For me, it’s Jude the Obscure. That book is easily the worst book I have ever read, without a single redeeming quality, other than that it finally ends. I only finished it because Far from the Madding Crowd was so damn good.
But really, Jude is the gold standard of awful books, in my opinion.
What’s your so-awful-it-deserves-shelf-space book, if you have one?
Or am I just weird?
Crime and Punishment
A superbly written book, which is exactly the problem. The awfulness is what happens to the victims - their murder. I found it so upsetting, because it was described so well.
I will finish it one day. But not yet. I was recently bereaved and can’t take it at the moment.