Re: RARA-AVIS: Ellroy's style (was Movies better than books)

From: Brian Thornton ( tieresias@worldnet.att.net)
Date: 19 May 2002


At 01:08 PM 5/19/02 -0500, you wrote:

>Brian Thornton wrote:
>
> > At 10:17 AM 5/19/02 +0100, you wrote:
> > >Brian wrote:
> > > > I recall quite clearly that Buzz Meeks got shot (and killed?) in
> the first
> > > > ten pages of "The Big Nowhere" because I only read the first twenty.
> > >
> > >I made it to page fifty. It amazes me that Ellroy enjoys such commercial
> > >success when a number of people who read a lot (as we obviously do, or we
> > >wouldn't be members of this list) find his style inaccessible. I
> think he's
> > >a tremendous writer. In fact, "LA Confidential" is one of my favourite
> > >books. But I still found it hard work. I could not, however, read
> "Ellroy
> > >Takes The Piss", sorry "The Cold Six Thousand". (Al opens book. Al scans
> > >page. Al flips page. Al says, "Aaargh." Al wastes money.)
> >
> > Hi Al,
> >
> > I couldn't agree more. If I want "difficult", I'll read Joyce, because at
> > least with Joyce there is a reward to it, as opposed to swimming in the
> > sewer with Elroy's "Each-new-protagonist-scummier-than-the-last" string of
> > antiheroes.
> >
> > Speaking as one who wasted a kindred amount of money on Elroy,
>
>I have to ask.
>
>Why aren't you trying these books out at your local library? Why buy
>them unread?
>
>jess

Hi Jess,

I loved "The Black Dahlia" and bought LA Confidential, Brown's Requiem, White Jazz, and The Big Nowhere on the strength of that. I won't do that again!;)

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