The Stranger!!!!!
I'm convinced most people who call it genius just want to sound smart.
Everyone acts like this is some revolutionary take on human existence when it's really just Meursault being a sociopath with zero self-awareness.
The writing is sparse on purpose, sure, but it's also boring as hell. Page after page of "the sun was hot. I smoked a cigarette. The sea was blue." Cool, Camus, you invented minimalism. I've read grocery lists with more emotional depth.
t's fine as a short, quick read if you want something different. But calling it one of the greatest novels ever? Come on. It's the literary equivalent of that one friend who thinks being apathetic makes him mysterious and profound.
Change my mind or tell me I'm not alone. I feel like I'm taking crazy pills here.
TL;DR: Overhyped, pretentious, boring protagonist, mid philosophy. Camus has better stuff. Fight me.