Or…”Next Up: Barbara Kingsolver.”
I knew this when I was reading The Old Man and the Sea. It’s short — perhaps too long to be called a “short story,” but a novel? C’mon. I suppose that’s why it was assigned in so many literature classes. Nice and easy. Only the laziest of students wouldn’t manage to read it (I’m surprised there are even Cliff Notes on it, but hey, here we are).
But that doesn’t mean it suffers in quality. I’m listing it in the middle of my Pulitzer pack, but maybe only because it’s such a familiar tale that it didn’t grab me for being overly unique. Still, you’ve gotta love Hemingway. His style is refreshing in a way. It wanders and punches on occasion, and in this particular case, captured the thoughts and emotions of a man being pulled away to sea in this epic struggle. Near the end, I was reminded a bit of movies like Birdman and 1917 that used a single continuous camera shot to tell the story. I suppose that’s what you get for having so much of a book out on the water.
As far as review or critique? What can I add that hasn’t been said a million times in a million high school English classes (maybe by you)? It’s a great book. A very quick read. And now it’s on to something new and exciting…
I read Barbara Kingsolver’s The Poisonwood Bible a decade and some ago. So distant that I can only vaguely remember it. I know she’s a great writer — my sister Gail loves her, and, having witnessed her reading for literally as long as I can remember (plus I have it on good authority that she herself taught me to read), that’s good enough for me.
So of course, when Kingsolver’s latest novel, Demon Copperhead, was awarded the Pulitzer Prize for fiction this year, I was quick to hear about it. And I was thrilled to find it in the base library (right after I started the Old Man). Considering the word seems to be out on the Libby app (it’s a long wait just about everywhere I checked), I can only chalk that up to a lack of culture among the local population. They don’t know what they’re missing.
In the few chapters I’ve read so far, I’ve been impressed by the novel’s voice. It certainly grabs one’s attention. We’ll see though. There have been times already I’ve felt the style a bit flippant and forced. I can only assume that once I’m used to the characters and settings, it’ll flow right along. I’m certainly excited by the opportunity, though I expect it’ll take me a while to get through.
