The importance of having a companion

[Jesse]

Has anyone read this book with Weisenburger's Companion to Gravity's Rainbow and still not liked it? If so, what didn't you like about it after learning of all the otherwise, obscure and unkowable information? If you read the Companion w/ GR and liked it, did you find the Companion as indespensible as I did? Once I had the Companion, Gravity's Rainbow came alive, it was like finding the key to a cryptic novel.

[Nate D]

So Weisenburger's was good to have around, Jesse? Was it just straight-up annotations and references, or does it actually deal with interpretation at all? I've never read any book with a companion before, nor do I think I would want to on the first pass. But after loving the (admittedly more deliberately spelled out) V, I think I want to re-read Gravity's Rainbow as well. Not that I in any way disliked it on the first pass, but there were some admittedly Joycean stream-of-consciousness moments in there. And I'm still looking for any intelligence whatsoever on the Kirghiz Light.

[Jesse]

Yeah the annotations are fairly straight foward. there is no explicit interpretation, but any comment upon structure and theme by definition contains some interpretation. the book definitely gives some info on kirghiz light; i'm at work right now or i'd send you what it says to give you an idea on what the entries are like. if you want me to do that let me know. anyway i highly recommend the annotations.

jesse s.

[Nate D]

That sounds good actually. I guess I'll pick up a copy for the second pass.