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#91
04-13-2007, 01:38 AM
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Re: Kurt Vonnegut has died
Yah, it settles over you and immediately suspends disbelief. Some people complain about the Victorian writing style, but that works perfectly for horror, and I love the way he did it.
Listening to a download I got from Audible.com. The Horror of Red Hook, etc. Dark-voiced, rumbling narrator ... Lovecraft's building up of his juicy hatred of the vile decrepit swampiness of his surroundings -- things unstated which are scarier by far for not being wallowed in and held under a microscope -- great! In the hands of a genre master. 
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#92
04-13-2007, 04:42 AM
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Re: Kurt Vonnegut has died
gotta say some things here...
the first 4 bauchman books are really good, but stepehn king wrote alot of bad books, which is exactly what vonnegutt did not do...hence why i think he can be held in a higher regard. I have read next to no cormac, so i cannot add to that dicussion....someone recomends me where to start, i will tho. Celine wrote one decent book, Journey to the end of the night. But its one of those books that peple pretend to like because people say its good, but it had some pretty dry and bad parts. Im sure vonnegutt was more of a fan of the guy who wrote Never come morning ...cant remember his name tho, but i do recall reading that he was a pretty big influence on kurt (name is Nelson Algren). that book is a lighter read and better than journey. i think kurt was great because of his willingness to preach, and his ability to do so cleverly, any man that could live thru the dresden fire bombings and not live inside a bottle the rest his life, but further the thoughts of generations to come with his veiws that are still relevant today just as they were 30 years ago should never be put into a group with stephen king who openly admits he writes for an audience. bluebeard, slaughterhouse, cats cradle, mothernight, are all books that accomplished what ever message he tried to say. I have not heard 1 person say anything about jailbird tho...people should really read that one my top 5 von: 1. Slaughterhouse 2. Mothernight 3-4. Jailbird/bluebeard 5.hocus pocus on a lighter note has anyone read his sons book, someone recomended it to me but i never got around to reading it
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#93
04-13-2007, 05:27 AM
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Re: Kurt Vonnegut has died
Disagree most heartily. Journey to the End of the Night is easy to love. It's like nothing that came before it and nothing I've read that came after it. Celine is a tremendously gifted writer, and Journey is far better than the average book or even the average classic. It is a masterpiece.
Vonnegut is shot through wtih Celine's spirit, and it did him good. He wrote with high praise the forwards of some of his post-war books, clearly esteemingly him and his work highly, and probably his signature phrase might as well have been lifted from Journey directly. Celine is no afterthought or small note in relation to Vonnegut, and certainly not in terms of talent. If anything, Celine made Vonnegut possible, but not necessarily as an improvement.
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#94
04-13-2007, 12:39 PM
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Re: Kurt Vonnegut has died
Blarg and others,
Since the topic of great American writers came up and you seem to be in the know, what are your opinions on David Foster Wallace? Certainly a completely different style from Vonnegut, but IMHO the best American writer out there now and his most well known novel, Infinite Jest, was simply the best book I've had the joy to read. He himself does mention to be influenced by Vonnegut, among others (Pynchon, Gaddis and Gass come to mind, three other great writers). But perhaps his style is too high brow and wordy for most...
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#96
04-13-2007, 05:41 PM
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Re: Kurt Vonnegut has died
[ QUOTE ]
Blarg and others, Since the topic of great American writers came up and you seem to be in the know, what are your opinions on David Foster Wallace? Certainly a completely different style from Vonnegut, but IMHO the best American writer out there now and his most well known novel, Infinite Jest, was simply the best book I've had the joy to read. He himself does mention to be influenced by Vonnegut, among others (Pynchon, Gaddis and Gass come to mind, three other great writers). But perhaps his style is too high brow and wordy for most... [/ QUOTE ] Someone you might enjoy... Jonathen Franzen... start with his book "The Corrections." It's probably the best book i have read written in my lifetime (born in 77). It's an amazing book and no one i have reccomended it to has been disappointed after i've tirelessly hyped it to them. It pretty much takes on almost every interesting societal issue we face in one grand and simple story. The writing is flowery at times, but otherwise superb.
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#100
04-14-2007, 04:20 AM
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Re: Kurt Vonnegut has died
[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ] Personally I think Cormac McCarthy is in a different league and head and shoulders above stephen king and Vonnegut. There is an argument for McCarthy being the best american writer ever. It would be impossible to make that argument for King or Vonnegut. [/ QUOTE ] I've never read any McCarthy, and this latest post-Apocalyptic one doesn't interest me. Any recommends? Didn't he write some ultra-violent book set in Mexico? [/ QUOTE ] sorry i got to your question so late. haven't checked this post in a while. mccarthy's 2 most recent books are very different from his previous ones. my favorite mccarthy book is Blood Meridian. I think most critics would rank this book as his best as well. It takes place in mexico and the southwest united states during the mid 19th century. It is incredibly violent. It has the best dialogue of any american piece of literature i have ever read.
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