I hated his last one so much, I'll never read another one again. Fucking Oprah convinced me to read it, too. I do think there is a mean-spirited tone that passes for humor or snark nowadays and "The Corrections" was full of it. Well, I guess the NYT convinced Maureen Dowd she was funny, too.
If you want me to leave, you can put your hands on my hot, tight little body and make me.
Spike ,'Get It Done'
Literary Buffistas 3: Don't Parse the Blurb, Dear.
There's more to life than watching Buffy the Vampire Slayer! No. Really, there is! Honestly! Here's a place for Buffistas to come and discuss what it is they're reading, their favorite authors and poets. "Geez. Crack a book sometime."
erikaj - Sep 16, 2010 7:31:11 am PDT #12414 of 28326
Always Anti-fascist!
Barb - Sep 16, 2010 7:35:21 am PDT #12415 of 28326
“Not dead yet!”
I'm not that shocked-- it's timely, Time anointed him Great American Novelist, the New York Times creamed its collective panties over it, and with the recent brouhaha over gender biases, it allows her Book Club to become socially relevant in a way it really hasn't been for a long while.
Kat - Sep 16, 2010 5:28:35 pm PDT #12416 of 28326
"I keep to a strict diet of ill-advised enthusiasm and heartfelt regret." Leigh Bardugo
I find Franzen pompous and irksome. He was on local NPR today and I wanted to reach through the radio and chock a bitch. Especially because he said he took one for the team by naming his book Freedom since it's such a touchy topic.
What. Ev. Er.
Barb - Sep 16, 2010 5:35:40 pm PDT #12417 of 28326
“Not dead yet!”
It's got the butt-ugliest cover, I swear.
I also read some of it and was impressed by the language-- it was lovely and lyrical, but that couldn't make up for the fact that the lead characters were some of the most loathsome characters I've ever come across in fiction.
I just couldn't bring myself to give a shit.
erikaj - Sep 16, 2010 5:37:17 pm PDT #12418 of 28326
Always Anti-fascist!
Exactly.
Jessica - Sep 17, 2010 5:24:10 am PDT #12419 of 28326
And then Ortus came and said "It's Ortin' time" and they all Orted off into the sunset
I also read some of it and was impressed by the language-- it was lovely and lyrical, but that couldn't make up for the fact that the lead characters were some of the most loathsome characters I've ever come across in fiction.
That's how I felt about Chronic City.
megan walker - Sep 17, 2010 7:46:01 am PDT #12420 of 28326
"What kind of magical sunshine and lollipop world do you live in? Because you need to be medicated."-SFist
That's how I felt about Chronic City.
Ditto. Biggest literary disappoint of my year (so far).
Hayden - Sep 17, 2010 8:31:25 am PDT #12421 of 28326
aka "The artist formerly known as Corwood Industries."
Tritto. Lethem's been on the opposite of a roll since Fortress of Solitude.
Kate P. - Sep 17, 2010 9:03:24 am PDT #12422 of 28326
That's the pain / That cuts a straight line down through the heart / We call it love
It's got the butt-ugliest cover, I swear.
Seriously! I was complaining about it to my coworkers and they all like it. I don't know why. Everything about it is off, to me. The colors, the positioning, the letters... ugh.
I actually do want to read it; we ran an interview with Franzen that was genuinely intriguing, and it's the kind of major literary/cultural event that, for myself, I think it's worthwhile to participate in, even if I don't end up loving it. Plus, Mark wants to read it, and since I love talking about books with him, that's a pretty big additional draw.
erikaj - Sep 17, 2010 9:14:01 am PDT #12423 of 28326
Always Anti-fascist!
I love Fortress. And Motherless Brooklyn. Hated the last one...hoped this would be better. Sigh.