Winesburg, Ohio - Sherwood Anderson (1919)
I'm sure this has a lot to do with the fast paced times we live in today, but I've always assumed that classic late 19th and early 20th century novels are boring. But, I'm trying to fight that notion by forcing myself to read one every now and again. I had high hopes for Sherwood Anderson's kinda/sorta cohesive short story collection, Winesburg, Ohio, and for the most part was let down. It was interesting to read such an early novel that was driven way more by character than plot. This gave the novel a welcome off-kilter feel. The first few stories were slow paced but wonderfully quirky statements on human nature and life in a quiet midwest town. Further into the book, the dragging stories and sleepy characters all started to blur together and I lost interest. I'm going to blame this on myself as opposed to the author, as Anderson does have an attractive way with description. That just wasn't enough to floor me, or anything.
A Visit From the Goon Squad - Jennifer Egan (2010)
It seems as if this 2011 Pulitzer Prize winner for fiction is relatively maligned. Critics seemed to love it, but scrolling through Goodreads reviews of the normal, every day reader, the reviews seem more mixed. This added some appeal to reading A Visit from the Goon Squad, Jennifer Egan's sprawling post-modern epic. One of the good qualities about the novel: each chapter has a completely different feel, keeping things fresh and the flow of the story interesting albeit a little difficult. Sure, most of the book is pretty derivative of the DFW/Franzen/Zadie Smith crew, but those are great inspirations to draw from, and Egan does a good job of not copping TOO much. In both positive and negative ways, a lot is made of the PowerPoint chapter, and I guess I don't really have an opinion about it. It's interesting, but neither mind blowing nor offensive. The timeline is disjointed in a fun but confusing way, but I'm not complaining. I'm more annoyed by the lack of outright likable character, and these characters aren't even unlikable in an artfully depressing, Franzen sort of way. Regardless, I enjoyed A Visit From the Goon Squad thoroughly, and would assume that the majority of my friends would too.
Flowers for Algernon - Daniel Keyes (1966)
I vaguely remember reading this, or at least many excerpts from it, at some point in high school in loving it. Had I read it again earlier on in college as opposed to just recently, it probably would have hit me harder. I assume just about everyone knows the gist of the plot of Flowers for Algernon, Daniel Keyes' most well known novel. It certainly can be described as a tear jerking and heart breaking read. However, I can't shake the feeling that this was just an easy, cheap shot for Keyes. If Flowers for Algernon was just being published now, there's no way it would have the universal effect it did in the mid/late 20th century. Still, I can't deny a good, fascinating character when I read about it, and Charlie is excellent. Every relationship he becomes interweaved with is thrilling in its own way. The increase and then deterioration of his mind is a neat and sad concept, but moves way too quickly. I feel like with every book I like, not love, I list more complaints than things that I like about it. But, in spite of those complaints with Flowers for Algernon, I really did enjoy it. I just think I would have more so at an earlier point in my life.
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