.....of The Human Stain by Phillip Roth. This book is taking me FOREVER to read. I've not made up my mind yet about whether I like it or not--my suspicion is that it will end up in a neither/nor, kinda/kinda not situation.
Look, I'm a relatively fast reader. But I read for an hour in this book, and find that I'm 20 pages down the road. What is up with that? How can this book be taking so long? And I know, I know, I know, he's an "award winning author." Sheesh. Does he have to go on and on and on about Monica Lewinsky....and doesn't he think all that will really date the book as we get further from the Clinton years? And is our problem REALLY that we just need to grow up and get over sex--and live and let live???
Hmmmmm. More comments when I finish. If I ever finish.
I'm about 2/3rds through. Since I'm always reading fifty to a hundred books at a time, finishing books for me is as rare as a lunar eclipse. Price o' doing business, alas. But your post has brought it back to the frontal lobe and I'll move it to the active roster.
I was surprised too that current events played such a role. Roth had to know that that would date it, but I suppose that was intentional. Maybe it's acceptable after Tom Wolfe's "New Journalism" approach to novels.
I have to admit that I have let the last few Roth books pass without my reading them. I did buy them, just in case I ever get in the mood, but so far...nada. Is War and Peace dated because it refers to Napoleonic conquest?
All art is dated. It is a folly of modern times to think otherwise.