Washington Pynch Book World

[Henry Musikar]

This past Sunday was the 25th anniversary of The Washington Post Book 
World section.

M&D is back up to #4 hardcover fiction.

There was a feature of excerpts of book reviews from the 25 years 
that included a review by Geoffrey Wolff of GR (March 11, 1973!). 

There was an article entitled "Stylists and Visionaries: 25 Years of 
American Fiction" by Michael Dirda  that near the beginning includes 
"Let's start with the key works, those few books since 1972 that have 
tried, with more success than not, to depict the complex and troubled 
soul of America. I mean Thomas Pynchon's 'Gravity's Rainbow,' John 
Cheever's 'Collected Stories,' John Updike's Rabbit tetralogy, Toni 
Morison's 'Song of Solomon,' Raymond Carver's 'Where I'm Calling 
From: New and Selected Stories,' William Gaddis's 'JR,' Cormac 
McCarthy's 'All the Pretty Horses,' and E. Annie Proulx's undervalued 
'Accordion Crimes.' I think all these books could and should become 
classics, school texts, the books that represent our quarter century 
in future literary histories." It continues with "If, however, one 
were to push forward the single author who best addresses the 
obsessions of the past 25 years, Don DeLillo is the man." Near the 
end of the article: "John Barth's epistolary 'LETTERS,' the sprawling 
fiction of William Vollman, Richard Powers's 'The Gold Bug 
Variations," and David Foster Wallace's 'Infinite Jest' were admired 
with reservations, as were two of my favorites: Sorrentino's 
'Mulligan Stew' and Gass's 'The Tunnel.' Perhaps only Willam Gaddis 
(A Frolic of His Own), Thomas Pynchon (Mason & Dixon) and one or two 
others have managed to create wholly successful mega-novels." 

A-& if that weren't enough, theres a contest every week. This week's 
contest reads as follows:

The following characters were featured in novels, stories or plays 
published during the last 25 years. Name the title and author of the 
work in which each appears.
(1) Saleem Sinai, (2) Case, (3) T.S. Garp, (4) Sophie Z., (5) Cesar 
Castillo, (6) Tyrone Slothrop, (7) Coalhouse Walker, (8) Florentino 
Ariza and Fermina Daza, (9) Parlabane, (10) Edmund Moorash, (11) 
Fevvers, (12) Harry Angstrom, (13) Milkman Dead, (14) Sherman McCoy, 
(15) Ignatius Reilly, (16) Wiley Silenowicz, (17) Piere Brossard, 
(18) Severian, (19) Azaro, (20) John Lempriere, (21) Celie, (22) Gus 
McCrae, (23) Tita de la Garza, (24) Stevens, and (25) Treemonisha 
Smarts.

Curiously, nothing by TRP made any of the critics 10 favorite books 
from the past 25 years list. Hmmm...

AsB4,
Henry Musikar

Keep cool, but care. -- TRP
Moderation in moderation. -- Husky Mariner
DON'T PANIC! -- Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy
What, me worry? -- A. E. Newman