Scan barcode
A review by kandicez
The Castle in the Forest by Norman Mailer
3.0
While I can see why some think Mailer is a genius, this was not, in my opinion, his best work. Mailer tends to become obsessed with things meant to dusgust us, and in this one,true to form, I was digusted over and over. I would find myself having to stop and backtrack a bit, thinking I must have missed something. He can't possibly be speaking of anuses right now. Unfortunately, he was.
The story itself was interesting only because we know this boy grows up to be a monster, but honestly, he wasn't that interesting as a child. He could be a brat, wasn't particularly charming, and didn't have many redeeming qualities, but that's not so unusual. I learned more about apiculture than I will ever, ever need to know, and I am just not fascinated with incest.
I am glad I took the time to struggle through this. I think it was Mailer's last, but I wont be re-reading it.
The story itself was interesting only because we know this boy grows up to be a monster, but honestly, he wasn't that interesting as a child. He could be a brat, wasn't particularly charming, and didn't have many redeeming qualities, but that's not so unusual. I learned more about apiculture than I will ever, ever need to know, and I am just not fascinated with incest.
I am glad I took the time to struggle through this. I think it was Mailer's last, but I wont be re-reading it.