Henry Malin > Recent Status Updates

very interesting compared to other similar authors, because I can’t tell if it’s genuinely less insufferable or if it’s just me- the amount of obscure references is similar to Joyce, but is either utilized better or just more that I actually understand. The meta-narrative intellectual stuff is actually endearing, unlike Calvino’s lame ass train book or dfw’s lower points. Reading fast to lend to a friend

Finally finished! I’m not sure I understand a lot of it (especially the analytic) but I’m now ready to read the actual critique, probably after a short break. The book was great, and really helped me to understand why each part of the critique was written and how the argument flows in every interpretation. Despite the comprehensiveness the book never felt like too much of a chore to read.

this is my third attempt at reading this book, the strategy I'm using this time is to not worry about whether I'm understanding all the intricate details and just trying to grasp the general ideas, which is working pretty well.

good but the footnote aspect was kind of annoying at some parts, even though it was really good in other parts. I will probably read his four book series at some point, but his writing style is not the kind of thing I can handle for five straight books. It’s effective, but very straightforward and roundabout at the same time. The characters were good, and the story (to the extent that there was one) was compelling

The dialogue was annoying at times but I understand why it was like that. Unlike DFW Delillo is very blatant about his themes, which is refreshing but also makes the erratic and maximalist prose kind of tiring, as opposed to serving the mystery of the thing. I probably won’t read any more of his books, but I’m not dissatisfied with this one. The ending was nice too.

I didn't read all summer and now I'm rusty!!!

So far I've liked almost everything except for the dialogue of the main plot characters. I think that this is more a symptom of overly academic translators than anything else, but it's hard to be sure since Calvino is, after all, a postmodern author, or in other words, a nerd. Of the sub-books, I think Leaning From the Steep Slope>If on a Winter's Night a traveler>Outside the town of Malbork.