Weekly Geeks: Give it One More Try

This Week's Geek is offering participants the opportunity to give a book or author a second chance. A little voice in my brain screamed "don't make me do this, don't make me do this" as I read the prompt:

There have been times in my life where I reread a book (or author) I hated--or thought I hated--but the second time around ended up loving. Has this ever happened to you? Have you ever changed your mind about a book or author the second time around? Have you ever given a book or author a second chance?

If you have, I'd love to hear your stories. Blog about your experience(s) in giving second chances.If you haven't, I'd like you to consider giving a book or an author a second chance. You can blog about your intentions to do so--or if you're a quick reader, maybe you can even squeeze something in!

Can't think of a single book or author? Don't worry, you can stretch this one to include movies or music if you prefer. It is just very interesting to me how time can change tastes and perceptions. How subjective the reading experience is and always will be.

I don't know that there has ever been a time where I gave a book a second chance. For the first 25 years of my life I finished every book I started whether I was enjoying it or not, but even that has ended. I'm not sure about authors. I can't actually think of a specific time I've read and disliked an author but then gone on to read a different book by the same author. I know a lot of people "read authors", going through an author's list of books, but that's just not how I read. I'm about the book, not the author, so it's not often I pick books by author.

This prompt did intrigue me, so I thought I might try a re-read. At first my mind jumped to the short list of books that I've always felt I should like because of my profession: The Red Badge of Courage, The Jungle, and Heart of Darkness. I read all three of these books while in high school and did not like any of them. As I got older and became more involved in "Literature" and "Education", it seemed to me that most of my colleagues enjoyed these books, but the memory of them kept me from every trying to re-read.

For this challenge, however, I'm thinking of something different. I did finish all three of my high school dislikes. I did not finish Ian McEwan's Atonement. I put it down not even half-way through because I was so frustrated with it. Yet, it seems that many people like McEwan, so out of the four books that popped into my head for this challenge, I'm going to try to re-read the one I never actually finished.

Wish me luck!