The flight from Chicago to Dallas was a piece of cake. Flying on Monday nights is the way to go. O'Hare Terminal 1 (United) was empty, and my flight was empty, too. I didn't make sense to waste an upgrade when Economy Plus was wide open.
On the flight, I finished a book, Weapons of Mass Deception by Rampton & Stauber of the Center for Media and Democracy, and continued another The Man with Golden Arm by Nelson Algren. Weapons was okay. I'd read most of it in other books, publications, or websites. The chapter on Charlotte Beers was interesting, but, again, it wasn't anything new. On the good side, the book is well-researched and annotated to the point where you can go to the websites to see their sources. Cool 21st century stuff. I think the book is better for the ignorant herds that believe everything they see on TV or that fail or refuse to exercise any critical or analytical-thinking. In other words, most people will benefit from this book.
Algren's Golden Arm is another story. I've been picking it up and setting it down for a couple of months now. I've read numerous critical essays on its significance to American literature, and I'm bought into Algren's importance to Chicago's literary landscape. I just can't get into it.
It's his style. I can't find a rhythm as I read. The book is funny, and the details of down-and-out Division Street of the 1940's are classic, especially for a Chicagoan. However, everytime I find something I like, Algren tosses in an overly-slanged-up wad of twisted prose that just doesn't click for me. I had the same trouble with A Walk on the Wild Side and with some of his short stories. I suppose I'm comparing Algren to two other authors I just read, Michael Chabon and Graham Greene. Both are much easier to read than Algren.
I enjoyed both Chabon (Mysteries of Pittsburgh) and Greene (The Third Man) in the past, and I liked the books that I just recently finished, too. Chabon's The Adventures of Kavalier and Clay was pure joy. The novel was fluid, beautiful, and fun. Greater than 600 pages flew by, and I was sad for it to end. Greene's The Quiet American was a breeze of a read because it was short, and his prose is stripped-down to sinew like Hemingway. I was cruising until I decided to try Golden Arm again. Now, I'm slogging along, but I'm not giving up hope though. Maybe it'll click in the end.
Okay, back to Texas...everything is fine so far. Last night, I got lost exiting the Rental Car area, as usual (you gotta see and experience DFW to believe it). For dinner, I went to Whataburger, a Texas institution honored by the state legislature as a "Texas Treasure" (yes, very true). After that, I bought snacks and baseball cards at the same 7-Eleven where I used to go when I worked out here and, then, headed to the Marriott. Sounds fun, huh?
On the flight, I finished a book, Weapons of Mass Deception by Rampton & Stauber of the Center for Media and Democracy, and continued another The Man with Golden Arm by Nelson Algren. Weapons was okay. I'd read most of it in other books, publications, or websites. The chapter on Charlotte Beers was interesting, but, again, it wasn't anything new. On the good side, the book is well-researched and annotated to the point where you can go to the websites to see their sources. Cool 21st century stuff. I think the book is better for the ignorant herds that believe everything they see on TV or that fail or refuse to exercise any critical or analytical-thinking. In other words, most people will benefit from this book.
Algren's Golden Arm is another story. I've been picking it up and setting it down for a couple of months now. I've read numerous critical essays on its significance to American literature, and I'm bought into Algren's importance to Chicago's literary landscape. I just can't get into it.
It's his style. I can't find a rhythm as I read. The book is funny, and the details of down-and-out Division Street of the 1940's are classic, especially for a Chicagoan. However, everytime I find something I like, Algren tosses in an overly-slanged-up wad of twisted prose that just doesn't click for me. I had the same trouble with A Walk on the Wild Side and with some of his short stories. I suppose I'm comparing Algren to two other authors I just read, Michael Chabon and Graham Greene. Both are much easier to read than Algren.
I enjoyed both Chabon (Mysteries of Pittsburgh) and Greene (The Third Man) in the past, and I liked the books that I just recently finished, too. Chabon's The Adventures of Kavalier and Clay was pure joy. The novel was fluid, beautiful, and fun. Greater than 600 pages flew by, and I was sad for it to end. Greene's The Quiet American was a breeze of a read because it was short, and his prose is stripped-down to sinew like Hemingway. I was cruising until I decided to try Golden Arm again. Now, I'm slogging along, but I'm not giving up hope though. Maybe it'll click in the end.
Okay, back to Texas...everything is fine so far. Last night, I got lost exiting the Rental Car area, as usual (you gotta see and experience DFW to believe it). For dinner, I went to Whataburger, a Texas institution honored by the state legislature as a "Texas Treasure" (yes, very true). After that, I bought snacks and baseball cards at the same 7-Eleven where I used to go when I worked out here and, then, headed to the Marriott. Sounds fun, huh?
posted by Brian at 10:13 AM
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