# Do you have to like a main character to enjoy a book?



## Roz Morris (Apr 12, 2012)

Do we have to like a main character to enjoy a book? Some novels engage our curiosity because the main character is in rather a pickle, but some engage us by a main character with bite - like Humbert Humbert in Lolita. We might not want him as our friend in real life, but we're very nosy to see what he does. 
I ask this because time and again I see reviews that mention whether the main character is likable - and I think that's missing the point.


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## history_lover (Aug 9, 2010)

I have to like the protagonist but that does not necessarily mean the protagonist has to be perfect - in fact, I prefer one that has flaws, even big ones. Like Amber St Clare in Forever Amber. She's a horrible person but somehow fascinating.

And I always say the best books have the best antagonists too - when you love to hate an antagonist. Like Cersei in A Song of Ice and Fire.


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## Skate (Jan 23, 2011)

I generally find myself liking a secondary character, someone who is in close relationship with the main character. Not even necessarily someone they like, just someone who affects what they do. I think you learn a lot about people from the way they interact with others, so I tend to be more interested in the 'supporting cast'.


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## MalloryMoutinho (Aug 24, 2012)

I think someone saying they "like" a character is just a simplified way of saying they can relate to the character. I tend to prefer books where I "like" the MC because then I can more easily insert myself into the book.

However, hating the main character is also awesome. I just need to have some strong emotional connection to get the most out of books.


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## Ben White (Feb 11, 2011)

In the short term I just have to be interested in the characters, but in the long term I feel increasingly disconnected if I don't like them.


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## Sunshine22 (Feb 18, 2010)

For me, the genre makes a difference too.  

If a book is centered on a romantic relationship, I need to like the main characters.  Otherwise, I'm not going to be interested in following their romance.  Bad writing doesn't help, and bad writing combined with one dimensional, unrelatable characters is the worst.

Also, characters don't have to be "likable" for me to like them and become invested in their story.  They do need to be interesting and authentic.  Cersei is a great example.


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## Tony Richards (Jul 6, 2011)

Actors always say it's more fun playing bad characters, and it's often more fun reading about them too. Think Ripley, Patricia Highsmith's homicidal sociopath, for instance. Think Lecter.


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## NogDog (May 1, 2009)

I think there are a lot of variables in the mix here, but for me I'd say the main thing is that I have to be _interested_ in or _care_ about the protagonist (and other characters, too). If I like a character, then I'm probably more likely to be interested and to care about him/her, so getting me to like a character can be a useful tool, but it is certainly not mandatory (though I suspect the author will then have to work harder with other tools to make me interested in and to care about that character).

Many times I wanted to smack Thomas Covenant upside the head, but (at least in the first series) so much else about him (including _why_ he could be such a jerk at times) made me interested enough to continue and find out what would happen to him.


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## DomEagle (Sep 5, 2012)

I think understanding the protagonist is more important than liking them. If I feel connected to the protagonist, I still root for them even if they're making bad choices - or if they have massive flaws of character. I can't think of a book I've ever read where I disliked the main character.


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## Heidicvlach (Mar 4, 2011)

I don't necessarily have to like a character, but I need to be able to respect their intelligence. Humbert Humbert did some incredibly creepy things and I'm not sure I'd want to chat with him, but he was _aware_ that he was an unbalanced person doing creepy things. His self-awareness allowed me to respect him -- because we've all done things we knew were wrong, right? The characters I can't stand are usually the bull-headed types who seem incapable of thinking. Even if those characters do things I approve of, I have a hard time respecting them and I can't usually stick with their story.


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## Ann in Arlington (Oct 27, 2008)

I'm reading a book right now and the MC is the sort I really can't stand when it's an actual person.  So, while I'll probably finish the book, I doubt I'll pick up another by the author. I am curious about the mystery set up, but, at this point, I'm just skimming for plot points because of the characters.


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## Amy Corwin (Jan 3, 2011)

DomEagle said:


> I think understanding the protagonist is more important than liking them. If I feel connected to the protagonist, I still root for them even if they're making bad choices - or if they have massive flaws of character. I can't think of a book I've ever read where I disliked the main character.


Yes, me too. In fact, there are a lot of books I really enjoy where I'd never want to even be in the same room as the main character in real life, but the character is entertaining. The one thing I can't stand, though, is a really stupid character. Or a character that is just too nice. Excessive niceness has made me stop reading a book, but I can't think of one I stopped reading because the main character was too mean.  Could just be a flaw of mine in that I don't find nice characters very interesting.


