Advice | Miss Manners: My relative’s memoir was poorly written and boring

Dear Miss Manners: A family member has self-published a memoir of their life as an e-book. Although we are not close and live in different cities, we do enjoy chatting and catching up by phone from time to time.

I decided to purchase a copy, as I was curious about their perspective on various family events over the years, but found the book to be poorly written and generally uninteresting. Do I mention it when next we speak? If asked directly, is it acceptable to offer vague pleasantries or a fib? I have no wish to be unkind, as taking the trouble to write and publish this book clearly meant a great deal to my relative.