Books 2008 #12 Against the Day

Against the Day Pynchon is a madman. This work, more than 1000 pages of meandering epic, is all the evidence one could ever need of that. Frighteningly dense and wildly imaginative, Against the Day spans three continents, more than 25 years and features a dizzying cast of characters. Shifts in tone, style and focus are commonplace and serious answers to questions as basic as “what is the plot” and “who is the protagonist” would take far more space than I’m planning on devoting to this particular review.

And therein lies some of the appeal of this book for me. It’s a delirious intellectual exercise trying to keep up with Pynchon on this journey through time, space, and world history. The uncertain footing and the massive breadth of the book make for challenging reading. You’re constantly questioning and evaluating everything.

On the flip side, would I recommend it to other people? If you’ve already experienced and anjoyed Pynchon I’d say “give it a shot.” It’s not as good as something like Gravity’s Rainbow, but it’s still Pynchon.

For everyone else, I’d say “probably not.” It’s not a masterpiece like the aforementioned Gravity’s Rainbow, so the payoff for all the hard work probably wouldn’t be worth the effort for most folks.