Literary Award Winners Fiction Book Club discussion

Please comment here on 'JR' by William Gaddis, 1976 National Book Award winner.

I may skip this month's read. I did not do well with our last selection. I don't think these novels that are a spoof of reality work for me. And I need a break from all the very long books we have been choosing so I can get caught up with other groups.

Hi Irene, thanks for informing me. I just started this book and I expect it will take me some time to read as it is a huge book.

Yes, seems like all our selections so far in 2024 have been long.

This humorous, complex, overly long novel is set in the 1970s. It is about ‘JR’ a twelve year old boy who becomes financially successful operating through pay phones and post office money orders. He has Edward Blast, employed as a front man to handle the press, money matters and business. All Edward Blast wants to do is compose music. Blast’s two aunts are heads of companies which JR takes over.

There are many characters in this book with 6/7’s of the novel in dialogue. It is a difficult read as the dialogue is never attributed to a given character, however, the author provides strong clues in the variety of different ways each character communicates.

Whilst there are many funny scenes, the overall themes of the novel are fairly negative. The book has many morally bankrupt individuals and there is a constant attack on 'capitalism'. Artists do not fair well. Two authors and a composer struggle with their chosen artistic goals. There are many dysfunctional families. Forgery, falsification, plagiarism and mistaken identity abound.

A challenging, interesting reading experience.