Yes it is. Conrad himself admitted to making it challenging to read so it feels like the reader is fighting through the jungle along with Marlow. It was challenging even by the standards of the time it was written in.

Also please don’t listen to people telling you to put a book down if it doesn’t click with you right away. That’s fine advice for a newer book that you’re only reading for pure entertainment, but part of the benefit of reading classics or more literary works is to sharpen your mind and attention span.

That would be Faulkner, and Flannery would tell you that herself. That said, Flannery can still be difficult in her own way. Her meaning depends on a lot of biblical knowledge to fully grasp.

Honestly, the answer is just to mix it up. Reading is a great way to escape into a new world and forget your surroundings, but it’s also a way to challenge yourself and change your perspectives. Often those aren’t the same books. So read Fourth Wing, enjoy it without shame, but then maybe read a classic. Then read Iron Flame.

It’s not true at all. Moby Dick was a commercial failure and began the downfall of Melville’s career as a novelist. Not until the 1920s did Moby Dick work it’s way into the western canon.