version's Thomas Pynchon masterclass

V

version

Well-known member
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M

martin

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I've had a copy of GR since 2008 and haven't ever got past 2 pages. Every time I try, I glaze over and suddenly want to read something else. I don't know what it is.

I'm sure it's not the length or the fact it might be hard work, as I've no problem with Burroughs, Joyce, PKD at his most whacked out, etc...I've just got this feeling that I'm not going to get anything out of it. Some of it's probably prejudice as I've seen it mentioned alongside "The Corrections" which is one of the worst piles of shit I forced myself to plough through, and I still hate that author for wasting my time.

What did you get from GR?
 
IdleRich

IdleRich

IdleRich
martin said:
I've had a copy of GR since 2008 and haven't ever got past 2 pages. Every time I try, I glaze over and suddenly want to read something else. I don't know what it is.

I'm sure it's not the length or the fact it might be hard work, as I've no problem with Burroughs, Joyce, PKD at his most whacked out, etc...I've just got this feeling that I'm not going to get anything out of it. Some of it's probably prejudice as I've seen it mentioned alongside "The Corrections" which is one of the worst piles of shit I forced myself to plough through, and I still hate that author for wasting my time.

What did you get from GR?
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I can tell people I've read Gravity's Rainbow.
 
IdleRich

IdleRich

IdleRich
I don't mean that reading any book means you can tell people you've read Gravity's Rainbow obviously, but you can tell people you've read that book.
 
V

version

Well-known member
martin said:
Some of it's probably prejudice as I've seen it mentioned alongside "The Corrections"...
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I haven't read The Corrections, but Pynchon and Franzen don't strike me as particularly similar other than them both being American and having written long books.
 
linebaugh

linebaugh

Well-known member
martin said:
I've had a copy of GR since 2008 and haven't ever got past 2 pages. Every time I try, I glaze over and suddenly want to read something else. I don't know what it is.

I'm sure it's not the length or the fact it might be hard work, as I've no problem with Burroughs, Joyce, PKD at his most whacked out, etc...I've just got this feeling that I'm not going to get anything out of it. Some of it's probably prejudice as I've seen it mentioned alongside "The Corrections" which is one of the worst piles of shit I forced myself to plough through, and I still hate that author for wasting my time.

What did you get from GR?
Click to expand...
From what I understand Franzen is lumped in with 'new sincerity,' in part a reaction against books like GR, so that might be why youve seen them mentioned alongside one another.
 
IdleRich

IdleRich

IdleRich
Is the Corrections that one where it starts when he's having sex with that woman (his student maybe?) for ages taking some new drug and then it runs out?
 
M

martin

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I might have got that wrong about the Corrections, to be fair. I'm thought I'd seen them compared, though I'd find it hard to believe that Pynchon could be considered remotely 'cool' if they were similar.

ETA @Linebaugh ah, that would make sense.
 
IdleRich

IdleRich

IdleRich
Yeah I get that. I mean, are you (Martin) sure it's not The Recognitions that is mentioned next to Pynchon, not The Corrections. Cos that makes more sense. I always get those names mixed up.
 
IdleRich

IdleRich

IdleRich
Or we're all talking at cross purposes, let me be as clear as possible, I was replying to this

Some of it's probably prejudice as I've seen it mentioned alongside "The Corrections" which is one of the worst piles of shit I forced myself to plough through, and I still hate that author for wasting my time.
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Maybe it's mentioned alongside Recognitions rather than Corrections. I dunno, I never finished the latter I think.
 
V

version

Well-known member
Well, we can clear it up by asking what it was about. Was it about art forgery or a Midwestern American family meeting up for Christmas?
 
M

martin

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version said:
Well, we can clear it up by asking what it was about. Was it about art forgery or a Midwestern American family meeting up for Christmas?
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Oh, the book I read was definitely The Corrections. They live in a town called St Jude and the mother is annoying and I think one son's working for the KGB and has a wank at his computer.

I was confused because I thought that was the book being compared to Pynchon...maybe the reviews mentioned Recognitions and my brain just went "Duh Recognitions...Corrections...yeah, that one".

Sorry, have brought a load of confusion to this thread. Maybe I should just knuckle down and read the damn thing...
 
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