It is slower to cook than all other forms of barley you will find for sale, and chewier. It is the most nutritious, but some people who have tried it for that reason still find it too chewy, gritty almost, and don’t like it no matter how nutritious it is.
If you don’t like it, try the next step up in terms of processed barley: pot barley, which has more of the hull removed, but with some of the bran remaining, unlike pearl barley which has all the bran removed entirely. Or try barley grits.