Pynchon Character Names

[Carvill, John]

Yes, Dave Monroe has a copy, I think. Interesting book.

Yes, there's a lot still to explore about Pynchon 's use of his
ancestors in his work. Who was it a while back found a reference to one
of those ancestral Pynchons having applied for a patent on a Chums of
Chance-style airship?

Yes to romance. As was pointed out on the BBC Newsnight Review
discussion of IV on Firday night, Doc Sportello is yet another Pynchon
hero who's got it bad for some dame, a common noir meme. To which I'd
add the (obvious) point that the detective novel is a kind of update on
the traditional quest narrative, thereby a perfect match for Pynchon,
whose books as we all know have often featured quests, particularly ones
where baffled protagonists stumble around trying to make sense of it
all....