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A review by rebcamuse
Loon Lake by E.L. Doctorow
3.0
Let me preface this with this: I LOVE E.L. Doctorow. Loved [b:City of God|24912|City of God|E.L. Doctorow|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1373960733s/24912.jpg|25689]. Loved [b:Ragtime|175675|Ragtime|E.L. Doctorow|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1320531790s/175675.jpg|551195]. Loved [b:The Book of Daniel|411761|The Book of Daniel|E.L. Doctorow|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1174516442s/411761.jpg|623973]. So, ok...I didn't LOVE [b:Homer & Langley|6324914|Homer & Langley|E.L. Doctorow|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1320536383s/6324914.jpg|6510464], but at least I didn't finish the book thinking I had lost my facility to comprehend English.
I wish I could tell you I know what this book is about. There's a con-man/fugitive "protagonist" who is not at all likeable or even interestingly evil. There's a bizarre ladylove who dances in and out of self-respect every chapter or so. The most interesting character is a maid, who disappears from the narrative fairly early on. The depressed and eccentric poet holds promise, yet he also vanishes.
I get that this was an experiment. There are moments of that great Doctorow language that I treasure. But as a coherent book it fails. I totally understand that some people find this work a "stunning masterpiece" and "utterly compelling." Variety is definitely the spice of life, and I am probably the dry saltine of literature here, but this one really did not do it for me.
I wish I could tell you I know what this book is about. There's a con-man/fugitive "protagonist" who is not at all likeable or even interestingly evil. There's a bizarre ladylove who dances in and out of self-respect every chapter or so. The most interesting character is a maid, who disappears from the narrative fairly early on. The depressed and eccentric poet holds promise, yet he also vanishes.
I get that this was an experiment. There are moments of that great Doctorow language that I treasure. But as a coherent book it fails. I totally understand that some people find this work a "stunning masterpiece" and "utterly compelling." Variety is definitely the spice of life, and I am probably the dry saltine of literature here, but this one really did not do it for me.