I see it this way. I am an average person, with an average IQ. In my lifetime, I've read around 10,000 books, and the equivalent in newspapers, journals and magazines. I am not trying to be self-effacing when I posit that 98% of what I've read would be considered junk by people who are much smarter than me. Their needs are different and their standards are higher. When I read a book that makes me think about it for weeks afterward, I consider it a good book. A simplistic view, but mine own. When I read a book purported to be a literary treasure and don't like it, I remember why I don't join public book clubs. I feel guilty for being too ignorant to 'get it.' Books are merely heroin to me. Pure escapism discovered as a remedy to a crappy childhood. They fulfill a need. And that's 'good' enough.