Books

[Manny Calavera]

Originally Posted by denimdestroyedmylife

hey jonglover

did you read the review of franzen's new memoir in the NYT?
sounds like a riot.

oh forgot caps...

I read the Corrections and How to Be Alone, but I am utterly underwhelmed by Mr. Franzen, though I do share his taste in books; Pynchon and Gaddis are my favorites. He doesn't come close.

I read the review though I really could care less of The New York Times reviews (they're almost as worthless and posturingly haughty (yet always pandering to the mainstream) as their Ebert & Roper-esque movie reviews). Other outlets such as The New Yorker, Harper's, The Paris Review and more seem to wholeheartedly embrace the book.

I got my copy two weeks ago (I think it releases at retail Sept. 5?), though I haven't touched it yet as I have a huge backlog, so I can't comment on the book as a whole. Excited to get to it, however. The Times touches upon his self-absorption and that's really, really part of the appeal for me. The aforementioned New Yorker piece, about his broken relationship with his mother until the time of her death, is incredibly heartbreaking and real if not for that fact alone. His writing brings lot of wordiness to the table (often misconceived as pretense) but I think he's one of the few grounded memoirists currently writing. I guess not everyone's a fan, though.