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Great American Novel
Jul. 6th, 2007 02:48 pmPublishers Weekly had a great short article responding to the Chicago Trib's recent column, "Choosing the Great American Novel." (The Trib requires registration, which is free, but probably comes with junk mail.)
The gist of the Trib article is this: Julia Keller, cultural critic, every so often gets to wondering what novel she's read really captures the essence of America. In 2003, she selected An American Tragedy by Theodore Dreiser. ("What can I say?" wrote Keller. "It was that kind of year.")
"Selecting a novel that encapsulates a nation's soul is a sneaky means of interrogating your deep beliefs about the place, your prejudices and your expectations," Keller wrote. This year, under those guidelines, she considered The Great Gatsby (for its qualities of reinvention) and The Grapes of Wrath (for its tragedy). After some consideration, she decided on American Psycho.
My response, having read the PW reaction before the actual article, was that I would choose Michael Chabon's The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier and Clay. Certainly reinvention, certainly tragedy--but it also has a happy ending and is full of hope, the possibility that anyone can make good, which is one of those myths about America that I've always preferred to realism. I could also briefly consider Coyote Blue, by Christopher Moore, but I'm not sure that his sexy comedies of errors qualify.
I'd also like to consider what might be called the Great American Fantasy Novel. Now that I'm reading a lot of urban fantasy actually set in the states, that would be fun to consider...
What would your pick be, for either?
The gist of the Trib article is this: Julia Keller, cultural critic, every so often gets to wondering what novel she's read really captures the essence of America. In 2003, she selected An American Tragedy by Theodore Dreiser. ("What can I say?" wrote Keller. "It was that kind of year.")
"Selecting a novel that encapsulates a nation's soul is a sneaky means of interrogating your deep beliefs about the place, your prejudices and your expectations," Keller wrote. This year, under those guidelines, she considered The Great Gatsby (for its qualities of reinvention) and The Grapes of Wrath (for its tragedy). After some consideration, she decided on American Psycho.
My response, having read the PW reaction before the actual article, was that I would choose Michael Chabon's The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier and Clay. Certainly reinvention, certainly tragedy--but it also has a happy ending and is full of hope, the possibility that anyone can make good, which is one of those myths about America that I've always preferred to realism. I could also briefly consider Coyote Blue, by Christopher Moore, but I'm not sure that his sexy comedies of errors qualify.
I'd also like to consider what might be called the Great American Fantasy Novel. Now that I'm reading a lot of urban fantasy actually set in the states, that would be fun to consider...
What would your pick be, for either?
