I've Never Read Hamlet

One of my professors at grad school told me about a game he'd do at parties where there were lots of English students. The group would go around the room, naming the most famous book they'd never read. The conversation goes something like this:

"I've never read Moby Dick."
"I've never read Tom Sawyer."
"I've never read Hamlet."

The person who has not read the most famous book wins. Shakespeare usually wins automatically. For the record, I've read Hamlet and Tom Sawyer, but not Moby Dick.

Some readers (Nicole and Sybil, among others) have mentioned big-name romance authors they haven't read. I can't really trump them. I've read Nora Roberts/J.D. Robb (though not until about two years ago), Suzanne Brockmann (though not until about a year ago), and Linda Howard. I've read at least one book by many of the authors on Sybil's list. But here are three romance authors I haven't read:

• Kathleen Woodiwiss: I've seen a number of readers say they started reading romance after reading The Wolf and the Dove. Not me; I haven't read any of her books and have no desire to.


• Georgette Heyer: People have raved about her for years, but I don't have any interest in reading her books.


• Diana Gabaldon: Many readers adore her books, but what I've read about them makes me think they're not for me. In addition, her books are huge, so you can't just say, "Oh, I'll try one." Nope. "Trying it" means you're committed to 800-plus pages. If I want to read a book that long, I'll read Moby Dick instead.

It's been interesting to see what authors people haven't read. Luckily, there are more than enough books out there for everyone to find authors they enjoy.

Alyssa