Harold Bloom on 2666

One fantastic advantage of our contemporary age is the relative ease with which we can can contact those we admire.  A quick anecdote:

My father, a life-long fan of The Who, tried to call Pete Townshend on his birthday (which, incidentally, is May 15th) to wish him many happy returns.  After extensive searching, he was able to speak to an operator in London, but said operator would not divulge Mr. Townshend’s phone number and, sadly, my father’s hopes to wish his rock idol a happy birthday were dashed.

In the present day, however, we have much better lines of communication–even to those that, in the past, seemed unreachable.  As an undergraduate, I read a great article by Keen Butterworth on Deliverance but needed further explanation on some fine points.  Instead of lamenting my inability to get an answer, I quickly found his e-mail address, sent a message, and got a reply all within a few hours.

Even more recently, I read an interview of Harold Bloom in which he describes the Judge from Cormac McCarthy’s Blood Meridian as “evil incarnate” and found myself thinking, “Hmm. 2666 deals pretty directly with evil, but the evil therein goes completely unnamed and–for the most part–unexperienced. I wonder what Professor Bloom thinks of it.” Thanks to the magic of the internet and Yale University’s Web site, I was able to find his e-mail information with no difficulty, send him my inquiry and get this response:

Dear Mr. Thomas: I suspect Bolano is another period piece. His excess attracts but flows away. Harold Bloom

Sure, it’s brief, but Harold Bloom answered my inquiry.  While I certainly don’t take everything he says or writes as gospel, his distaste of Bolaño sours my enjoyment of the novel.  Even before the tepid response from Professor Bloom, I wouldn’t venture to say that 2666 will be an important novel a generation from now, but I’m certainly willing to bet that it will be academically important for at least the next decade or so.  It may flow away, but it’s viscous enough to stick around for awhile.

2666: Through Part Three

Having finally read the three parts that comprise the first volume of the paperback edition of 2666, I am glad to report that I am still fully and energetically engaged as a reader.

Reading the English translation, I am consistently impressed with the English tone of the prose. Over the last few years I have been reading more South American authors in translation and the others (Márquez, Borges, Coelho) seem to have a common syntax that the translation of 2666 does not possess. 2666, to me, has an almost American sound. I am not sure whether this difference is due to the translation (by Natasha Wimmer), the fact that Bolaño did much of his writing in Spain, or that I want it to have a different sound.

The first three parts tell three different stories that begin in separate locales with different plots that become most interesting when they subtlety cross paths. Much to my surprise, Bolaño attempts to deal with American race relations, most overtly in “The Part About Fate,” and does so with surprising deftness. The character of Fate could easily slip into a black militant stereotype but he is treated fairly and given what I consider to be a fair voice.

The novel, up to this point, has been less violent that I had expected. From what I understand the fourth part is where the gore if poured on. We’ll see how it goes from here.

2666 ousted from the ToB

In The Morning News’ Tournament of Books, Roberto Bolaño’s novel 2666 has been defeated by Tom Piazza’s City of Refuge.  The novel chronicles the lives of New Orleans residents left in the wake of Hurricane Katrina.  I suppose its heart-of-gold narrative of survival won over the judge who chose it instead of the brutal tale of murder and mystery that 2666 recounts.

As the only novel that I have at least partially read of the 16 members of the tournament, I’ve been pulling for 2666 and I’m still holding out hope that it will be revived in the Zombie Round and claim its spot as the champion of books.

I am still a few pages away from having finished the 3rd book of 5 that comprise 2666.  The reader can probably expect a recap of my impressions so far in the near future. Happy reading!

2666: The Part About The Critics

This book is not reading as quickly as I would like. Due to work and class schedules, the only time I have for pleasure reading (where 2666 is currently categorized) is during my hour-long lunch break. I typically tote two PB&J sandwiches to work and eat at my desk, leaving nearly the entire hour devoted to reading, or meandering about the borough if the weather is fine. Most days, especially during the winter, my lunch break is spent at the local Starbucks nursing a tall morning brew coffee (their Pike Place is fairly detestable) and thumbing through a book. I try to reserve my lunch for non-school-related reading to provide a needed break in my day.

Having finally finished the first portion of the book, “The Part About the Critics,” I imagined that I had a good feel of the narrative. Bolaño does a nice job of developing his four primary critics while exploring some side characters at the same time. Benno von Archimboldi is a successfully intriguing absence and I most certainly feel the pull to keep reading.

I must say that I was not surprised by the unraveling of the critic’s love triangle, though there are surely more twists to come in the latter sections–if Bolaño returns to his critics.

Beginning the second section, “The Part about Amalfitano,” I have realized that I don’t know where this novel is going. I’m excited for lunch time.

2666 by Roberto Bolaño: A reader's beginning

Inspired by the contributors to The Book Bench–described as “loose leafs from the New Yorker Books Department” under the blog’s header–I have decided to delve into the novel 2666 by Roberto Bolaño.

The contributors to The Book Bench were issued the challenge of reading the entirety of 2666–weighing in at nearly one thousand pages in the English translation, much more in the Spanish–in the month of January and to record their experiences in a blog series called National Reading “2666″ Month. The various authors of The Book Bench have faithfully chronicled their journeys through the massive work: the good with the bad, the triumph with the shortcomings, and their joy in reading with its drudgery.

In an effort to actually finish the book and remember what was read, I have decided to record my impressions of Bolaño’s last novel.

My initial impression is that the novel is very Latin American. The prose feels similar to that of Gabriel Garcia Marquez, though that may be a result of the translation or any number of factors. I have only read through the first hundred pages or so, but this strikes me as a novel almost specifically for writers and scholars (or at least aspiring scholars). The primary characters of the first section are four German literature professors from different nations specialized on the nebulous author Benno von Archimboldi and the first several dozen pages focus on their scholarly exploits and efforts to popularize the author in the academy.

As I understand, the novel is horrifically violent at times but I have yet to reach that I suppose.

Overall I’m enjoying the read and I only wish there were more hours in the day for pleasure reading.