As a literary work however, it is fairly thin beer. I have also read Delilo, which left no lasting impression except the unwillingness to read anything else by him. Gibson I don't know.
The best thing I read by an American about WWII -- and it is mostly about the impossibility of the post-war generation to address the issues raised by the war -- was Richard Yates "Revolutionary Road."
There are great unsung writers of the 20th century, RB Traven comes to mind. But the experience of that war has not yet really been reflected in literature by anyone. Perhaps literature has its limits. WWI had some poets -- Wilfred Owen for one. But WWII was about more than idiotic, indiscriminate, endless slaughter; and whatever it was about has escaped the medium of literature.
Joanna
----- Original Message -----
Chuck Grimes wrote:
> In general the traditional arts were almost entirely lacking in any
> meaningful way to appropriate the experiences of millions.
Anytime I see this, I can only assume the person in question has not read Pynchon's _Gravity's Rainbow_, which I think is the definitive literary reflection of the Second World War and the post-war order it gave birth to.
I realize the book can be intimidating due to its length and heft, but I think it will reward anyone willing to investigate the time to read it.
The sentiment Chuck expresses here reminds of another essay that Loren Goldner wrote, about how the sixties killed literature, and that there are no adequate literary reflections of the 60s. Uh, hello, _Vineland_ anybody?
The holy trinity of literary reflections of contemporary US society is Pynchon, Delillo, and William Gibson. I'm always shocked to discover how many Marxists don't bother to read these three authors, and always overjoyed when I encounter one who does.
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