are encouraged to do.

Sandra wrote: "I won't read Christian or Horror, not keen on Political.

But I love paranormal & urban fantasy. Have no problems with the erotica that goes with them on occasion, or the adventure & violence.

And..."

Slag people off? You're referring to the vampire comment?
That was obviously said in jest.

Susan wrote: "I refuse to read romance (too predictable); erotica (why read about it?); horror; and anything involving gratuitous cruelty to animals (I stopped reading Stephen King due to a passage in It which l..."

Time travel is a genre I've never even considered but thinking about it would definitely have some interesting paths to read about!

Noelene wrote: "I don't like novels where there is assumed knowledge. Will read most things even if not in my preferred genres provided it is quality writing. I have a pet hate of people bagging authors if they st..."

I like it when authors try different styles as well as genres. Where a novelist writes short stories or a non-fiction author dabbles in fiction can be pretty interesting to read :)
I guess that's how a lot of the authors with pseudonyms come about, where they don't want to be judged based on their regular or previous works.

I am not a fan of historical fiction. Most of the books of that genre that I've tried have a heavier emphasis on the "historical" rather than the "fiction" and I get bored just reading the blurb.

Baz wrote: "Slag people off? You're referring to the vampire comment?
That was obviously said in jest...."

I was referring to your comment " I think that speaks volumes for the folks reading them"

I didn't find it funny.

Sandra wrote: "Baz wrote: "Slag people off? You're referring to the vampire comment?
That was obviously said in jest...."

I was referring to your comment " I think that speaks volumes for the folks reading them"..."

When people joke about the dark things on my bookshelf, I don’t in the slightest consider it “slagging off” and I laugh with them. Unfortunately you’re not going to share the same tastes or sense of humour as everybody on a large public forum such as this.

PLease play nice everyone! We all like different things and they are all valid!

Niamh wrote: "I am not a fan of historical fiction. Most of the books of that genre that I've tried have a heavier emphasis on the "historical" rather than the "fiction" and I get bored just reading the blurb."

I’m kind of the same in that regard.
Ancient historical fiction I’m ok, because the themes seem so foreign to today that the fiction writes itself.
I understand what you’re saying when it comes to things like war time and recent fiction though. Often it can start to sound like a textbook rather than a novel :)

Phrynne wrote: "PLease play nice everyone! We all like different things and they are all valid!"
Will do, Phrynne. I wasn’t criticising anybody’s choice in genre and never would. I’m probably the most broad-minded person I know :)

Baz - re time travel, I was pleasantly surprised by the books I mentioned. Not having read much, if any, time travel before, I was expecting something a bit schlocky, but Kindred and Time and Again stand on their own merits. Both were thought-provoking, and Time and Again was quite philosophical.

I will not read christian books. This conclusion I have come to after having read enough of it (including part of the new testament) to know it is not for me.

Also I am wary of propaganda material, I recently visited Vietnam and discovered how much lower my tolerance for propaganda was than I thought. Which is a shame, I always intended to read some of the early communist works, now I 'm not sure how I would go.

Other than that, I will try most things.

Susan wrote: "Baz - re time travel, I was pleasantly surprised by the books I mentioned. Not having read much, if any, time travel before, I was expecting something a bit schlocky, but Kindred and Time and Again..."

Awesome! I'll definitely have to consider the genre on my quest to broaden my reading spectrum this year :)

Deborah wrote: "I will not read christian books. This conclusion I have come to after having read enough of it (including part of the new testament) to know it is not for me.

Also I am wary of propaganda materia..."

I'm the same, Deborah. I can read a book about religion if it's from an anthropological/scientific perspective, but once the preaching starts I can't take it seriously.

I guess that then flows onto your comments about propaganda material. I hadn't even considered that as a theme until you mentioned it but there's surely plenty of it around!
Again I'm in agreement, I think my tolerance levels would be similar to yours with these haha.

I'm a pacifist and egalitarian, which many religious and propaganda materials don't particularly go hand-in-hand with.

I will not read paranormal, vampires etc, sci fi,... in fact there are so many of these genres out there these days there are too many to enumerate.

Also, I steer away from American contemporary fiction, (can't stomach Elizabeth Strout or Anne Tyler or Nicholas Spark etc), Australian Rural Romance ( the books with the cowboy hatted dolly bird on the cover :-) ! )

And Historical fiction which does not encompass some real history and historical figures - but is merely a story set in days gone by, is promptly put back on the shelf.

LOL @Andrea, exactly the same, I refuse to even read the blurb of a book with a woman in cowboy hat on the cover!
Other than that, I don't exclude genres, but I steer well clear of "Stream of Consciousness".

I gave up reading accounting texts when I realized they were a cure for insomnia. :)

Baz wrote: "Susan wrote: "Baz - re time travel, I was pleasantly surprised by the books I mentioned. Not having read much, if any, time travel before, I was expecting something a bit schlocky, but Kindred and ..."
I like reading about religions and ideologies, but I find I prefer an analytical viewpoint rather than someone with conviction.

