Summer Slacker List: Unfinished Books

Students Air Their Belongings After Winter Vacation
Infinite Jest -- David Foster Wallace
"Many people I respect have said it's one of the best books they've ever read. But at 1,079 pages, every time I try to start reading it again, I get busy, get distracted, and never finish," says Noah Frank, WTOP digital sports editor.

(Amazon)
Atlas Shrugged -- Ayn Rand
Considered an American classic, several readers inside the Glass-Enclosed Nerve Center find Ayn Rand's magnum opus a bit, er, boring.

(Amazon)
Swamplandia -- Karen Russell
"I couldn't figure out the reality and fantasy aspect of it. It was weird," says WTOP Senior News Director Mike McMearty.

(Amazon)
The Casual Vacancy -- J.K. Rowling
"Interesting premise but way too many unlikable characters with too many subplots," says Amanda Iacone, WTOP digital editor and writer.

(Amazon)
Unbroken -- Laura Hillenbrand
"I'm embarrassed to say that I read the first half of Laura Hillenbrand's bestseller 'Unbroken' when it first came out and never got to the end!

"In honor of the late Louis Zamperini, I vow to finish it during my summer vacation.

"Hillenbrand, who wrote 'Seabiscuit: An American Legend,' is one of the best storytellers working right now. Can't wait to read the second half," says WTOP Anchor Shawn Anderson.

(Amazon)
Dragonfly in Amber -- Diana Gabaldon
"I pretty much only read fantasy, and was excited to start a new series last summer. But after sloughing through 'Outlander,' the first in this series, I couldn't handle another 900 pages of what felt like a glorified romance novel," says WTOP Arts and Entertainment Editor Alicia Lozano.

(Amazon)
Bully Pulpit -- Doris Kearns Goodwin
"I am so interested in the topic, but the book is so long that my mind started to drift. I gave up (at least for a while) after about 100 pages," says WTOP Commentator Chris Core.

(Amazon)
The Meaning of Everything -- Simon Winchester
"I was pumped to read this book during my vacation, but verbose doesn't even begin to describe it. It's about the dictionary, so I don't know what I expected. Definitely a journalist's worst nightmare. Sentences sometimes went on for half a page; I kept forgetting what was going on.

I think I'd rather read the actual dictionary," says Lacey Mason, WTOP digital writer and editor.

(Amazon)
The Silmarillion -- J.R.R. Tolkien
"It has been a while since I tried to read it, but as I recall, it reads like a very boring history book -- filled with endless minutiae about ancestry of characters who only appear briefly," says WTOP Web Developer Andrew Mazzocchi.

(Amazon)
Shipwreck on the Chesapeake -- Donald G. Shomette
"No offense to the book - I am fascinated by shipwrecks, especially in a body of water that I live just a mile away from!

"I put the book in my nightstand, which includes a drawer, some months ago and forgot about it.

"But this gallery of yours reminded me of it, and I plan to pick it back up and finish it," says WTOP Reporter Michelle Basch.

(Amazon)
Devil in the White City -- Erik Larson
"I'm still trying to get through 'Devil in the White City.' It got rave reviews from fans, but I find there are so many characters that it's hard to keep track.

While the historical details about the World's Fair are interesting, sometimes it feels like the story is taking a large tangent just to fit an architectural detail in that interrupts the flow of the narrative," says WTOP Reporter Megan Cloherty.

(Amazon)
Under the Tuscan Sun -- Francis Mayes
"I loved the movie, and couldn't wait to read the book. But it was all about food and recipes, and I'm not a big foodie. I just wanted the countryside and the romance!" says WTOP program director Laurie Cantillo.

(Amazon)
The Tipping Point - Malcolm Gladwell "'The Tipping Point,' 'Blink,' 'Outliers.' Anything by Malcolm Gladwell. I get the point after chapter 3 or 4. No need to reinforce with continued examples," says John Meyer, WTOP director of digital media.

(Amazon)
Water for Elephants -- Sara Gruen
"I tried so hard, but just couldn't keep it up. It definitely wasn't as entertaining for me as it was for others," says WTOP lifestyle editor Rachel Nania.

(Amazon)
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