21st Century Literature discussion

For general discussion of the book, resources related to reading it and/or about the author. No spoilers please.

Sophia will be leading the discussion!

She'll do her best! It took me for ever to post discussion topics (in the 'right' order); talk about a steep learning curve :)

Thanks Sophia-I've only tried to lead one discussion & I didn't do a great job-but people were kind.

I'm sure you'll do better than I did! :/

Finished this novel last night. I have a feeling that many will either love it or hate it and there will be very little middle ground on this one.

I happen to fall on the love it side of the fence, and for the first time since getting my Nook a year ago I found myself using the Highlight feature as Eugenides had so many phrases and passages that I can see myself going back to again and again.

Yes, I suspect that people will either love it or hate it. I think I fall somewhere in the middle.

Like you, I think there are phrases and passages that are worth referring to again. But, I didn't feel that the novel – as a whole – was very satisfying. Eugenides doesn't saying anything new and the characters felt underdeveloped.

I read this a while back and honestly can't remember much about it...I think that says something right there.

I was so excited for the first 100 pages & now I'm losing speed even though the writing is still excellent.

I didn't find it as exciting as Middlesex and could'nt keep with it.

Just out of curiousity:

This was my first time reading Eugenides, for those of you that didn't like the book have you read Middlesex or The Virgin Suicides already like Barbara?

I think it's interesting that half the people will read the book in a blaze of fire around 18 hours before the group is to "start" reading it. Or give up inside the first day. There's a month!

Nearly half way through and I'm enjoying it! I must admit that at first glance I thought it was going to be just another example of 'Chick Lit', but it's actually a lot deeper than that. As a male, I am enjoying the in depth discussion of relationships, as long as it remains virtual! I'm normally asleep on the damp patch long before the word 'committment' is uttered!
And I don't think I could ever eat another bread stick! (You'll have to read it to find out what that means)

John wrote: " I'm normally asleep on the damp patch long before the word 'committment' is uttered! "

Ha, ha! And I know what you mean about bread stick. No, it's not Chick Lit.

Will wrote: "I think it's interesting that half the people will read the book in a blaze of fire around 18 hours before the group is to "start" reading it. Or give up inside the first day. There's a month!"

Incredible. It must be the excitement of a new book!

Jason wrote: "Just out of curiousity:

This was my first time reading Eugenides, for those of you that didn't like the book have you read Middlesex or The Virgin Suicides already like Barbara?"

Virgin Suicides is BRILLIANT. I love that novel.

I read half of this book and then lost interest. I enjoyed the descriptions of being an English major around the time Derrida et. al. were so in vogue, but after they graduate, the book slows for me. And, as was mentioned above, the book isn't doing anything very new or exciting... it reminds me of Zadie Smith's On Beauty a little bit.

Monica wrote: "Virgin Suicides is BRILLIANT. I love that novel."

I agree with Monica on that. A fabulously rich novel.

The first time I picked up The Marriage Plot, I dropped it not many pages in being frustrated with a seemingly childish narration, but this time I am enjoying it so I suppose I need to finish it. I am liking the development of the characters better this time. There really are too many books in the world or too few hours with which to read them.

Monica wrote: "it reminds me of Zadie Smith's On Beauty a little bit. "

Initially your comment surprised me! I feel Zadie Smith's 'On Beauty' Is a very different book. But, thinking on it, there are some similarities: a university/college campus, debates about religion, young people's angst…

But, the setting is very different – if memory serves me right – and the narrative occurs many years later. In 'The Marriage Plot' we go back to the end of the 20th century to the 1980s. Life has moved on apace since then.

How does the novel's 1980s setting shape the plot? Do twenty-first-century college students face more or fewer challenges than Madeleine did?

Carl wrote: "Monica wrote: "Virgin Suicides is BRILLIANT. I love that novel."

I agree with Monica on that. A fabulously rich novel."

And the best of his three books, in my opinion.

Carl wrote: There really are too many books in the world or too few hours with which to read them"

How right you are. Hence I'm very picky about what I choose to read, in the first place! But once I've made a commitment I very rarely ditch a book. Sometimes the most unpromising start resolves into a stunning ending.

Or there are those that strike one as mediocre. I rarely re-read a book – life is too short (!) But I have to say that, despite my initial reservations about 'The Marriage Plot', the lively discussion in this space means that I'm constantly leafing through it, again and again; and the more I do this, the more impressed I am.

It still remains the case that Eugenides will never be one of my favourite writers, but he is skilful: a master of subtle understatement.

Thanks Sophia for leading the discussion! I know you often question whether or not you should be leading it, but frankly I think they have the best discussions and some of the highest post numbers, so I'm going to harass you to lead something again soon, because yours are so good. Hopefully it will be a book you nominate/love next!

You are sooooooo kind!