DeLillo

[Sean Mannion]

To put my two-pence in, I definitely got alot more out of The Names and 
Libra than I did out of White Noise.

He is quite a recycler, and understandably given his concerns as a writer, 
and this is no more evident between the novels than in White Noise, which i 
generally find works in either direction by either putting people off with 
it's inconsistency, or drawing them in with the synoptic quality of his 
common themes.

Sure, as far as White Noise is concerned, I think some of his conceits work 
better than others, some are more subtle than others; as anaemic as the 
'Hitler studies' and as trite as 'Most Photographed Barn in America' 
episodes are as compared with Running Dog and The Names,I still think the 
'Imminent Toxic Event' and 'Dylar' episodes (along with the Kid's jaunt 
across the freeway) are comparable with anything in the other novels.

I get what people way about his inconsistancy; kinda reminds of some 
critic's comments about Martin Amis' novels, about his set-pieces being 
better than the totality of the novels they're placed in. I'm not sure about 
how this would relate to DeLillo; as a start, I think his novels resolve 
themselves a hell of alot better than Amis'.