my intro to the man... really dislike most of his poems, which made this somewhat tough. definitely prefer the prose bits, some really compelling stormy intro to the man... really dislike most of his poems, which made this somewhat tough. definitely prefer the prose bits, some really compelling stories, but even then i'm not sure there's enough literary merit to make the bad shit worthwhile. I can't figure out how the poems are meant to sound.
a good sampling of work though, for seeing parallels across stories ..
loved these - The Abortion is certainly a favorite novel (novella?) of mine.
It's the story of a librarian who doesn't keep an ordinary library, but oloved these - The Abortion is certainly a favorite novel (novella?) of mine.
It's the story of a librarian who doesn't keep an ordinary library, but one where the public are invited to bring their self-authored books for eternal storage in the archives. When the shelves fill up with books- stories of pets written by children, personal manifestos, life-works, scraps of paper glued together (or coated in bacon-fat)- a guy comes and takes some away to the caves, where he watches over them. The library is open 24/7, and the librarian is always present and on-call, as it is his duty to receive books. It reads like magic realism though no physical magic is involved.
One night a girl comes with her book, he offers his services of acceptance and comfort. Brautigan's writing is intimate and personable. This collection overall shows the more charming and approachable side of his work.
The final short book, So The Wind Won't Blow It All Away, was also really nice. Childhood tales, growing up during WWII, the very intelligent but still innocent reflections of a 13 year old who is so deeply curious about the people around him.
3 novellas in this book, my thoughts toward each of them fluctuated widely throughout, but in the end, they were much enjoyed. very glad that mike rec3 novellas in this book, my thoughts toward each of them fluctuated widely throughout, but in the end, they were much enjoyed. very glad that mike recommended this to me. The Confederate General is classic bum tales, wild friends in wild places, scheming for money and enjoying life for what it is. Surviving in shacks off the highway, on cliffs above the pacific, with tens of thousands of frogs and then with alligators in the pond.
Dreaming of Babylon is an imaginative but seedy private-detective story. I quite liked the theme of babylon, and I will try to create a babylon of my own. I also enjoyed: "A client! Bullets for my gun! Five dollars! and best of all, a dead landlady! Who could ask for anything more?" as well as all of the distress around the beer-drinking lady: where did the beers go? she drank so many beers, and never peed once! where could they have gone?
The Hawkline Monster is a fucked up magic realism borderline sci-fi story where some mysterious sisters hire a pair of hitmen to kill the monster inhabiting in the ice caves beneath the house. The Chemicals were in charge. It was barely the Twentieth Century....more
I loved this!!!! didn't know this was a thing, the lost novel only published a decade ago, his first attempt at a novel.
while almost entirely set on I loved this!!!! didn't know this was a thing, the lost novel only published a decade ago, his first attempt at a novel.
while almost entirely set on land, the focus is on the characters- very honest representations of the sides of kerouac's self, the drunk adrift sailor and the responsible sheltered academic. written when it was, the attitude is fresh and young and pleasant compared to his other works. wish it was finished; should be longer and also gayer. I want to go to sea ..... ...more
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