THE MONOLITH HAS LANDED

I'm only 80 pages in at this point, and I'll hopefully have more coherent impressions at a later date, but so far Against the Day marries the historical detail and poetic reveries of Gravity's Rainbow with the slightly more accessible politically engaged prose style of Vineland. I know what I'll be reading for the next month or two, and it's perfect timing, just in time for the long rainy season here in Humboldt.

In the meantime here's a nicely done appreciation of Thomas Pynchon from an unlikely fan, British crime fiction writer Ian Rankin.

And, in a related matter, The Rake offers up a whopping 49 dollars if the elusive Mr. P. appears on his dandy literary blog.