Kathryn McDonald wrote:
> >But when you get right down to it, Miller's Tropic of Cancer is >really
> >where it's all at, and no one has done better yet.
>
> No one, ever?
> J. D. Salinger, Franny and Zooey
The "Franny" part I liked immensely, but the "Zooey" part I found
somewhat annoying for the first half at least. Catcher in the Rye was
better, and I'd say it's very nearly as good as Tropic of Cancer.
> Kurt Vonnegut, Cat's Cradle
Mmm... beyond Breakfast of Champions, I'm not much of a Vonnegut
expert/fan.
> Joseph Heller, Catch-22
Nah... decent, about on par with something like William Golding's
"Darkness Visible" (except in the opposite direction).
> Nikos Kazantzakis, The Last Temptation of Christ
Not a big fan... something about it bothers me.
> Hermann Hesse, Steppenwolf
Haven't read...
> to cover 20th century authors, and before that,
> Fyodor Mikhailovich D., any and all...
I really am almost exclusively interested in modern writing - which is
not to say anything bad about pre-20th century work, just that I'm not
in 2 it. I'm interested in literature that explores who we are, who
we've become recently - not who we were, because I don't believe it's
possible to truly comprehend who we were just by reading literature -
the only reason I can comprehend "who we are" (humanity) in modern works
is because I already know - in a sense I think literature should be
self-affirming or, more precisely, meditative - literature should be
gospel, not documentary.
> Of course Mr. Miller had the advantage of knowing/fucking Anais Nin which
> gives anyone cool points
I'm not entirely convinced of this. Her writing is mediocre at best,
and her promiscuity is always presented in a kind of wide-eyed "I'm
having this sexual awakening, I don't know what to do, blah blah blah"
way, ignoring the fact that she was essentially a slut - I don't think
she should be admired for cheating on a loving husband - and by the same
token, I don't admire certain aspects of Miller's attitude towards
women. That said, I don't think she was a terrible person either -
somewhere between Marrianne Faithful and Courtney Love, perhaps.
> but I have to strongly disagree that he's the best author ever.
Well, I mean, that's cool. No one can ever say who is or isn't the
"best" author, or musician - only who is best to him or herself. As I
often say, I would never make the statement "Godspeed You Black Emperor!
are better than the Spice Girls" - just that *I* happen to like them
more.
np:Flying Saucer Attack, "Since When (Part Two)"
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