What Is The Book By Popular Author That Surprised You In A Good Way?

I just posted this question on my blog and I want to share here.

Here's my answer:

I have a question: What is the book by a popular or well-known author that surprised you in a good way?

Bag of Bones by Stephen King is my answer to this question. For years, I had refused to read Stephen King. I don’t have a good reason why. I was a bookseller for several years in my 20′s and every time a new King novel was released I had decided in my mind not to read it.

A couple of years ago, I asked my readers to choose a novel for me to read and review in order to get me out of my comfort zone. You guessed it….Bag of Bones by Stephen King got the most votes.

Well, I had to hold up my end of the bargain and finally read a Stephen King novel. I must admit it was excellent. I was pleasantly surprised at King’s gifts as a storyteller and creating excellent characters.

Here's my review of Bag of Bones: http://marion-hill.com/book-review-22-stephen-kings-bag-of-bones/

What I have learned from this reading experience is to never prejudge a popular author until I have exactly read their work and stepping outside of one’s comfort zone helps to create a broader reader experience. And that’s what being a life-long reader is all about.

What is that book for you?

Marion

Maybe The Hunger Games. It was already quite popular when a friend suggested it to me. I thought it was the stupidest premise I'd ever heard of and that I would never find it believable. But it really worked for me!

Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone! It was 14 years ago, and I didn't want to get caught up in all the hype about this kids' book. Then I got pregnant, thought my future kid might like the book, and that I'd better give it a try first. Hooked! I could really feel the 12yo characters' sense of awe and fun as they discovered Hogwarts. It's still my favourite of the whole series, though I enjoyed them all.

The Host by Stephenie Meyer. I'd been avoiding all the Twilight madness, but picked this up in audio and was hooked. Still haven't gone on to read Twilight, though.

Contact by Carl Sagan. What surprised me was how well done the relationships were written. It has been a while since I read it, but I think it was a father/daughter duo.

I was (am) a "semi" fan of Sagan's, catching some, but not all of the Cosmos television series. I was very surprised my favorite part of Contact was not the science.

Thanks for everyone's responses so far.

I finished Heidi by Johanna Spyri a couple of days ago, and was very surprised to actually enjoy it. I expected to find it as nauseatingly saccharine and trite as several other classic children's books I've read, especially since I have heard others found it so.

Instead I found it adorable. Even the large amount of preaching managed not to grate too much.

I, too, was surprised by the Harry Potter books. I really enjoyed them and I gained a great respect for J.K. Rowling. The Da Vince Code also surprised me because I became interested in all the works of art and I enjoyed following the characters throughout Europe.

A non-fiction book that surprised me is Why We Act Like Canadians by Pierre Berton. I've never enjoyed reading his history books, but this little gem taught me, well, why I act like a Canadian, and I recognized and became much more proud of the quiet strength and sense of humour that we have.

Harry Potter series for me too! I was library director and decided that I needed to at least read the first one so that I would know the premise - not look dumb around the kids lol (KIDS ha! there were more adults reading it than kids at that point). I finished the first one in record time and was hooked!! We even ended up reading the whole series in book club and going as a group to the first movie! (admission: none of us pronounced Hermione's name correctly before seeing the movie.... )

>9 sebago:

I think I mispronounced Hermione for some time, too!

By the time the fourth movie came out, a friend and I were going to the midnight openings. It was so much fun, even considering that we were often the oldest people there. I was delighted with how well behaved the teens in the audience were during the movies -- they were too enraptured to talk or text during the show!

I am almost finished with my first Barbara Kingsolver book: The Poisonwood Bible. I have put this off forever. I have been pleasantly surprised. It's not what I expected at all. I am looking forward to reading more books by this excellent author!

I own The Poisonwood Bible, and will read it eventually, but I'm not sure what do expect from it.

In my mind (having not read it) it belongs to the same category as other extremely popular literary fiction, such as Life of Pi, The Lovely Bones, The Alchemist or The Shadow of the Wind. But then again I also see it on lists of extremely challenging reads, so that grouping might be odd.

#12 I didn't consider the book challenging at all. I have read four of the five books you mentioned. This book surprised me as it is told from the perspectives of the mom and each of the four daughters. Well done!