Now that all my classes are done, and I only have one final left to take, I think there's been enough time where I can fully comment on the novels I read. There were only 7 of them, so it's not going to be a long list, but it's safe to say they all made an impact on me, whether I liked it or not.
With that out of the way, here's my list...
7. Democracy by Joan Didion: This novel dulled me from the start because I had just finished reading The Crying of Lot 49, which hurt my brain for a few weeks. It had an interesting premise taking place at the end of the Vietnam War, and the fact that Didion breaks the fourth wall, but I was so confused with everything that it made this novel painful to read through. This maybe one of Didion's most acclaimed work, but it doesn't get my vote.
6. Franny and Zooey by J.D Salinger: Everyone is probably surprised to see a novel by Salinger this low (especially since he wrote The Catcher In The Rye), but I say read this, and you'll agree. This novel is promising, but it's not The Catcher In The Rye. To be honest, I'm not sure what it is. The novel has connection with the Glass family that Salinger constantly wrote about, and how they're dissatisfied with life, but that's all I got from it. Yes, maybe there's some enlightenment, but it's dragged out. And the fact that everyone is so cynical gets tiring after awhile.
5. Everything is Illuminated by Jonathan Safran Foer: The most modern/recent novel on this list considering it came out 2002. Again, like Didion, Foer breaks normal narrative and has himself as a character in the novel trying to figure out family history of sorts. The novel is humorous, tragic, and contemplates a lot of questions about life, but it was hard for me to take anything seriously being often confused. Definitely not for me, but if you like a challenge, this may be the novel for you.
4. The Crying of Lot 49 by Thomas Pynchon: Probably the biggest surprise on this list considering I despised this novel when I first read it, but when I had to write an essay on it, I found I liked it much more than before. This novel still makes no sense, but there's no doubt Pynchon's prose is great, and that this novel is a must read for people serious about literature. The ending is a bit of a letdown, but just the fact I understood it (compared to another one of his works, like the short story "Entropy") was a huge step for me as a reader and writer. I'd say more, but the less I say, the better.
3. The Joy Luck Club: This novel is here because it relates to who I am being Asian-American myself. The second half of this novel takes away from its overall value, but it is still a joy to read.
2. Another County by James Baldwin: Baldwin's novel about the jazz musician Rufus Scott isn't pretty at times. To be honest, it's not pretty at all. There's sex, racism, religion, and dis-enlightenment of American culture in this novel, but it speaks true to the artists who lived in New York during the 1950s-1960s, painting an unforgettable picture of them. The novel focuses on mostly on Rufus, but Baldwin shows us the inside of many lives, which is hard to watch at times, but beautiful at the same time.
1. Parable of the Sower by Octavia E. Butler: And now, the best novel I read this semester, which was Parable of the Sower. I must admit, part of the reason this is up so high is because it blew my expectations away, but that doesn't take away what an achievement it is being futuristic and apocalyptic. This novel was written in 1993, but it's striking how many similarities it has to the U.S now. It's deeply religious, but you can't help but be drawn in to the protagonist Lauren Olamina, and the way Butler writes. I haven't read any futuristic stuff before this, but now that I've read this, I can't wait to read more.
No comments:
Post a Comment