Kavalier and Clay

Okay, so on my wife’s prodding I read “The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier & Clay“.

She always reads these “literary” type books and then shames me into reading them. The other one she made me read is The Secret History by Donna Tartt. I really didn’t like either of them. They were kind of like great pieces of art from an artist you just don’t care all that much about. I got into them alright, and could appreciate the skill of the storytelling, the craft of the writing, the themes, the symbolism, the not-quite self-conscious manipulation of genre and plot that knows it’s superior to all those obviously-self-consciously-manipulated books.

Eh.

I enjoyed the magical realist feel to the story, and I’m a sucker for any “separated for years and tortuously reunited” plots, but both of these books had that feeling of trying really hard to be very serious works of literature.

I have to say that I would recommend the book to anyone who enjoys ‘literary’ novels, and anyone looking for a well-spun narrative that is immersed in Americana. I just wouldn’t recommend it to anyone looking for cheap satisfaction (like I usually am), seat of your pants drama, or page-turning thrills.