BRIDESHEAD REVISTED (Evelyn Waugh) - March 27/14

Arrrrrrrrgh! So I read the second half of this book without actually reading it - it was basically the book equivalent of fast-forwarding through a movie - but man oh man Waugh really didn't leave me with a choice. This inexplicably well-known hack drowns the narrative in some of the most overly descriptive, flowery prose ever, and I just couldn't work up any interest in the one-dimensional characters as a result. I barely was able to distinguish the various characters from one another even by the halfway mark. There's just nothing here to hold the reader's interest, to the extent that I can't help but wonder if the book is actually just a test to determine how pretentious one really is (ie you have to be an almost comically over-the-top snob to actually enjoy anything here). What a horrible, horrible book. no stars out of ****