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A review by savaging
The Anthologist by Nicholson Baker
3.0
This book had the feel of Saul Bellows' [b:Herzog|6551|Herzog|Saul Bellow|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1386924221s/6551.jpg|2088454]. A narrator who is a privileged white dude -- and knows it. His job is to write things that others will want to read, but they're thinking secretly that anyone who wants to read what he has to say is thereby wrong. There's someone else, living a real life, you should be reading. Or put away reading all together and do something. This is a book born out of a loss of faith in books. And yet-- and yet-- even if it's all a waste of time-- even if it's all nonsense-- I mean look here, at this line:
"God I wish I was a canoe. Either that or some kind of tree tumor that could be made into a zebra bowl but isn’t because I’m still on the tree."
And, apologetically, Paul Chowder has ideas. Good ideas, even if they're only about the rhythm of poetry. But seriously, you'll never look at iambic pentameter the same, and you'll want to read more W.S. Merwin and Mary Oliver and figure out who Sarah Teasdale and Louise Bogan are. Maybe I shouldn't care about all of this? Baker doesn't offer any justification for it, he only puts the poetry out there, bashfully, and we keep responding in spite of ourselves.
"God I wish I was a canoe. Either that or some kind of tree tumor that could be made into a zebra bowl but isn’t because I’m still on the tree."
And, apologetically, Paul Chowder has ideas. Good ideas, even if they're only about the rhythm of poetry. But seriously, you'll never look at iambic pentameter the same, and you'll want to read more W.S. Merwin and Mary Oliver and figure out who Sarah Teasdale and Louise Bogan are. Maybe I shouldn't care about all of this? Baker doesn't offer any justification for it, he only puts the poetry out there, bashfully, and we keep responding in spite of ourselves.