Everybody should read what speaks to them. I could not get far in Ulysses either, but I love War and Peace. I’ve read it twice and listened to the audio book at least three times. One thing I love about W & P besides the compelling characters and trenchant philosophical and political observations is that I cry. Every. Time. One of those great scenes gets to me. It might be the death of Prince Andre, the distress of princess what’s-her-name over the death of her son, when love finally blooms between Pierre and Natasha, but something always brings on the waterworks.
Another book I love & have read and reread that everybody loves to hate is Moby Dick. That is just awesome.