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3.99 AVERAGE
3.99 AVERAGE
adventurous
dark
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
A fictionalized account of the life and times of Lee H. Oswald, through the eyes of both the protagonist and the government agents looking to use him as a pawn for their plot against the Executive branch. DeLillo's prose is more straightforward than similar writers, such as James Ellroy, and the labyrinthine plot will excite anyone looking for a thrilling story with some facts behind them, no matter how obfuscated and fictionalized said facts may end up being.
This book is dense. Delillo's style is heavy on storytelling and narrative, light on action and conversation. There are a lot of characters in the book. I almost gave up a few times because the book started slowly, but it picked up steam as it went along. Getting used to the dense prose takes time, but ultimately it was a good investment.
Where does fiction start and history end? It's hard to say. Delillo offers a semi-fictional account of the life of Lee Harvey Oswald and the conspiracy to assassinate JFK. His theories are believable. I'm not a huge Kennedy conspiracy theory but I was still able to enjoy the book.
I'd go 3.5 stars if I could, but forced to choose I'll go with 3 since I had trouble getting started. I wouldn't recommend starting this book unless you have time to dive deeply.
Where does fiction start and history end? It's hard to say. Delillo offers a semi-fictional account of the life of Lee Harvey Oswald and the conspiracy to assassinate JFK. His theories are believable. I'm not a huge Kennedy conspiracy theory but I was still able to enjoy the book.
I'd go 3.5 stars if I could, but forced to choose I'll go with 3 since I had trouble getting started. I wouldn't recommend starting this book unless you have time to dive deeply.
What a journey! While it does seem tediously involute at times in the middle, it all comes together in the end and the conspicuous bypasses into character history will reveal the hidden purpose of setting the American Experience so as to assist the explosion in the end.
Had to drop Don Delillo's Libra. Couldn't finish it. For some reason, a lot of things were happening that I never saw happen.
Completely mindfucked. IDK, man. More linear narrative wise and yet still more confusing, messier, and naturally, more profound, than End Zone. Confluence of history, fiction, political and existential philosophy.
Will I ever "get" DeLillo?
Will I ever "get" DeLillo?
Two things are common with both mass shooters and high profile assassins:
1. They are almost always male.
2. They almost always have some sort of personality disorder which makes it difficult for them to fit into polite society.
Fringe groups prey on these kinds of people. They suck their soul to the marrow, leave nothing left, and abandon them when their presence becomes an inconvenience.
That’s the story Don DeLillo is telling in Libra. He certainly has some interest in the Kennedy conspiracy: the guilty party in this universe being disaffected ex-CIA types who were involved in the Bay of Pigs and angry that JFK won’t do more about Cuba. But all of the rah rah jingoism here is simply the web of the spider. Oswald is the victim. In many ways, he is helpless.
I wouldn’t say this is a sympathetic portrayal of Oswald. DeLillo does not use his anti-social behaviors as a crutch for how he treated his wife and how he viewed other humans. But DeLillo does a masterful job showing how a guy who cannot fit in anywhere could land in a spot to do harm to others. This person is not unassuming but they are naive, willing to surrender their humanity because they are a True Believer. This is the Oswald we get.
A good book except for one thing, which coincidentally, I mentioned in my previous review: I can’t stand the shifting narrative technique when I don’t know whose mind we’re in. It throws me off of my investment in the story and when I finally catch up, I feel like I’ve lost some of the subtlety of what the writer is trying to say. Please, writers, if you read this, do not do this. It’s so annoying.
1. They are almost always male.
2. They almost always have some sort of personality disorder which makes it difficult for them to fit into polite society.
Fringe groups prey on these kinds of people. They suck their soul to the marrow, leave nothing left, and abandon them when their presence becomes an inconvenience.
That’s the story Don DeLillo is telling in Libra. He certainly has some interest in the Kennedy conspiracy: the guilty party in this universe being disaffected ex-CIA types who were involved in the Bay of Pigs and angry that JFK won’t do more about Cuba. But all of the rah rah jingoism here is simply the web of the spider. Oswald is the victim. In many ways, he is helpless.
I wouldn’t say this is a sympathetic portrayal of Oswald. DeLillo does not use his anti-social behaviors as a crutch for how he treated his wife and how he viewed other humans. But DeLillo does a masterful job showing how a guy who cannot fit in anywhere could land in a spot to do harm to others. This person is not unassuming but they are naive, willing to surrender their humanity because they are a True Believer. This is the Oswald we get.
A good book except for one thing, which coincidentally, I mentioned in my previous review: I can’t stand the shifting narrative technique when I don’t know whose mind we’re in. It throws me off of my investment in the story and when I finally catch up, I feel like I’ve lost some of the subtlety of what the writer is trying to say. Please, writers, if you read this, do not do this. It’s so annoying.
The most complete book I’ve read, Delillo is masterful.
slow-paced
I don’t think there is anyone who can write a better sentence than DeLillo. Say what you will about him, word for word he’s pretty much perfect. Everything’s so electric, fiery.
Libra continues this tradition and it’s great. It’s the most plot-heavy novel of his that I’ve read, and the blending of fact and fiction surrounding the JFK assassination is fascinating. Speaking as someone who didn’t really know much about it, Libra illuminated a lot of the key points and got me reading Wikipedia articles searching for the real truth—at the least as much truth as anyone knows.
It’s certainly an exciting book, but I’ll admit it didn’t grab me quite as much as his other work. That might be the theme—I tend to enjoy his stuff when there’s less of a driving narrative, where you can just sit in the ideas he’s playing with. But Libra is still amazing and well worth a read, if nothing else than for the sheer brilliance of the prose.
Libra continues this tradition and it’s great. It’s the most plot-heavy novel of his that I’ve read, and the blending of fact and fiction surrounding the JFK assassination is fascinating. Speaking as someone who didn’t really know much about it, Libra illuminated a lot of the key points and got me reading Wikipedia articles searching for the real truth—at the least as much truth as anyone knows.
It’s certainly an exciting book, but I’ll admit it didn’t grab me quite as much as his other work. That might be the theme—I tend to enjoy his stuff when there’s less of a driving narrative, where you can just sit in the ideas he’s playing with. But Libra is still amazing and well worth a read, if nothing else than for the sheer brilliance of the prose.