I suspect it is the kind of 'literary novel' that I can't really relate to. So the author seems more obsessed with displaying how versatile he is in the use of English - long rambling paragraphs full of long words or obscure words that I can't really be bothered to comprehend. Is this what the modern American novel is all about? OK so superficially it is a book about a book being written by an author who has observed a tragedy. This is the tragedy of an elderly accademic driven from his senior post by allegations of racism. Of course there is a twist in the tail or tale. Philip Roth seems to find it essential to introduce a great amount of graphic sexual desriptions and language. I personally find this generally inessential, and does not add to the stature of the writing. I found myself scanning large chunks of this book, because I eventually couldn't care less about the fates of the various participants, whether it was the 'hero - Coleman Silk, or the writer, or the Vietnam veteran, or the youthful mistress of Coleman, or the strange French Professor. It all rather went over my head. My edition had the following extract from a review on the front cover: 'The work of a genius at full throttle' Sunday Telegraph. I don't think they were reading the book I've just finished! Rating 4/10Sunday 29 April 2007
The Human Stain - Philip Roth
Not sure what to make of this book!
I suspect it is the kind of 'literary novel' that I can't really relate to. So the author seems more obsessed with displaying how versatile he is in the use of English - long rambling paragraphs full of long words or obscure words that I can't really be bothered to comprehend. Is this what the modern American novel is all about? OK so superficially it is a book about a book being written by an author who has observed a tragedy. This is the tragedy of an elderly accademic driven from his senior post by allegations of racism. Of course there is a twist in the tail or tale. Philip Roth seems to find it essential to introduce a great amount of graphic sexual desriptions and language. I personally find this generally inessential, and does not add to the stature of the writing. I found myself scanning large chunks of this book, because I eventually couldn't care less about the fates of the various participants, whether it was the 'hero - Coleman Silk, or the writer, or the Vietnam veteran, or the youthful mistress of Coleman, or the strange French Professor. It all rather went over my head. My edition had the following extract from a review on the front cover: 'The work of a genius at full throttle' Sunday Telegraph. I don't think they were reading the book I've just finished! Rating 4/10
I suspect it is the kind of 'literary novel' that I can't really relate to. So the author seems more obsessed with displaying how versatile he is in the use of English - long rambling paragraphs full of long words or obscure words that I can't really be bothered to comprehend. Is this what the modern American novel is all about? OK so superficially it is a book about a book being written by an author who has observed a tragedy. This is the tragedy of an elderly accademic driven from his senior post by allegations of racism. Of course there is a twist in the tail or tale. Philip Roth seems to find it essential to introduce a great amount of graphic sexual desriptions and language. I personally find this generally inessential, and does not add to the stature of the writing. I found myself scanning large chunks of this book, because I eventually couldn't care less about the fates of the various participants, whether it was the 'hero - Coleman Silk, or the writer, or the Vietnam veteran, or the youthful mistress of Coleman, or the strange French Professor. It all rather went over my head. My edition had the following extract from a review on the front cover: 'The work of a genius at full throttle' Sunday Telegraph. I don't think they were reading the book I've just finished! Rating 4/10
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