Lord of the Flies: A Review

So in a bid to still meet my goal of reading 2 books a month despite my 8 to 5 and a whole lotta series to catch up with, I decided on having a "bed book" aka, that book you keep beside your pillow that you read while waiting for Hypnos to take you to his dream kingdom, and the weekend read when you are awake but not ready to get out of bed and put on pants.
After reading the first two in the 50 Shades of Grey trilogy, I decided I needed better writing to cleanse my mental palate. I wanted a classic because apparently they're 50 books everyone should read before they die (check the list out here )and I'm just on about 22. A friend recommends Lord of the Flies. Below is my review;

First up, an analysis of the cover art.

The synopsis has something about prepubescent boys stranded on a tropical island after their plan crashes and the hijinks that ensue. The cover- painted boys, butterflies, leaves, fire, snakes(?) against a red back drop seemed fun to me so I was sold. Just goes to show there's literal truth in the old adage "never judge a book by its cover"

Looks like fun, no?

This one hints at a Treasure Island like adventure.

Had the copy I'd been given had any of these covers below, I'd never have taken it to bed with me!

This is more abstract than scary but I'd still not take it to bed

The flies' lord

Now the actual Review
Anyway, misleading covers aside. William Golding is a true literal genius, I had favourites by the 3rd chapter (Jack wasn't one of them), while the vivid island descriptions were such that I could hold my breath if it got dark and the kids were scared or read while a half smile as they played in the clear blue pool. And even if it was clear as I read that this was the kind of book literature teachers love to assign, by the time I was done I'm glad none of my teachers had chosen it! By the end I was positively fighting back nausea, chilled to my soul with the goosebumps to show and basically developing mild paranoia about everyone I know and what they would do if stripped of the confines of civilisation.
Its all fun and games in the start, the older kids (13yrs at most) instinctively now they have to take care of the littluns, a leader, Ralph. is chosen by default of his appearance and possession of a conch that he used to call the assembly.Piggy, the token fat geek, seems compassionate with a good head on his shoulders and guides Ralph with leadership even though Ralph is more taken with Jack the choir (later hunters) leader.

Then the littluns start having nightmares and the older kids get fed up with responsibility. Jack resents Piggy and Ralph is obsessed with keeping a smoke signal so they can be rescued. Piggy eternally shadows Ralph, Jack gets obsessed with hunting and killing and the boys come up with a hunt dance that results in the murder of another of my favourites. Yes, they are still 13 year olds.

This is the point where the bile starts rising up in my throat, luckily it was broad daylight on Sunday as I read, and after the final murder and then the manhunt for Ralph, I couldn't wait for the final word and immediately watched Flipped thereafter because I was shivering and needed a feel-good distraction.

*side note* The actual Lord of the Flies is a severed pig's head on a stick (!) left to appease the imagined beast.(Which explains the scarier cover art. and there i was thinking it referred to Ralph and the flies were the littluns)

I can see why the book is a hit. Is it one of my favourites? Heck no! I like happier books than this. Even the violent ones like HP are tolerable because the violence is committed by adults not school kids! I would love to see the movie and stage adaptations, if only to put a face on Roger because my mind couldn't conjure up a suitable evil 12yr old face.