Matthew’s Comments (group member since Mar 08, 2015)

Matthew’s comments from the Reading List Completists group.

Michael wrote: "I just checked the lists: 37 from the critics poll and 43 from the reader's poll. However, I have a deep allergy to Ayn Rand and absolute repulsion to L Ron Hubbard feel having their shitty propaga..."

I enjoy Rand, but avoid the political discussion that she creates (I am allergic to political discussion). I just enjoy the books.

Feel free to add a Pulitzer list!

Someone just sent me this link - could prove very useful!

http://www.williamgaddis.org/recognit...

So confused right now . . .

le_fino wrote: "FW? Sure. Another GR friend wanted to do that in June. Will want to use a guide though. Will need to settle on one beforehand. Does June work?"

I could go for that - we can set it up as a buddy read on this group page so we can discuss it here easily. How does that sound?

Just started on the section with Reverend Gwyon - totally lost!

le_fino wrote: "Particularly frustrating without the reward you get from Pynchon or Joyce"

Speaking of Joyce - I am thinking of trying the notoriously unintelligible Finnegans Wake just so I can say I did it. What do you think?

le_fino wrote: "Part II is even harder to follow than Part I. The return of Wyatt to see Gwyon was particularly disappointing. The visit to the zoo, incomprehensible. I don't like Agnès the nosey neighbor one, ver..."

You have surpassed me as I expected. I don't recognize the scenes you mentioned. However, I agree . . . I have less comprehension now then I had in part one. I would describe the part I just finished . . . but I am not sure I can. And, they still say the word "recognition" every few pages.

I will be going audio with this one.

TheLongWait wrote: "I have two copies of infinite jest lol. And I'm trying to keep up with you guys on the Recognitions but college is kinda kicking my ass lol"

No excuse! The Recognitions is kicking our asses! ;)

le_fino wrote: "Oh, and you can just call me Fino :)"

Sounds good, Fino! :)

le_fino wrote: "I can't let it slide forever though as at some point I'll need to return it to the library :)"

I can renew twice over the internet. Then, as long as no one else wants it, I can get it back. However, my library didn't have it so they got it from another library. If that is the case, when all my renewals run out, even if no one else wants it, they have to send it back and then that library will send it back again. Kinda silly! I actually almost had to do that with Infinite Jest!

le_fino - you are definitely reading this faster than me, though! But, for now, we are pretty close!

le_fino wrote: "He must have used the word "recognitions" at least 15-20 times in Part 1."

Oh yes! I have been "recognizing" that as well!

le_fino wrote: "Very hard to follow the dialogs: they are interesting at the party scenes, but I felt like that one sober person in the room - hopelessly bored and kicking myself in the ass for having agreed beforehand to be the designated driver.."

I like this comparison. Most dialogue scenes in this book so far I feel a bit uncomfortable for the speakers.

I just started part two as well. A different feel from part I. Basically shorter sections with anecdotes about people who were at the cocktail party in Part I. What I have started to do to stay focused is try and figure out what the specific point is of the section I am reading is (Sections being broken up when they put a gap between paragraphs). Once I have that figure out, I do my best to not let the stream of consciousness of some of the paragraphs throw me off.

le_fino wrote: "Nearly done but I have to admit I cheated by reading the Wikipedia article to get an idea where Gaddis is going with this. So far the Faustian discussion among Basil Valentine, Recktail Brown and t..."

Yes - I did enjoy that section the most. Still . . . very weird! And, as you said . . . sometimes drags . . .

Discuss the February 2017 Poll winner here

I saw an interesting point on these dystopian stories recently. For each one, they are a result of extreme political environments in both directions. It seems like it is our inability to get along, find common ground, and accept that we can all be different without hating each other that will doom us in the end. The only way to avoid a future like you read about in these books is to not let extremes take over.

The extremes for a few Dystopians:

1984: Extreme government control, regulation, and brainwashing
Brave New World: Drugging society so they don't know that they have lost their freedom, spirit, and culture.
Handmaid's Tale: Government restrictions on relationships and forced breeding for repopulation. An extreme telling of women losing rights to their body.

Each of these scenarios seems unfair and too extreme to the logical, but to an extremist, they might make perfect sense.

Brave New World is my favorite book! Best of all the dystopians in my opinion.

I read this at the same time as 1984 and I almost felt like they could be taking place on the same planet at the same time.

Some interesting discussion about art forgery - spending some time with good ol' Recktall!