Despite some initial reluctance (he is so accomplished as a person!), I am starting to warm up to Thomas Pynchon as a writer! The Crying of Lot 49, Gravity's Rainbow, and Slow Learner are all three challenging yet fascinating books! His grasp of language and punctuation is quite expert! However, after my latest attempt to read one of his books, Mason and Dixon, I fear I am revisiting my belief that he is a flawed writer. For 300-350 pages or so, the book is typically bizarre, unintelligible, yet highly readable Pynchon. However, at around this point, the book clearly becomes incomprehensible and overly difficult gibberish. Although initially seeming to be a fun book in the vein of Kurt Vonnegut, it proves to be similar to a book by James Joyce or John Barth. In a very unique case for this blog, I would not recommend it, but the experience of reading Mason and Dixon (even if only in part) is a singular and unforgettable one!
