The Recognitions (Twentieth-Century Classics)

Rating:
Summary: Gaddis...
Review: This is a tremendous book, in the same league with twentieth-century masterpieces, nearly as epic, nearly as deeply introspective as 'In search of lost time', but without the suffocating feeling Proust can sometimes give you. There's a very special tone, in the book, a tone of long deprivation of the senses and of slow recognition (another reviewer mentions the "icy, speedy feeling ... [in the ] ... descriptions of walking in New York." That seems to me an awakening, a recognition.). Crucial passage in the beginning, heavy with implicit references to platonic forms.

It seems that one characteristic of a work of (great) art is that it tries to define, to make explicit a single (potentially) coherent concept; it clears out confusions on the meaning of those concepts; Gaddis does this with the term 'Recognition' (Proust, I think, achieved this with the concept of 'lost time'). Performing this sort of explication *well* is bloody rare ... I think Gaddis in The Recognitions has achieved this....Brilliant.

Rating:
Summary: Not the American Ulysses, as it deserves its own category
Review: This is certainly the best work of fiction I have ever read, and I am somewhat well versed in the classics of modernism. Allow me to point out a few of the achievements, although they number in the infinite, as well as a few of its appeals.
-Gaddis (he would hate my discussion of the book as 'his' work) manages to appeal to the atheist, theist, and agnostic all at once
-He will enrich/endow one with a greater appreciation of fine art, especially that of late medieveal Dutch/German nature
-If you are a fan of classical music, if i may be so vague, this book shall certainly strike a chord
-it is surprisingly quick reading
-the continuous dialogue is not difficult
-the book is not nearly as difficult as Ulysses, although it is equally rich in allusions
-Gaddis manages to weave and use allusions in a very enriching way; yet, at the same time he does not form a text the enjoyment or apprehension of which depends upon one's grasp of the allusions.
-this book is at least a masterpiece, and gets better with the quality of one's education
-somehow Gaddis is both light and deep at the same time, both modern and classical
-will this book make you insane? Kind of ... but in a very 'good' way ... as in Platonic Good, that is
-Gaddis shows how one might live authentically by treading between pop culture, philistinism, and treachery
-If you have a rich background / interest in the history of religions, especially western religions and their heretical/cultic forms, this book will be your favorite.
-This is certainly the most mythic book I have ever read; yet, Gaddis manages mythic proportions without being cheesy. The book is borderline a myth itself
-One's appreciation of religious texts will certainly increase, as one comes to a more familiar grasp of what the great mythical/religious texts we have been handed down once meant, prior to their popularization to the point of platitudes
-After completing this text, it seems difficult to imagine much point in reading other works of fiction
-Agape Agape is another tremendous work that explores the way to live
-In a sense, Gaddis's ethics or answer to the question, how should i live, is similar to that of Spinoza's. Is it any coincidence that Spinoza's text appears in the events of this book
-this text is not for those seeking television in print; then again, if you know enough to look at this text on amazon, chances are, you already are an 'initiate' ... right don?
-I dedicate this review to Alina; few persons could persevere their significant other's engagement with this text.

Rating:
Summary: A book for the ages
Review: What can I say other than this is a tremendous book. The character development, the plot progression, even the seemingly droning monotony of this book are all great. Long after you've finished it, you'll still be thinking about it. Personally, this is the only book, besides Tolstoy's "War and Peace" to make its way into my subconcious (I thought about it during the day, had dreams about it...it was great). Admittedly, it took me just over two months to finish this book, but it was worth every second. The only bad thing about it is once it's done, everything you read after seems minimal by comparison; at least for a little while.
(spoilers below)
All of the reviewers who didn't enjoy this book focus on the rather mundane ending, and I can respect that and see their point, but I also think Gaddis was making a point- that death itself is an anti-climax. The fact that the story turns away from Wyatt at the last second adds to the timelessness of the book. Does he go to find his child? Does he go back to Esther? Did Valentine really go mad? Did any of the last third of the book really happen, or did Stanley hallucinate it on the boat? I know there are some things I missed or mis-read, but I still love this book. It's a tough read, and I've known literature teachers with Phd.s who have stopped in the middle of it (WG would have loved that). But, if you trudge through it, you'll find it a rewarding experience. Gaddis would be tickled to death by every review on this site, I'm sure of it. So, whatever you may think before or after reading this modern masterpiece, it at least deserves your attention, whether you finish it or not.