more than 3 times the length of Angels, by the end i can't seem to shake the feeling it's otherwise the same book, diluted rather than augmented by its ambition; i can't, however, dismiss the... more

more than 3 times the length of Angels, by the end i can't seem to shake the feeling it's otherwise the same book, diluted rather than augmented by its ambition; i can't, however, dismiss the possibility that the effect is the result of my own exhaustion w/ this book, rather than any particular failing on the part of the text.

found this heartbreaking: 'This life, she'd wanted to tell him at moments that transported her, moments that embarrassed him because he viewed her as a mother unworthy of them, a woman trapped by... more

found this heartbreaking: 'This life, she'd wanted to tell him at moments that transported her, moments that embarrassed him because he viewed her as a mother unworthy of them, a woman trapped by clotheslines in a yard of tall grass by the railroad tracks, this life is but the childhood of our immortality. Mother, now you know if it's true. And I pray to God you weren't wrong.'

probably because i can now see this more clearly from both sides

#upsincethecrackofdawnandjustnotamorningpersonemo

put another way: this feels like Johnson's been writing it his whole life

so far: despite its thrillerish premise, this is feeling less plotted than accumulated not just from experience (outward gaze) but from serious & obsessive contemplation (inward gaze) - a book that... more

so far: despite its thrillerish premise, this is feeling less plotted than accumulated not just from experience (outward gaze) but from serious & obsessive contemplation (inward gaze) - a book that has been thoroughly lived by its author, a novel that is a product not of design but of necessity (much like Jesus' Son & Angels, but obv more ambitious)

love finding unexpected resonances/intersections in my reading, in this case, the phrase 'The Ugly American', w/c also appears, fairly prominently - as a subhead, even - in the last book i read: "53... more

love finding unexpected resonances/intersections in my reading, in this case, the phrase 'The Ugly American', w/c also appears, fairly prominently - as a subhead, even - in the last book i read: "53 Days" by Georges Perec

early to say, but the impression so far: Cryptonomicon is the obv point of ref, but less concerned w/ being clever than having a more vital beating heart; sort of like the RTD to Neal Stephenson's... more

early to say, but the impression so far: Cryptonomicon is the obv point of ref, but less concerned w/ being clever than having a more vital beating heart; sort of like the RTD to Neal Stephenson's Moffat (& if that doesn't show i've been watching too much Who, i don't know what)

Beautifully composed fiction about the Vietnam war, and it does not feel old.