I’m not looking for advise for my specific situation. I am just curious about how different people navigate predicaments with their loved ones especially when they get offended my your book opinions.

I’ll give my situation just to provide one predicament. I haven’t been reading much the past few years but self reflections have brought me back to books. Several of my friends have been reading ACOTAR. I didn’t really know much about it other than it’s fairly popular with TikTok readers.

One of my good friends said her and some of the other women in our friend group have been reading the series and they loved it. She said she thinks I would really enjoyed it and said a bunch of things praising the book.

I started the book last week ish and finished it a couple days ago. About 75 pages in, I felt like I was reading something that resembles stories from quizilla 15 years ago. (No hate, I spent too much time on that site as a teen.) Around this point I texted her saying that I started it but wasn’t really impressed with the book but would reserve my final thoughts until I finished it.

Anyways I finished it and sent her a message today saying that if I went in with my expectations lower it was mildly entertaining. I said that it’s similar to keeping up with the kardashians. No one watches that show for anything profound but for pure entertainment. I made some comments about things I felt were weak in the book. She responded and said I haven’t even read the full series and the first book is the worst.

I responded that it wouldn’t be unreasonable to call me a snob. But that I would read the 2nd book to see if it improves. This was a half joke. I know I can be a very blunt person in general without realizing it at the time and it rubs people the wrong way. I try to be cognizant of it but sometimes I mess up.

She sent me a response saying that my comparison was insulting and that I am just ripping the book to shreds unreasonably. And that my opinion was based on one book and comments people have made online. The way she was texting I could tell I had very much so offended and upset her, which was not my intention as I love this friend dearly.

I sent her an apology saying I’m sorry for my words being hurtful and that I would refrain from sharing negative opinions on this series going forward but my husband said it was a clinical apology that you would send to a boss. I told him that’s just how I think and he said he knows that’s just how I am but it doesn’t ease the hurt that she is feeling right now. She hasn’t answered me.

So in the name of discussion, how do y’all navigate talking about books with friends that you sharing very different feelings about?

EDIT: edit because it’s easier than repeating myself in the comments.

So yes, Im a jerk. Thanks Reddit 😅

Things I’ve learned from this thread:

Expectations on why we read may be different and those need to be taken into consideration. I already know that not everyone wants to write a dissertation on literature when they read, but that tends to be my default. Friends I have had discussions in the past were of similar mindsets and so we could have those discussions about we did and didn’t like in books without it hurting feelings.

The reason why I thought this specific friend would be different because of how she presented the book to me. She said it is a fantasy with good world building and amazing characters. Which to me reads like that person would be open to discussing these aspects of the writing. I promise I did say more about the book than comparing it to KUWTK.

Sorry Reddit, I didn’t realize an acronym would get people so riled up. ACOTAR is A Court of Throrns and Roses. I’ve seen the acronym used many times in discussions on and didn’t think other wise.

Because some people have commented on this, I guess I should mention. Yes my psychiatrist speculates I have some sort of social disorder or am on the spectrum. I didn’t immediately lead off with this because it is not yet a confirmed diagnosis because I am still working on getting a full psych evaluation and because I think a discussion can still be hand without prefacing my medical diagnosis’s.

Leaves

Edit: Watch/Watched

I always have random dumb thoughts lmao. Years ago I used to wonder if people like Beyoncé or Rihanna secretly watch KUWTK 😂 I know many A Listers openly hate the kardashians, but I wonder how many actually low-key watch their show

A lot of people have compared the two shows together and I thought it would be interesting to discuss them. I've watch the Kardashians for years now (it really is a guilty pleasure) and watched parts of The Fabulous Lives and as much as the Bollywood moms want to replicate them, they will fall short.

What made KUWTK was that for the most part, it was unscripted. Some of the things they showed on that show would make Bollywood quiver with how open they are about it. They air out their dirty laundry for the world to see, but the women on Bollywood Lives have a perfectly crafted image they are trying to keep. Honestly there isn't one piece of gossip/something "scandalous" the women on the show have shared. And no, we don't want to see Maheep Kapoor flipping people off.

Obviously family dynamics and friendship dynamics play a factor, but it seems like they are so GUARDED. All of them (except for Maheep) would be kicked out of any show like this because they're so scripted and there were no candid one liners/moments. Anything that may appear "unscripted" to the average viewer was picked up from other shows (Ananya's my mom used to say the f word so much, I thought it was my name comment was picked up from Khloe Kardashian).

If this is a launching pad for nepo kids, they aren't doing a good enough job at it. They aren't Yolanda Hadid or Kris Jenner. The kids are usually what make the show bigger but the kids on this show were out of touch with the average Indian and seemed too foreign.

Maybe I'm reading into this too much, but I think if they want to get real gossip/trashy reality tv show lovers to tune in, they need to let loose a little.

All through the latter half of the 20th century the family sitcom reigned supreme. From I love Lucy to Leave it to Beaver, to Full House, to the Cosby Show, the Brady Bunch, Married with Children... but after Friends, the genre all but disappeared.

Rewatching the series it's so obvious they planned certain things around sitcom tropes. The wholesome family values they end every episode with in the early days feels very sitcom-y.

Also, I'm watching the Bora Bora episodes at the moment and I think this is PEAK kuwtk. Change my mind.

I started this soundboard for KUWTK. I know it's a little scant right now so roast me and tell me what I'm missing pls

UninterestingFact: I just realized that I’ve known Malika and Khadijah longer than I’ve known the Kardashians.

I wouldn’t say I’m a fan of Kardashian members, but I have to admit that I used to watch KUWTK on TV and always enjoyed it. The early seasons were so fun to watch and it had some hilarious moments. I thought it is well scripted as it felt more TV comedy show than reality. I stopped watching around 2012/13 and haven’t seen a single episode since.