Thomas Pynchon

Author profile

born

in Glen Cove, Long Island, New York, The United States

May 08, 1937

gender

male

genre

Literature & Fiction

About this author

edit data

Thomas Ruggles Pynchon, Jr. is an American writer based in New York City, noted for his dense and complex works of fiction. Hailing from Long Island, Pynchon spent two years in the United States Navy and earned an English degree from Cornell University. After publishing several short stories in the late 1950s and early 1960s, he began composing the novels for which he is best known today: V. (1963), The Crying of Lot 49 (1966), Gravity's Rainbow (1973), Vineland (1990), Mason & Dixon (1997), and Against the Day (2006).

Pynchon is regarded by many readers and critics as one of the finest contemporary authors. He is a MacArthur Fellow and a recipient of the National Book Award, and is regularly cited as a contender for the Nobel Prize in L...more

combine editions
Thomas Pynchon's Books

Average rating: 3.84 · 73,870 ratings · 6,190 reviews · 15 distinct works · Similar authors

	The Crying of Lot 49 3.71 of 5 stars 3.71 avg rating — 27,157 ratings — published 1965 — 56 editions	Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Gravity's Rainbow by Thomas Pynchon, Frank Miller (Illustrations) 4.03 of 5 stars 4.03 avg rating — 14,786 ratings — published 1973 — 42 editions	Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	V. 3.95 of 5 stars 3.95 avg rating — 8,942 ratings — published 1963 — 39 editions	Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Inherent Vice 3.63 of 5 stars 3.63 avg rating — 4,940 ratings — 20 editions	Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Mason and Dixon 3.98 of 5 stars 3.98 avg rating — 3,903 ratings — published 1997 — 21 editions	Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Vineland 3.62 of 5 stars 3.62 avg rating — 4,522 ratings — published 1990 — 19 editions	Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Against the Day 4.06 of 5 stars 4.06 avg rating — 2,947 ratings — published 2006 — 20 editions	Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Slow Learner: Early Stories 3.46 of 5 stars 3.46 avg rating — 1,980 ratings — published 1959 — 19 editions	Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	The Secret Integration 4.12 of 5 stars 4.12 avg rating — 80 ratings — published 1964	Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	V/Crying of Lot 49/Gravity's Rainbow 4.41 of 5 stars 4.41 avg rating — 54 ratings — published 1993	Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars

More books by Thomas Pynchon…

Upcoming Events

No scheduled events. Add an event.

Quotes by Thomas Pynchon

“Every weirdo in the world is on my wavelength.”
― Thomas Pynchon

2,101 people liked it

“Life's single lesson: that there is more accident to it than a man can ever admit to in a lifetime and stay sane.”
― Thomas Pynchon, V.

914 people liked it

“They're in love. Fuck the war.”
― Thomas Pynchon, Gravity's Rainbow

tags: love, war

549 people liked it

See all Thomas Pynchon's quotes »

Polls

Which book would you like to read for our November Non-Fantasy Selection?

Looking for Alaska by John Green

9 votes 45.0%

Gossip Girl by Cecily von Ziegesar

4 votes 20.0%

Gravity's Rainbow by Thomas Pynchon

4 votes 20.0%

Marcelo In The Real World by Francisco X. Stork

2 votes 10.0%

Candy Girl A Year in the Life of an Unlikely Stripper by Diablo Cody

1 vote 5.0%

My Big Nose & Other Natural Disasters by Sydney Salter

0 votes 0.0%

20 total votes

1 comment

More...

Topics Mentioning This Author

topics	posts	views	last activity
Hipinion: so, a bookclub?	9	56	May 03, 2007 11:00am
UC Berkeley iSchool: What's on the holiday stack?	11	75	Nov 14, 2008 02:19pm
The Next Best Boo...: We have our JUNE group read WINNERS!!	227	740	Jun 02, 2009 02:58pm
The Next Best Boo...: New Group--Gravity's Rainbow discussion	2	165	Jun 29, 2009 04:22pm
The Next Best Boo...: 5 Star Reads	420	2308	Sep 10, 2009 12:29pm
The Next Best Boo...: Opening Paragraphs	352	1076	Feb 15, 2010 06:12pm
SciFi and Fantasy...: What are you reading in March 2010?	87	236	Apr 16, 2010 11:53am
Book Buying Addic...: Titles A-Z Game	691	422	Apr 21, 2010 07:20pm

More…

Is this you? Let us know. If not, help out and invite Thomas to Goodreads.

Thomas's Fans (1348)