Books aren’t always a relaxing adventure. Some can be incredibly difficult to understand, many are almost indecipherable and some a just plain mad. Though, as Hunter S Thompson would say “Too weird to live, too rare to die” – some of the very best and the very strange. Here’s a small percentage of the books that challenged us!

 

 

The Sound of Fury – William Faulkner

 

 

3 different narrators? One of whom is mentally handicapped. Did we mention the 3rd person segment too? It’s very challenging indeed.

 

 

Moby Dick – Herman Melville

 

 

So much whale talk. It’s surprisingly technical for a fiction tale. We just want to read the story we know well; not know the intricate techniques.

 

 

Alphabetical Africa – Walter Abish

 

 

The title is a hint. Each chapter starts with the next letter of the alphabet. Chapter one – all the words start with ‘a’, chapter two – ‘b’. It’s very hard to read.

 

 

Naked Lunch – William S. Burroughs

 

 

This is certainly a messy one. Yes, it’s brilliant, but we wouldn’t advise having your lunch whilst reading it.

 

 

Ulysses by James Joyce

 

 

It is known as one of the best reads ever. But, it’s no walk in the park. It’s a minefield of chaos and unstructure. 

 

 

 

What do you think to our list? Are there any that we have missed out? Let us know!