When I saw this thread I didn't think I had much to say, however, after reading the comments here I am seeing more genres that I don't think I would have considered reading as some of them wouldn't have crossed my mind. But I'm open to trying it once.

Our brilliant mods have created challenges that have taken me out of my comfort zone and I found I actually enjoyed them!

Having said that....
I see that you've started Fire and Fury: Inside the Trump White House by Michael Wolff, Baz. ... You've found one that fits a "won't read" perfectly.

I love your comment about accounting books, Nolene! lol

I did try reading It by Stephen King a long time ago. Why, I don't know, as I have clown-a-phobia (coulrophobia) which is apparently not uncommon!

Books that include animal cruelty definitely DO fit the WON'T read.

I agree Owl, animal cruelty is a definite no-read for me, as are very dark, bleak, violent, gruesome serial killer stories.......there's too much of this in the news everyday

Li'l Owl wrote: "When I saw this thread I didn't think I had much to say, however, after reading the comments here I am seeing more genres that I don't think I would have considered reading as some of them wouldn't..."

Haha I don’t blame you (re: Fire & Fury). If it was so close to my home turf I think I’d rather steer clear too. Objectively from over here it almost feels like I’m reading a real life episode House of Cards. I love politics and reading about the dirty underbelly but usually only when it doesn’t affect me negatively.

Agree also re: animal cruelty or any non-fiction human torture. (If it’s fiction I’m generally not too fazed).

Noelene wrote: "I gave up reading accounting texts when I realized they were a cure for insomnia. :)"

Another 12 months before I can give these up unfortunately haha

Regarding the animal cruelty, I have always thought of myself as compassionate to animals, but apparently my fiction blinkers are heavy:years ago I recommended The Farseer Trilogy to a friend who liked fiction.

I later asked how they went with it and was told that the scene in the first book, where the boys father whipped his pet dog, made her put the book down for good. Whereas, while I *may* have skimmed through that bit as fast as possible, I did still like the series.

I won't read horror or erotica. Also tend to steer away from vampires etc.

Deborah wrote: "Regarding the animal cruelty, I have always thought of myself as compassionate to animals, but apparently my fiction blinkers are heavy:years ago I recommended The Farseer Trilogy t..."

Although Robin Hobb is by far my favourite Fantasy author her writing has been known to leave some readers heartbroken :)

I’m open to reading most genres but I’m not partial to romance. I’m I don’t like nightmare material (horror)

I don't like 'misery memoirs' - abused as a child, sold into prostitution - that kind of thing. I also can't tolerate animal cruelty in any genre. I don't read Christian fiction because I'm a non believer but I have a friend that reads it exclusively so wouldn't deny anyone that if it was their choice. I'm pretty open to most genres and books.

I agree with you on the “misery memoirs”, Diana. Not that these aren’t important books, but much of the time we read for an escape.

Hi Diana, I understand your "misery memoirs" attitude. There is so much thrown at us daily via television, newspapers and unwelcomed emails that to invest in a book to compound all of this is wasted money. However to understand intolerances and deprivations experienced by women (in particular) the past historical narrative sometimes can be enlightening to understand that even though not on an equal footing to men, women have achieved a lot to say in my mother's day. (I am 73...young/old!). "The Suitcase Baby" is one I simply found interesting due to my experience of association when a child of 10 through a social group with children at an orphanage. The book I refer to is sad but beautifully written and it does give the reader insight of injustices of the past. Books written by authors with a legal past do appear to have a different manner in writing, more on the factual side than tear jerking. Books I personally will not touch are romantic twaddle or even books where everyone is beautiful and the author insists on describing the clothes everyone wears and what they eat at each meal.....spare me!
Male authors writing about women rather interest me in the wonderment of how they could possibly understand the complexities of women. Sheer fantasy in most cases.
Fortunately, with reviews on Goodreads all this can be sorted, while I "like" a review some books will never be on my TBR list.
I haven't read this thread before, thank you for your interesting thoughts. 😊😊😊

Jeanette wrote: "Hi Diana, I understand your "misery memoirs" attitude. There is so much thrown at us daily via television, newspapers and unwelcomed emails that to invest in a book to compound all of this is waste..."

I agree with both points of view. I have to be in the correct frame of mind/mental space before I can read misery memoirs, given what we are exposed to on a daily basis (I rarely bother with the news anymore).
Any form of persecution or oppression (gender/race/sexuality/religion etc) is difficult to read about.
But there are some serious classics out there (see The Power of One or To Kill a Mockingbird) that once in the right frame of mind can be really enlightening and educating. Sometimes the topics that we dislike the most can be the most important to understand and learn about through literature.

The Power of One To Kill a Mockingbird
Hi Baz, yes you have pointed out 2 very good reads. To Kill a Mockingbird is certainly a classic while Bryce's book, I think his first is an excellent read but after that I am afraid he lost me. Populist authorship in my opinion became Bryce's mantra, with I believe a team of writers, investigators similar to another Pete Fitz........so one wonders just how much is their own work?

