I work a white-collar job with loads of college-educated folks who read a lot in their free time, and have only been met with blank stares just about every time I have ever recommended her. It baffles me, too.

I swear Reddit thinks everyone other than King and Rowling is unknown.

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I preach the gospel of Ursula le Guin to absolutely anyone who will listen, she's one of my five favorite writers but definitely the least well-known out of all of them.

But what if there was one child who never ever got omelets? Would this be an acceptable price to pay for unlimited omelets?

FYI it's actually derived from a scene in The Brother Karamazov by Dostoevsky, in which he explores the doctrine of salvation, i.e., how one individual (Jesus) can suffer for all of mankind, and in the process derived an early form of utilitarianism. Le Guin had forgotten about this scene but was inspired by a short passage by the philosopher William James, which had been adapted from Brothers K.

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I love teaching this story. When students tell me they’d walk away I say ok give me your phone and go start making your own clothes to show them it’s easier said than done.

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It’s really one of the very great short stories, and one that is hard to forget about.

I recommend reading N.K. Jemisins „The Ones Who Stay and Fight“, which was written as a reply to Omelas. My opinion on it is a lot more split, but it is worth reading.

If something unexpected were to happen in your own life, would you feel frustrated with yourself for not expecting it? Well based on this post maybe you would and you may want to evaluate the unreasonable expectations you place on yourself, but it is better to enjoy a piece of fiction as simply the retelling of events in a world that doesn't exist. If a friend were to come and tell you an interesting story you shouldn't sit there and try and guess the next words out of their mouth and then ignore them while you feel frustrated with yourself because you failed to do so. It would be better to enjoy the story simply for its twists and turns. Fiction is not a puzzle for you to solve. Remember back to the first time you heard a child's parable such as that of the tortoise and the hare. The purpose of the story is not meant to trick you but rather to teach you through subverting expectations. You expect the hare to win and when the tortoise wins we are not chastised for guessing incorrectly, rather we are prompted to gain a deeper understanding of the world through the retelling of unexpected outcomes. If you feel that you take no pleasure in fiction than by all means put it down and find what brings you peace and understanding. But before you do I would implore you to give fiction one more chance but this time, simply read the story through without any expectations of guessing what will happen on the next page. And once you've finished it, take a week to just consider the ideas the story presented you. If you feel that you've gained nothing from that introspection then forget about fiction.

Maybe intense mysteries or thrillers aren’t your thing? There are certain genres like romance and fantasy etc that are full of tropes so you know exactly how the story will end (of course the two main characters will end up together and the evil wizard will be defeated etc) so you can just mindlessly enjoy the ride! Maybe try mixing up the genres and types of stories you’re reading, ignore what’s trendy or what other people like and find a niche that suits you.

I have the same issue a lot. I recommend not giving up novels but genre fiction instead. Literary fiction is what I prefer, and it's almost plotless so there's not really anything to guess at. It tells the story around a character using themes and literary devices rather than tropes and plot structures. I promise you it is suchh an improvement

recommend a book?

It sounds like you have some internal issues you need to work out

I was super into the Oz series as a kid (although I don't think I ever read the last one) and really loved the Reilly and Lee editions with all the drawings and pictures, Road to OZ had rainbow colored pages which was super cool. I really need to read them again, I loved how consistent his humor and the logic of all the different places stayed through the books.

I used to feel the same way. I prided myself on my intelligence and my ability to figure stuff out quickly. I remember being pissed off reading Ender’s Game by Orson Scott Card because the main character was really smart and figured out solutions I would never find. I was jealous of detective characters like Sherlock Holmes and Thrawn from Star Wars because they always found the answer so easily. I now enjoy reading and I love these characters, but not the way I first read them.

Remember you are not competing with the characters. The author has specifically drafted these puzzles and reveals in advance. If you look critically, “smart” characters often make wild assumptions masquerading as intelligence, but because the author wants to tell a certain story, the “smart” characters are correct more often than they have any right to be. (There’s a reason Sherlock Holmes isn’t a police officer, his methods are basically the antithesis of forensics.) Yes, it’s theoretically possible to predict most twists, but the author rarely gives you enough information to do so. Even if you know what the clues are, authors rarely give the reader enough information to confidently predict the twist. This is how they guarantee everyone gets tricked and everyone thinks the “smart” character is intelligent.

If you want an to have an experience putting together clues and predicting the outcome, go do a puzzle. Story endings aren’t supposed to be predictable. Imagine if they were. If everyone could predict every ending and every plot twist, the story would get boring as hell. You know how it ends, so why read it? Good authors cut a very fine balance between making the outcome uncertain and giving you clues throughout the story. If the twist seemed logical in retrospect but you didn’t predict it, congratulations, you’ve read a talented author.

The real issue is your mentality. The author is not trying to hurt you when they deceive you with a plot twist, they are trying to invoke a sense of wonder. They are trying to make you question your beliefs and your assumptions about the world. If you’re not ready to question your intelligence, don’t read fiction.

That was my problem. I thought I was the smartest person ever. I thought I could figure out anything. Then I read stories with characters who figured things out before me, found solutions I never thought of, characters who were, frankly, smarter than me. And I found that offensive. That challenged my world view.

I’ve grown up since then. I’m not the smartest, but I don’t have to be. I can live a perfectly meaningful life just as I am. If you want to read, which I strongly encourage you to do, but you want to have all the facts on the table, no deception, read history. It’s their job to tell you all the facts and make sure you go home knowing everything. Until you can handle being surprised, until you can trust a good author to deceive you without hurting you, you’re not going to enjoy fiction.

Best of luck

Being surprised by the twists and reveals is the exciting part for me, I let the novel take me for a ride while not having the Waze app to guide me.

What you are running up against is sort of the best thing about books.

Books remind us that we don't really know anything. They keep us humble and reflective on just how big everything is and how we can never know it all. Every single book is going to have something in it you didn't know before OR didn't think of that way before. They are as individual as people.

Every person you meet knows something you don't know or has a perspective you don't have. That's the real contribution of literature is that sense of place in the universe and wonder at all there really is to know.

Maybe try reading nonfiction.🤷🏻‍♂️

Thank you. I will look for that book.

Your paraphrase of the quote is succinct and easily understood. It should be embroidered on stuff.

It's from an 8th century Indian Buddhist philosopher named Shantideva. See No Time to Lose by Pema Chodron if interested.

Middle grades novel series are extremely predictable. That might be more your cup of tea. Babysitter club, sweet valley high, etc.

I felt this message in my soul.

Books are not puzzles to be solved. If you're looking for that kind of experience, try like puzzles or logic games or something?

One of the chief enjoyments in reading for me is being surprised by an interesting plot point or twist. That being said, sometimes plot twists or developments you learn through the course of the novel are stupid or unearned, which is disappointing.

Reading should be done for enjoyment, entertainment, education, being moved emotionally, etc. But reading is NOT something to be conquered or solved. And when an author takes a story in a direction you didn't predict, it doesn't mean you are inadequate or anything.

Maybe search for authors with tightly plotted books?? Or pick a different hobby 🤷