House of Leaves/Danielewski

[Craig Duckett]

I just finished reading *House of Leaves* by Mark Z. Danielewski and *A
Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius* by Dave Eggers in that order, and
while I found both works entertaining enough in their own way, both should
have been edited down to the length of say *Gatsby* insofar as the story
elements were concerned. Imagine taking any good novella and inflating it
five times its original size...the good parts will still be in there, but
will seem overwhelmed by all the filler, literary tricks, and fluff. Don't
get me wrong: I enjoyed both books, but finished with the feeling that I had
to chew a lot of fiber just to get to the meat.

Regards,

Craig Duckett
Seattle, WA