Top 10 Reasons Why AtD Sucks

[Daniel Harper]

On 6/21/07, Henry Winkler <rushm0r3 at gmail.com> wrote:
>
> 10.  The title.
>

What's wrong with the title? It's obscure, evocative, multilingual
perhaps... much like Pynchon's works in general, and ATD in particular.

9.  Multiple boring plotlines.
>

I think for every one that you find boring you'll find one that is utterly
amazing. And those that you find boring might be those that I find amazing.
Even GR has its slow bits.


8.  Lame coincidences.
>

Intentional by the author, making points about the characters and themes.
Even Voltaire did it.

7.  Yet more talking dogs.
>

And?


6.  Absolutely no depth to characters.
>

I disagree. ATD has some of the best characters in all of Pynchon's works.
And Pynchon keep in mind is by no means a "character-centered" author.


5.  Awful sex scenes.
>

I've read a lot of bad sex scenes... and ATD contains none as far as I can
tell. Some of them are not particularly erotic, but those are not intended
to be.

4.  Because Michiko K. says it sucks.
>

Did you even read her review?


3.  Entire Yashmeen-Reef-Cyprian menage-a-trois.
>

One of the greatest sequences in any of Pynchon's works. This is the
character work you say doesn't exist earlier. Absolutely brilliant.

2.  Purple prose.
>

Example?


1.  The Chums of Chance.
>

What's wrong with them? Sure, they're a hokey literary device, but all of
Pynchon's works use hokey literary devices as intentional nudges to the
audience that this is a fictional world.

Your trolling is not as entertaining as you think it is.

--Daniel
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