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## DomEagle (Sep 5, 2012)

Amy Corwin said:


> Yes, me too. In fact, there are a lot of books I really enjoy where I'd never want to even be in the same room as the main character in real life, but the character is entertaining. The one thing I can't stand, though, is a really stupid character. Or a character that is just too nice. Excessive niceness has made me stop reading a book, but I can't think of one I stopped reading because the main character was too mean.  Could just be a flaw of mine in that I don't find nice characters very interesting.


Haha, I'd have to agree with all of that!  Quite a lot of the time the protagonist can be quite intimidating, but in the context of a fictional environment, with the pages as a barrier, I feel safe enough to enjoy observing the characters - no matter how mean 

Oh I know, nice characters can be quite boring! I think I actually PREFER mean characters...


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## Ann in Arlington (Oct 27, 2008)

For the benefit of our many new authors, per Forum Decorum, self promotion is allowed only in the Book Bazaar. Posts elsewhere in the forum that promote your book will be edited or removed. Thanks for understanding!

Ann
KB Moderator


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## MichelleH (Aug 8, 2011)

This is a great question! I just finished a novel where I did not like the protag at all - and only finished the book because it was for my book club.

Overall the protag should be engaging. Engaging can mean likeable or like to dislike them. If the protag isn't pulling me along into the story, there's has to be one heck of a good reason I'm going to continue reading.

If the protag isn't likable, there's must be very, very interesting characters surrounding her or the story is really compelling.

I didn't like the main character in _Little Bee_, the British woman, but I finished the book because I wanted to know what going to happen. 
And no, I didn't really enjoy the book.

So for me, yes, the main character should be likeable.


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## DomEagle (Sep 5, 2012)

Ann in Arlington said:


> For the benefit of our many new authors, per Forum Decorum, self promotion is allowed only in the Book Bazaar. Posts elsewhere in the forum that promote your book will be edited or removed. Thanks for understanding!
> 
> Ann
> KB Moderator


Oops, sorry, that's embarrassing... I didn't mean to self-promote in that comment :S


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## Sam Kates (Aug 28, 2012)

NogDog said:


> Many times I wanted to smack Thomas Covenant upside the head, but (at least in the first series) so much else about him (including _why_ he could be such a jerk at times) made me interested enough to continue and find out what would happen to him.


Completely agree about TC. I found him almost despicable at first, though gradually warmed to him and eventually even came to like him a little.

Forgot to add: I still enjoyed the first few books even though I didn't like the main character.


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## Ann in Arlington (Oct 27, 2008)

But at least with TC there were lots of OTHER redeeming characters. . . . . . .


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## thedavebright (Sep 8, 2012)

It certainly helps but for me the question is more so if the character is engaging. If there character has intrigue or an edge to them its possible to be hooked without completely identifying or empathizing with the main character. Anti-Heroes come to mind, though many times their quirks or thoughts shock or amuse the reader to a degree where they end up liking them. It's really all in style and portrayal. It's not necessary for me to like the character - it all depends on the author's magic.


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## Gareth K Pengelly (Aug 25, 2012)

I don't think you need to like them. I _do_ think that you need at least _one_ character in the story that you like though, otherwise you're just reading the literary equivalent of The Only Way is Essex...


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## MLPMom (Nov 27, 2009)

MalloryMoutinho said:


> I think someone saying they "like" a character is just a simplified way of saying they can relate to the character. I tend to prefer books where I "like" the MC because then I can more easily insert myself into the book.
> 
> However, hating the main character is also awesome. I just need to have some strong emotional connection to get the most out of books.


I think that sums it up nicely for me as well. I don't have to love or even like them but I have to feel some kind of connection with them.

I am reading a book right now and I really don't like the main character (or secondary) and I am feeling no connection and I am having such a hard time reading it. It has a wonderful historic aspect to it that I really like but it isn't making up for the lack of love and connection with at least _one_ of the characters in the story.


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## anguabell (Jan 9, 2011)

As long as main character is engaging and smart, as long as I am interested in what happens to them - then I really don't need to particularly "like" them or "identify" with them. That being said, I like Tom Ripley. And I can't stand many good, wonderful and noble characters because they are irritating and not interesting enough.


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## Gone 9/21/18 (Dec 11, 2008)

Yes. A main character doesn't have to be someone I'd choose for a friend, and he/she can certainly be badly flawed, but once the character comes across to me as too creepy, stupid, or amoral I'm out of there. I'm worse about it the older I get. For instance, I won't read books with serial killers any more although I read a lot of them when I was younger. Life's just too short to waste time in the company of stupid, evil, dull, or disgusting.


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## dimples (Jul 28, 2010)

I thought this might be of interest to (some) of you discussing this. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XTjAM2XHo1g

In it Patrick Rothfuss, Amber Benson, Bradley Beaulieu and Mary Robinette-Kowal discuss characters in fiction. The question if it's necessary to like the main character is one of the points of discussion. It's really a fun and interesting discussion and I've gotten some great new reading suggestions from it as well.

