Yes. I'm still reading Pynchon. I'll probably read him until the day I die. I've read other things in the meantime. My preferred way of reading him is slowly, soaking up all the details I can of his encyclopaedic, ~math-ematical prose, his penchants for conspiracy, ~history and his ingenuity.
I found it interesting he hasn't done any interviews before. This is a creative placeholder. Maybe he would do a Stacker News AMA.
Thomas Pynchon has never, ever granted an interview. This titanically talented writer guards his privacy like a flight risk. The National Enquirer recently stalked Pynchon for six months before stealing a photograph of him as he voted at his local polling place, which, to some of us, was like shooting a GI in the act of raising the American flag. Pynchon’s stance is that of every private writer: let the books speak for themselves.
The following Q&A takes very literally this reticent author’s plea. Here is the story of Pynchon’s life and work, with a particular focus on California, as told via his nine books. His answers are his own words, taken verbatim, one book at a time, from V. up through Bleeding Edge. A fine writer and his characters may think they’re discussing other things, but it’s my contention that every author’s keyboard is a polygraph. Pynchon—funny, prophetic, menschy, Californian to his fingerprints—writes his autobiography with every line.
First the facts: Thomas Ruggles Pynchon Jr. was born on May 8, 1937, in the Long Island, New York, city of Glen Cove. He entered Cornell as an engineering physics major, then turned a page in the course catalog and found a second home in the English Department. After graduation, he worked in Seattle as a technical writer for Boeing and spent time in, among other places, Mexico City and Guanajuato. Somewhere in there, he wrote one of the best American first novels of the past century, 1963’s V., where we begin.
Stalking a writer (or anyone) to get a picture is seriously uncool. I still struggle with Pynchon. I do like his writing, but have been finding myself losing interest when I try to read him lately.
I think you may feel about Pynchon as I feel about William T Vollmann.
I had the same reaction. We ought to hold journalists to a higher standard.
How do you recommend one would get started on Vollmann? Any particular works stand out?
Edit: I think I found my answer
The Rifles is excellent. So is Europe Central.
His book about Imperial County (Imperial) is pretty interesting. So is Whores for Gloria.
Bookmarked. Merci Monsieur.
I enjoyed reading Gravity's Rainbow, but I could not finish it (two times). No spoilers! I was reading it with the Pynchon wiki side by side because there are so many references. It goes super slow. I have to reflect on every paragraph. My vocabulary is not advanced enough. It is kind of like a tea ceremony for me and the pace of modern life seems to be incompatible with this. There is also a great podcast called Pynchon in Public.
Still one of my favorite Simpsons guest stars. I haven't loved his most recent books, but I'll also continue to read anything he puts out.