Juneteenth : A novel

Rating:
Summary: Great American Novel
Review: This could well be the great American Novel that was anticipated. The ideas are powerful and cross racial bounderies. Ellison is a master and re-creates moods with skill. He glorifies the commonplace.

Rating:
Summary: Quite Disappointing!
Review: A wonderful beginning gives way to a mish-mash of verbiage. This is not a book, but a splice job of a book that was far from finished. The Invisible Man is a masterpiece, but these are simply loose ideas floating around.

Rating:
Summary: Inchoate excerpt from a probable work of genius
Review: All of us who read "Invisible Man" know exactly what Mr. Ellison is capable of (incidentally, his short stories are breathtaking as well), so there is no problem there. However, Juneteenth was not written as a free-standing piece, it was part of a MUCH larger work that was never finished. Callahan did as much as he could in editing it, but it still is very fuzzy. Perhaps this is a testament to Ellison's skills, but when you read this you feel that you are reading a small piece of something bigger out of context (EXACTLY what Juneteenth is). Fun for Ellison fans, but not great literature. Probably would have been in its final version, though

Rating:
Summary: A Nice Treat for Ellison Fans
Review: Although not Invisible Man -- what book is -- Juneteenth is a good work by an inspiring author. I particularly liked the call and response pattern between Hickman and Bliss, however, I was sometimes confused by Ellison's movements between the past and the present. Those aspects of the novel warrant a close reading so the reader can get a good grasp of what is happening. I give John Callahan credit, taking a huge manuscript and turning it into a workable novel, especially by today's standards, is no easy task. He did a fine job with it. In the afterword to the book Callahan promises another edition with more of Ellison's manuscript included. I can't wait. In the meantime, I can't help wonder what might have been...

Rating:
Summary: Brilliantly Disappointing
Review: Although Ralph Ellison's prose is masterfully, I found the body of work within Juneteenth to be disjointed and nonlinear in scope. Perhaps in someways it parallels Joyce's Ulysses, but falls woefully short of the mark.

Rating:
Summary: best book I've EVER read
Review: amazing. gives one a TON to think about...the language is unforgettable, and the story incredible. a masterpiece. not an easy read, but a welcomed break from the average wack novel.

Rating:
Summary: a good but frustrating read
Review: As with any other unfinished work (The Love of the Last Tycoon, The Garden of Eden, etc.) it is difficult to read this without wondering what it might have been if Ellison had finished it. On the downside, there is much here that needs explanation and fleshing out. There are interesting nods in certain directions that leave the reader longing for more. And there is the inevitable feeling that a much richer story lies just beneath the surface. However, there are rich passages of prose in this book which are a welcome addition to Ellison's body of work. The concept, the plot, and the route taken to get there is full of rewards along the way. "Juneteenth" is a sketch of something that could have been truly magnificent, but is still nevertheless a fascinating look into the mind of one of America's greatest writers.

Rating:
Summary: An Event!
Review: Don't listen to the naysayers. If you love Ellison, you must read this. Albeit a diamond in the rough, it's all here: vivid characters in the round, profound feeling and humanism, musical qualities underneath and at the surface... It's Ellison and it's worth it.

Rating:
Summary: Worth Reading, but not Great
Review: Ellison again brings us his paradigms on race relations in America, but this time, through an editor. John F. Callahan seems to have put this together as best he could, but I don't find the organic unity which is present in Ellison's INVISIBLE MAN. JUNETEENTH seems to be quite a few stories (and wonderful stories, at that) strung together to make a novel. They are related, but not unified. The language, however, is very compelling; the surreality of it is very powerful, reminiscent of Faulkner.

Rating:
Summary: Worth Reading, but not Great
Review: Ellison again brings us his paradigms on race relations in America, but this time, through an editor. John F. Callahan seems to have put this together as best he could, but I don't find the organic unity which is present in Ellison's INVISIBLE MAN. JUNETEENTH seems to be quite a few stories (and wonderful stories, at that) strung together to make a novel. They are related, but not unified. The language, however, is very compelling; the surreality of it is very powerful, reminiscent of Faulkner.