For me, no, I don't have to like them. That being said, a main character can't be all and nothing but bad. There has to be something, even if it's a small thing, that I do appreciate, or that fascinates me about the main character.


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## Elizabeth Black (Apr 8, 2011)

I'm more drawn to a well-developed plot than I am to specific characters, but the characters can't be cardboard cutouts. I like them to be well-developed. It helps if I both enjoy the plot and am drawn to one or more of the characters. I enjoy those kinds of books the most.


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## Marc Davies (Aug 9, 2012)

I don't think you have to like the main character, but it helps.

For example, I've read a lot of Raymond Feist's books but I don't really find anything interesting in his main protagonist (Pug).  I don't dislike him, but he does nothing for me.  Fortunately, there are enough interesting side characters to make it worth while.

Also, I think its worth mentioning that 'liking' a main character doesn't mean you have to think they'd be interesting to meet or are a good person.  There's plenty of despicable main characters I'd hate to meet in real life, and who are just plain awful people, but who I 'like' on page because they are interesting.
I get that a lot with villains.


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## D. Nathan Hilliard (Jun 5, 2010)

I have to find him at least salvageable in some way. I think Thomas Covenant may be the only exception to that rule. I was really sick of him by the end of the series, but the story was strong enough and his 'unlikability' such a key element to the story, that I could forgive it.


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## lvhiggins (Aug 1, 2012)

What a great thread!

Personally I have to "like" or at least empathize with at least one of the main characters in order to enjoy a novel.  In women's fiction, which I write, it's critical--but I believe it's important across all genres.  Last year I picked up Jonathan Franzen's THE CORRECTIONS and I just couldn't "connect" to any of the characters at all. I forced myself to finish it because it was a book club read.


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## GBear (Apr 23, 2009)

Heidicvlach said:


> I don't necessarily have to like a character, but I need to be able to respect their intelligence.


I agree with this and others who made similar contents. The literary examples are good, but this especially holds true in bad thriller fiction (and movies!), when authors make the mistake of having the hero do really stupid things to create dangerous situations.

This is also something that I frequently find annoying in young adult fiction, where I find interesting plots can be diminished by characters whose understandable immaturity strays into blinding stupidity. Hunger Games is by no means the worst offender, but is a recent example where I felt the main character's priorities were frequently unrealistically clouded, even in the most dire situations, by what I guess was supposed to be teen angst and self-doubt that just didn't ring true. (But maybe that's just me and it does seem realistic to the book's YA audience.)


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## RJMcDonnell (Jan 29, 2011)

One of the only things, short of bad writing, that will make me stop reading a book once I get started is an absence of likeable characters. I can be accepting of significant flaws, but I just can't hang with a book where I don't connect with any of the main characters.


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## Roz Morris (Apr 12, 2012)

Some great points here. We want complexity - not cardboard-cutout likable. Or, to turn it around, perhaps likability is more than just being nice. 
We also want relatability. As lovely EM Forster said, 'only connect'. It's interesting to consider what makes us willing to tolerate the characters with a nasty streak. A big redeeming feature - as well as humour and dignity - is self-awareness. When a character knows in some fibre of his being that he is doing wrong, that adds to the complexity. We can feel our nails digging into the Kindle cover as we think 'no don't do that... but I know you will'.


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## Flurries Unlimited (Jan 24, 2012)

I definitely do--or at least understand them to some degree.  If they do things that I think are nonsensical or have no redeeming qualities, I find it very hard to care what happens to them.  When that happens, I often stop reading the book.


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## Sean Patrick Fox (Dec 3, 2011)

No, but there has to be something about the book or one of the characters that draws you in not. If not, even if it's well-written, what's the point?


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## Roz Morris (Apr 12, 2012)

flurriesofwords said:


> I definitely do--or at least understand them to some degree. If they do things that I think are nonsensical or have no redeeming qualities, I find it very hard to care what happens to them. When that happens, I often stop reading the book.


Agreed. If a character seems idiotically determined to make life worse for themselves, that's very hard to stomach.


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## Kenneth Rosenberg (Dec 3, 2010)

This reminds me of a book I read once, _Perfume: The Story of a Murderer_, by Patrick Suskind. The main character was truly the most despicable human being ever created in fiction, or at least close to it. Even so, I did enjoy the book. It gave me the creeps, but the character was interesting nonetheless. I do generally prefer to like the main character, though.


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## dlanzarotta (Jul 14, 2010)

Not necessarily.  I just read the fever series and I wasn't a big fan of the main character (Mac).  At least not until book 4.


