Unpopular Bookish Opinions pt. 1

Hello again honeybees! I’m back with the controversial opinions again and I’m ready to have calm, intellectual conversations with you all about these topics. If you disagree with me, I would love for you to leave a thoughtful comment about it. These are my own opinions and feelings, there is nothing wrong with us disagreeing and I’m happy to have bookish talks with you all.

Okay, onto the tea:

Sarah J. Maas is overrated

I’m starting with the most controversial one since it will drop the most jaws. This is unpopular and I’m confused as to why since A Court of Thorns and Roses is obviously toxic and romanticizes abuse, and Throne of Glass lost potential after the first book. The lack of diversity and abundance of toxic relationships is a big no for me, sorry. I had high hopes for ACOTAR and as a Beauty and the Beast retelling it was pretty solid, but the book dragged and lacked dimension.

Twilight was important

… hey, I didn’t say it was good. Twilight, of the Forks and sparkly vampires, bust the publishing industry and started a fantasy craze. Like Harry Potter and Narnia, Twilight was the book that got non-readers into the bookstores and suffocating beneath their ever growing TBRs. Was it the best piece of literature ever published? Not even close. But it started a craze and an itch for similar stories. According to my research, 100 million copies of Twilight (only the first book in the series) have been sold worldwide. I’m not declaring it’s the best book in the world but it did have crazy effects on the industry. And you know, since I mentioned Harry Potter–

J.K. Rowling is ruining Harry Potter

So this isn’t super unpopular since 90% of the book reading population hates JKR and her “now this character is gay except not in the movie and there was never actually a clear statement on it in the books” and “oh and they’re actually black even though I never explicitly said it in the seven original novels.” But a lot of people keep saying “this isn’t going to ruin my love for Harry Potter.” I’m sorry, but JK’s runaround is completely and totally damaging my love for this story and the characters. How can I love Dumbledore without remembering her stupid publicity stunt where he’s suddenly gay? How can I read Goblet of Fire without getting crazy freaked out that Nagini is an actual person? Ew.

*Picture not mine*

Writing In Books Won’t End The World

I’m definitely one of those people that takes a deep breath when they see a pretty book page all marked up with pen and highlighter. My books need to be in absolute pristine condition but here’s the thing, they’re my books. If you buy a book and want to throw it against the wall, highlight cool quotes, dog ear pages, or turn pages with dirty fingers, that is totally none of my business because that is not my book. I wish this wasn’t an unpopular opinion and I’d see less daily fights about how one person treats books that they buy with their own money, but we’re just not that evolved yet I guess. If everything listed above is how you show love to your books, then I’m just here happy that other people are reading too.

To All The Boys I’ve Loved Before Movie > Book

I DNF’d this book with less than 50 pages under my belt and there is no shame in my game. The movie, however, flowed much better than the book and it felt so cute! The book didn’t inspire any smiles or cozy feels that I got with the movie. I also really hate bad sister relationships and Lara Jean’s mindset in the beginning didn’t exactly scream “I love my sisters” to me.

If The Series/Book Isn’t Good From the First Book or First Half, It Deserves Every DNF

I’m trying not to be too salty here because I do have mad respect for all the people that went from being a kid with a story in their head to a person with multiple books and awards on their resume. But I don’t see the reason in someone having to “stick it out” or “wait, it gets better!” It’s a mechanical flaw if author’s are relying on stubbornness and determination for readers to continue. A prime example of this is ACTOAR (yes, I really don’t like it.) Everyone told me that the first book is iffy but the next books get way better. ACOTAR put me in a reading slump for months because I was trudging through it with the hopes that it would improve. As a reader, I don’t see why I have to get through 300 something pages of meh to get to the “good books.” Shouldn’t it have been a good book straight from the start?

*Picture not mine*

Shorter Books Are Superior

Do you pay attention to book size? I never did until big books kept putting me in slumps. I noticed that most were gripping in the beginning, filler in the middle, and sometimes redeeming but other times underwhelming towards the end. I’m thinking particularly of contemporary books when speaking about book length here. Shorter contemporaries like The Sun Is Also A Star, History Is All You Left Me, and Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda were impactful in less than 400 pages. They brought the characters to life, showed their struggles, and commented on issues of politics, morality, and sexuality. Can we just admire how much talent that takes?

Do you agree with any of my unpopular opinions? Are there any we disagree on? What are some of your unpopular opinions? Let’s talk!

Bye for now honeybees.