Happy Thursday everyone! Just one more day and we can all say we have survived the week; that is unless, of course, you are in the Middle East. As part of my 2021 Reading Resolutions, I am back with another book tag; this has become a monthly tradition. Late in July, I was tagged by Riddhi @ Whispering Stories to do the Disappointments Book Tag. I didn’t have to think much about what to do for my August book tag. Haha. Thanks Riddhi for the idea and the tag!

The tag was originally created by Brooke @ The Reader’s Game. The premise intrigued me because, over the years I have been reading, there are several books that caused disappointment of varying degrees. I can’t wait to discuss some of them in this post.

Rules

  • Tag at least 3 people
  • Do all the prompts unless you have never read that kind of disappointing book
  • For some of them you can twist the prompts to fit the books you’ve read
  • Have fun!
A DISAPPOINTING DEBUT

Poet Lang Leav made quite such a buzz in social media with her riveting poetry. She has raised such a high bar that when I learned that she would be publishing a novel for the first time, I was really looking forward to it. Sad Girls, however, failed to live up to the promise of Leav’s writing. The writing was puerile, the plot predictable, and the characters forgettable. It was a very sad debut novel indeed.

AN AUTHOR WITH A NOVEL YOU LOVE, AND A NOVEL YOU DISLIKE

I do have a lot to choose from but the first name that came to my mind was 2017 Nobel Prize in Literature winner Kazuo Ishiguro. I loved his earlier works, which, coincidentally, were his first works I have read – An Artist of the Floating World, Remains of the Day and A Pale View of Hills. However, I wasn’t a fan of his latter works such as The Buried Giant and, most recently, Klara and the Sun. The latter was even more disappointing for I have been looking forward to it, it being his first work since he won the Nobel Prize in Literature.

A DISAPPOINTING SEQUEL

To be fair, I am not a fan of Philip Pullman’s His Dark Materials Trilogy. I did like the first novel but it started taking a different turn in the second. The Amber Spyglass, the last book in the trilogy, however, was even more disappointing. There were just too many loose ends. And yes, that conclusion was pretty anti-climactic. Some of the scenes in the story felt too contrived. 

GREAT IDEA, POOR EXECUTION

My concluding remark of my review on Yoko Tawada’s Memories of a Polar Bear: Memoirs of a Polar Bear was an interesting but challenging and inaccessible read. Tawada tried to underscore complex and seminal subjects but the story fell apart. She aimed to deliver a unique reading experience but the execution fell short. It was an ambitious undertaking and one can surmise that there are deeper voices embedded in the story. However, one must sift harder to access these voices which were weighed down by the narrative’s other elements. Memoirs of a Polar Bear held promise but it also lacked direction.

SEQUELS WHERE THE CHARACTERS CHANGE IN A BAD WAY

As someone who has been reading mostly standalone books lately, I had a challenging time finding an answer. Perhaps you could offer one in the comment box? Do let me know.

And that ends my The Disappointments Book Tag. There are a lot more I can name but I will end it here. HAHA. How about you fellow reader, what book or books did you find not at par with your expectations? Or just simply disappointing? I hope you could share it in the comment box. For now, have a great Thursday ahead! Do stay healthy, in mind, body and spirit.

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