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## John Blackport (Jul 18, 2011)

Some readers find that hating the main character(s), and hoping for them to get their comeuppance, can be a powerful motivator to keep reading


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## vikiana (Oct 5, 2012)

I think I have to like the main character to enjoy the book. Or at least to provoke me with something.Good or bad there is no difference. He just has to attract my atention. Otherwise the whole story my seem not interesting and too annoying to read.


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## lvhiggins (Aug 1, 2012)

Kenneth Rosenberg said:


> This reminds me of a book I read once, _Perfume: The Story of a Murderer_, by Patrick Suskind. The main character was truly the most despicable human being ever created in fiction, or at least close to it. Even so, I did enjoy the book. It gave me the creeps, but the character was interesting nonetheless. I do generally prefer to like the main character, though.


I agree with Kenneth -- The main character in Perfume is a psychopath but I couldn't put the book down. If I don't like the main character, I'll still read the book if I'm _fascinated_ by him/her. Like Heathcliff (who kills puppies,) and Scarlett O'Hara.


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## Gayle Miller (Sep 22, 2012)

Not at all. I hate Harry in the Harry Potter books (admittedly I am a massive Severus fan) but often the minor characters I find more appealing. Some main characters are just so evil that you can't like them and wouldn't wish them on your worst enemy, but that's what I love about them.

Haven't read Perfume but I loved the film. How does the book compare?


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## balaspa (Dec 27, 2009)

Not sure about like, but relate to.  I have to feel some sort of connection, even if the main character is a bastard.


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## Kwalker (Aug 23, 2012)

Resoundingly YES! I need to like them to care about them. Or at the very least, not dislike them. I don't have to fall gaga over them and it helps if there is a secondary character (like a hero) that I can fall gaga for =)

But, if I can't stand them, why would I want to spend multiple hours reading about them?

If I can't enjoy the characters, a book is a no-go for me.


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## Suz Ferrell (Jan 29, 2012)

Even if the main character isn't a likable person, I need to find some quality to admire or respect in him/her in order to draw me into their story. I'd also like to see some growth arc, either good or bad that leads me further into the book.


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## balaspa (Dec 27, 2009)

Well, I enjoy reading crime novels where the main character is likely a criminal.  So, it's hard to really call them "likeable."  However, there has to be something I can connect with.  Something I can relate to to make me want to find out what happens next.


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## azure111 (Aug 28, 2012)

Yes! If not, I would quickly become uninterested...


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## vikiana (Oct 5, 2012)

MalloryMoutinho said:


> I think someone saying they "like" a character is just a simplified way of saying they can relate to the character. I tend to prefer books where I "like" the MC because then I can more easily insert myself into the book.
> 
> However, hating the main character is also awesome. I just need to have some strong emotional connection to get the most out of books.


Yes! That's waht exactly what I have said as well! You must have some emotional "relationship" with MC otherwise is might be boring!


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## Anisa Claire West (Sep 19, 2012)

I would say no.  Sometimes an anti-hero can make a very powerful main character.  While it's human nature to root for the underdog, it's also our inclination to rally against the villain.  If the main character is a villain/villainess, this can infuse the reader with a shot of enthusiasm.  Conversely, if the main character is too "nice," the reader can quickly become bored.


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## Aaron Scott (May 27, 2012)

Interesting question, I find I often do like a main character but I might not like them if I knew them in real life, it's all about what it's like to follow them in a story.

I think when I'm talking about a character being likable, what I might mean is that they are interesting, but I wouldn't necessarily want to be them or know them.  But obviously there can be a character who seems like they would be perfectly lovely company but not be very interesting in a story.


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## thedavebright (Sep 8, 2012)

I think relate-able (in some aspect) is more important than likable.


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## dkrauss (Oct 13, 2012)

Not at all. Sherman McCoy in _Bonfire of the Vanities_ was a thorough-going jerk, but what a good read.


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## balaspa (Dec 27, 2009)

Well, two of the greatest characters I have read are two of the most vile ever.  Hannibal Lecter, for example.  Then there's the Judge from Blood Meridian who is one of the biggest monsters in literature.  They are vile and hideous, but relatable.


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## Aaron Scott (May 27, 2012)

balaspa said:


> Well, two of the greatest characters I have read are two of the most vile ever. Hannibal Lecter, for example. Then there's the Judge from Blood Meridian who is one of the biggest monsters in literature. They are vile and hideous, but relatable.


The judge is fascinating and mesmerizing, absolutely.


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## Shaun4 (Jun 29, 2012)

I don't think I'd actually like Hamlet, Macbeth, Romeo or Juliet if I met them but they sure are interesting to read about.


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