V.: A Novel (Perennial Classics)

I finally got back to finishing this book. I think I started it twenty years ago, was overwhelmed by it, and just dropped it. So this time, I started from the beginning and tried again - much better experience, as it might have taken me only about one and a half months to finish. Anyway, it's a great book. I would give the book 4.5 stars if Amazon would let me, not because it isn't a 5 star book, but because I have decided to rate Pynchon books relative only to themselves. I just happen to think that Masonn and Dixon is Pynchon's greatest. Tthis book focuses on two main characters in Benny Profane and Herbert Stencil. Profane just kind of goes with the flow, while Stencil is in search of the mysterious woman known as V. Now, you'd have to be completely non-Pynchon to think that V is as simple as being just a woman that Stencil searches for - his whole identity counts on her (spoiler or not, I don't know, sorry if it is). These characters are wonderfully explored, Profane more from his emotional standpoint and Stencil from a driven perspective (he is, after all, searching for answers). Along the way, Profane and Stencil inhabit close proximity, but their stories don't merge until near the end of the book. Overall, I think the dichotomy offered by these two characters is the central theme of this book. The story... Basically, this story is about the two men mentioned above - Profane and Stencil. However, it manages to tell the stories of the two characters in parallel, since the characters don't interact until late in the book. Profane's life is pretty simple and non-committal, simply going with the flow. Stencil has studied many different documents to try to determine his mother's identity as well as, to some extent, his own. Stencil knows his father, but was very young when he last saw him, and he knows nothing of his mother. The chapters are evenly distributed among those devoted to Profane, and those of Stencil. In the end, I think the novel tied up strings fairly well - I pretty much felt closure with all the main characters. Stencil's story saddened me the most, while I think Profane's ended as expected. Along the way, Pynchon displays his talents for visually describing a scene (the best of anyone I've read - when I remember his novels, I do so visually), social commentary, technical and historical knowledge, and a variety other things. That this is the first novel of anyone seems hard to believe. To people who have a hard time with Pynchon, and I guess that means pretty much everyone, I have this advice - read it with someone. My fiance' and I read this book at the same time (not at the exact same time, but at the same pace), and we were able to discuss each chapter and, together, we were able to understand the book quite well (I think). She's not exactly a Pynchon fan, but she was willing to make the sacrifice for my benefit. While she liked the novel (4 out of 5 from her), and she recognizes Pynchon's skill as a writer, she felt that some of the stories dragged and also felt that some didn't have a real connection to the rest of the book (the end of one chapter seems to simply list disasters in August of 1956 - anyone who wants to comment to clarify is quite welcomed to do so). As with any other Pynchon book, I have felt a strong connection with the main characters, and I truly was sad to have to end the book. I believe that the meaning of entropy was most clearly explored here - Profane goes on and on almost as time does. Socially, every sequence seems to end in chaos or decay. To me, these were themes that I could grasp, but not in Pynchon's later works, and I think that I need this book to help me understand those later books. About 21 years ago, I read Gravity's Rainbow and I hardly understood it - there is no doubt that I will reread that one, but I have to convince my fiance' to read it with me (she'll be my wife by then).

I cannot disagree one whit with some of the previous three star reviews in terms of what you will be reading if you pick up this book. However, I would say that this being my second read through V (the first time in Santiago, Chile, when I was working for the CIA and doing some analysis of the Pinochet regime), the story is much clearer, and what Pynchon was going for seems much more approachable. As with my review of Against the Day, a MUCH more difficult book, I recommend that the reader consult the wiki that has been constructed for the book. Perhaps other reviewers have noted this here, but fully understanding the alternating structure of the book, like a V, coming together in Malta at the end, makes the story much more comprehensible. I'm probably very slow, and didn't understand that fully the first time I read the book. That said, keep in mind the reviewers who noted that this is really a very funny book are dead on. The situations are oftentiimes laugh out loud funny. A major weakness in the book is one that Pynchon himself notes in his essay introducing Slow Learner, when he laments his "bad ear" for dialogue. Finally, I would advise the reader interested in Pynchon to start here. Having read all his works now, I can truly say that this is a very approachable novel, if you start with the right attitude. Don't get bogged down in "meaning," because I don't think it's as highly symbolic as some would have us believe. Somewhere I believe I hear Pynchon saying "it's just a novel, for chrissakes...." But it is approachable and manageable (as is Inherent Vice, which I think is cut from this same cloth), and I think the best place to experiment with Pynchon (who, by the way, is not for everyone). And further, I'm glad I picked up the hardcover version, because I found it easier to read than my previous paperback version. That may be just a personal preference, though.

Took a long time to arrive from seller but in excellent condition . It wasu annotation free which was a surprise. It was one of my university texts and I always used to annotate. Thank you whoever you are!

Amazing debut novel.

アマゾンで購入したら、表紙が商品説明のものとまったく違う、ひどくダサいものが届いた。残念だ。本当にダサい。そして、活字はかなりにじんでいる。

GREAT

Wie auch die HC-Ausgabe von CoL49 eine sehr schön verarbeitete Ausgabe. Sehr zu empfehlen. Fehlt nur noch die von GR.