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4.08 AVERAGE
4.08 AVERAGE
adventurous
funny
informative
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
The Sot-Weed Factor will have you like to beshit yourself for laughter.
This picaresque novel follows a hilarious cast across the Atlantic and into the marshes of late 1600s Maryland. Barth’s appropriation of the language and argot of the time is actually eminently readable, and it accentuates and draws out even more humor from the already ridiculous plot.
The story is most often propelled by different characters relaying stories that inform characters and the reader about crucial information that fills in the gaps of their knowledge of the who’s, why’s, and where’s. But don’t think this means it’s a slog; it’s a page-turner of a narrative, and you’ll breeze through these 700+ pages before you know it.
After Barth’s first two novels left me with no particularly amazing feelings, I’m glad that The Sot-Weed Factor was this good and this enjoyable; I very much look forward to reading more of his work.
This picaresque novel follows a hilarious cast across the Atlantic and into the marshes of late 1600s Maryland. Barth’s appropriation of the language and argot of the time is actually eminently readable, and it accentuates and draws out even more humor from the already ridiculous plot.
The story is most often propelled by different characters relaying stories that inform characters and the reader about crucial information that fills in the gaps of their knowledge of the who’s, why’s, and where’s. But don’t think this means it’s a slog; it’s a page-turner of a narrative, and you’ll breeze through these 700+ pages before you know it.
After Barth’s first two novels left me with no particularly amazing feelings, I’m glad that The Sot-Weed Factor was this good and this enjoyable; I very much look forward to reading more of his work.
challenging
funny
informative
lighthearted
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
There are many things to quibble about with Barth's hugely ambitious tale of Ebenezer Cooke - first of all, the number of coincidences that pile up at the end almost cause a narrative trainwreck - thankfully, the ending is satisfying without being pat. The Sot-Weed Factor is a satire of the big, wordy 18th Century novel, and references abound to Defoe, Jones and Sterne. Barth is not afraid to plumb the depths of scatological humor - there are many jokes involving bodily functions, and somewhat more problematic, rape. Even so, it would be prudish to mount a serious criticism of this novel - its sheer ambition and sense of fun are too disarming. This is required reading for all residents of Maryland - good luck trying to filter historical fact from fiction!
i love you postmodernism. i love you picaresques. i love you the sot weed factor. so funny and weird and fucked up.
adventurous
challenging
funny
medium-paced
adventurous
challenging
funny
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Good Lord, this was a wild ride! Such contrived serendepity that I could lay hands on this paperback. Perfect in all senses. Rarely would I call a book perfect, unless it's Moby Dick or Brothers Karamazov. Right thing to do now is to read hightlights of Moby Dick and then pick up Mason and Dixon, if I am brave enough to read a brick after another. John Barth is one more author whose bibliography I intend to consume. If nothing Sot-Weed Factor is funny, and we get to follow Ebenezer Cooke, who indeed is an actual person, who indeed wrote Marylindiad [here]. Although there are multiple tales inside tales, and tangents everywhere, Barth keeps it all tied through Ebenezer who rarely goes away from the sight, unlike Pynchon who fires in all tangents and lets most of them go. With pirates, sailors, poets, prostitutes, Ebenezer, omnipresent Birlingame, maidens, and 17th century american politics, sot-weed factor is one perfect tale.
This was a difficult book to read, both because of its 800 pages and because of the use of old English dialogue (it is set in the late 17th century in England and the colony of Maryland). Nevertheless, it is a story to rival Fanny Hill or Tom Jones - a ribald and rollicking tale on two continents and the ocean between them - and unlike anything else I've read in recent years.
Against my best wishes, this book ends after page 756, and I'm stuck here having to pick out something new to read next. I always feel bad for the books that I read after I finish masterpieces, because even if they're great, they can't help but pale in comparison.
I tried to write a proper review twice now, but words won't do this work of art justice, so here are some scattered thoughts:
-This book should be held in the same regard as the other big postmodern masterpieces (a la Gravity's Rainbow and Infinite Jest. The fact that I hadn't heard about it or read it until now makes me scared that I'm missing out on a lot of other great stuff.
-The Sot-Weed Factor ranks among the funniest books I've ever read. The amount of pure glee that I felt while read it is unreal.
-I need to read everything John Barth has ever written now. Every single word.
-Fiction is best on an epic scale, and stories that are interspersed with American history are my absolute favorite.
All in all, I'm not even going to try to talk about how much I loved this book. It speaks for itself. All you need to do is get yourself a copy and you'll understand.
I tried to write a proper review twice now, but words won't do this work of art justice, so here are some scattered thoughts:
-This book should be held in the same regard as the other big postmodern masterpieces (a la Gravity's Rainbow and Infinite Jest. The fact that I hadn't heard about it or read it until now makes me scared that I'm missing out on a lot of other great stuff.
-The Sot-Weed Factor ranks among the funniest books I've ever read. The amount of pure glee that I felt while read it is unreal.
-I need to read everything John Barth has ever written now. Every single word.
-Fiction is best on an epic scale, and stories that are interspersed with American history are my absolute favorite.
All in all, I'm not even going to try to talk about how much I loved this book. It speaks for itself. All you need to do is get yourself a copy and you'll understand.