Erotica!
I don't find reading about people having wild, abandoned sex in many different positions and locations that interesting. I don't think I'm totally prudish - sex is fine where it's part of the story or a relationship in a novel but where it's the point of the novel - Nup, not for me! If the writing is bad or the author's description of body parts and feelings is clunky it will make me laugh so it's a genre I keep away from.

Carolyn wrote: "Erotica!
I don't find reading about people having wild, abandoned sex in many different positions and locations that interesting. I don't think I'm totally prudish - sex is fine where it's part of..."

Ha ha, yes this genre I stay away from too. A few years ago a man who moved in as a neighbour informed me that he was an author of romance books (yuk to me). I almost fell over, he was a dreary looking specimen, never married, seemed to have no friends, a loner, (inherited $$), conversational skills limited and admitted he had never had a love interest....he wrote romance novels? I suspect those who write erotica may have no real experience too. Interesting!

Christian
True Crime
Horror

Jeanette wrote: "Carolyn wrote: "Erotica!
I don't find reading about people having wild, abandoned sex in many different positions and locations that interesting. I don't think I'm totally prudish - sex is fine wh..."

Goodness! Makes you wonder what it would be like (not that I want to FIND out!)

Carolyn wrote: "Erotica!
I don't find reading about people having wild, abandoned sex in many different positions and locations that interesting. I don't think I'm totally prudish - sex is fine where it's part of..."

I’m with you on this Carolyn.

Carolyn wrote: "Erotica!
I don't find reading about people having wild, abandoned sex in many different positions and locations that interesting. I don't think I'm totally prudish - sex is fine where it's part of..."

Yes, I agree, Carolyn. I do like a sexy romance but for me the sexual frisson needs to build up over many pages, and I need to like the characters. Those books labelled 'erotica' that I've read, where the sex is almost clinical, actually turn me off!

I enjoy well-written historical fiction. If the background is well-researched, and the writer is skilled, I find it an enjoyable way to learn something new, or gain new insight into something I already know.

I wonder if my preference for reading material grounded in reality, either contemporary or historical, has the effect that I really do not like the genres of supernatural and paranormal. I don't like books with ghosts, vampires, shape-shifters, werewolves etc. In a similar vein, I tend to avoid fantasy novels as well.

I notice that my tolerance for crime novels with graphic violence and viciously cruel murders has really gone down in recent years.

Definitely don't read erotica, gruesome or supernatural stories and can't be bothered with romance.

My preference is non-fiction and fiction historical books.

MaryG2E wrote: "I enjoy well-written historical fiction. If the background is well-researched, and the writer is skilled, I find it an enjoyable way to learn something new, or gain new insight into something I alr..."

Hear hear on all your comments Mary G2E especially historical fiction.
Books that look as though would scare the living daylights out of me I avoid like the plague, not good for my health

First personal narrative. Doesn't matter how good the reviews are, or how highly praised the book may be, as soon as I start reading "I shouldn't have left them alone..." it gets tossed out very, very quickly. It reminds me of early learning primary school, where the writer never bothered to grow up or develop their writing style.

I have read most things at least once, but have decided I won't read anymore vampire books and books which are evidently a case of a popular writer lending his name to yet another new series. eg I am not reading anymore books by "James Patterson AND XYZ". XYZ should just write his own books.

Julieanne wrote: "First personal narrative. Doesn't matter how good the reviews are, or how highly praised the book may be, as soon as I start reading "I shouldn't have left them alone..." it gets tossed out very, v..."

I agree Julianne! I still try and read them and some authors do manage to pull it off. As you say it can seem very primary schoolish when done badly.

No romance - Love is for suckers. No porn either - ho hum, boring!
No horror, please, I do have to sleep at night. No Christian books, I don't need any propaganda, thanks. I'm very selective about the books I do read, and feel cheated when I feel I've read something that wasn't worth my time. I'm sorry but I don't like American middle class writing - I am definitely not fond of the bourgeoisie propaganda either.

PS. Having written all that doesn't mean a thing. I might read any of the above after all. It depends on my mood and what's available at the time :)

I use to read a lot of romance and fantasy --- loved vampires and werewolves, but in the last couple of years my tastes have changed a lot!

I read now mostly mystery/thriller. But I can't do gore and so I don't read horror. No Erotica at all. Too much foul language can put me off of reading a book. I steer clear of serial killers and abuse of all kinds. That stuff just scares me! But that being said, I enjoy a good ghost story like the ones written by Shani Struthers.

My moods can also change my reading genres. Sometimes a cute sweet story, like something from Bette Lee Crosby can aide in some stress relief. Even though it is not my 'norm' once in awhile I read a historical fiction or a good Christian book to calm the soul.

I love magical realism that I found in writings from Sarah Addison Allen, but I haven't found too many that I have loved, like her books.

It's funny how our tastes change over time isn't it Heather. I found myself thinking I'm quite similar to you in some ways :)

I also steer clear of books about mental illness. That's upsetting to me to.