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For me it's Ulysses and The Fall. I found Ulysses interestingly irreverent, but not much fun; it felt like watching a Man Ray film. I stopped about 1/3 the way through. Have you ever watched a Man Ray film? enjoy. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dNYhgcV3o-E
As for let's talk about the Fall it felt like and you know what I mean this. I didn't see much in the Great Gatsby either. Don Quixote was ok. My favorite 'Great Literature': Moby Dick and War and Peace.
I've been reading Ulysses this month (600 pages in). I agree with you, it is interesting but it often feels more like I'm doing a really hard crossword puzzle more than reading something that will strengthen my connection with humanity. At the end of each chapter I feel the rush of adrenalin I get when I solve a puzzle but reflecting on it the next day it just seems, for the most part, very hollow.
I'm with you on War and Peace too. That and The The Brothers Karamazov are two of my favorites. I also love East of Eden.
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thenewgreen · 4848 days ago · link ·
As for the Man Ray film, it at least has a nice ending ;)
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thenewgreen · 4848 days ago · link ·
Gatsby is often criticized as not being relatable. -I for one felt great empathy for Gatsby. I read the book when I was 16, I was madly in love with a girl that used to be interested in me but was now with someone from a "nicer" family and drove a convertible at 16 etc. -Defining moment for me really. Sad but beautifully written IMO.
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I had the ~ same experience with GG.
It's funny how age affects our perceptions. Today, I am convinced that Fitzgerald was actually projecting the emotional underbelly of the American dream intersected with the Immutable Laws of Desire :) It is, I would think, a critique of the said dream. Something of a personal prophecy too, considering what Zelda managed to do to him.
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AhimMoonchowsen · 4848 days ago · link ·
Yeah, Zelda really did a number on him didn't she? Hemingway loathed that relationship and what it did to Fitzgerald. I think I read a piece here on Hubski regarding Hemingways views of Fitzgerald.
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I also read a little of Gatsby. Didn't finish it. Call me crazy, but I was annoyed with the narrator. It was like he wasn't even there. He was just an eye and words describing what was happening. to make matters worse, my edition has an introduction, a preface to the brazilian edition, an appendix with "The Brief Life of F. Scott Fitzgerald", notes on the author, explanatory notes about parts of the book, a postscript from the american editor, a preface to the "critical edition" (?) of 1991 and an essay entitled "The text of The Great Gatsby".
Well, that's just trying too hard, good sirs.