Over the Radar
We've all read books trumpeted as the second coming; however, when we read it, we go, "Huh, I don't get it." Mine is a book that has ended up on a few "top 100" lists, and the author is widely praised. My "I don't get it book" is "The Crying of Lot 49" by Thomas Pynchon. There's also a companion guide for this book. To me, that's always a bad sign when a book written in your own generation's time frame needs another book to explain it. So, what's yours?
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4 comments:
Against the Day, also by Thomas Pynchon. Couldn't read five pages.
Oh geez, the fact that the book is indecipherable enough to need a companion book to explain it means millions of school children will be forced to read it as "great literature." It must be great, right? So great that no one wants to admit they say, "Huh?"
I might hunt it down ijn the library just to boo and hiss. Or maybe not . . . who knows?
What have I done? Have I created a run on Pynchon? Gee, I hope not. I wouldn't want my nieces and nephews have to read it. Wait! Isn't forcing a young adult to read something in school a guarantee to ensure they hate it. Yeah, baby! Bring it on.
I can't manage to read Rushdie at all.
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