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cunningba's review against another edition
3.0
An infuriating book in some ways.
A collection of early, mostly not-so-good short stories, as Pynchon makes clear in his Introduction.
A Small Rain just kind of lies there. I found it hard to give a damn about the characters.
Low-lands is really a kind of fantasy: sort of like a Behind-the-Looking-Glass view of a favorite Leonard Cohen song.
I just didn't get Entropy.
As Pynchon mentions in his Introduction, Under the Rose was lifted largely from an 1899 Baedeker's guide to Egypt for a writing seminar he was taking at Cornell. It reads like an Baedeker-obfuscated parody of John Buchan, who Pynchon also mentions in his Introduction. Anyway, it inspired me to start The Thirty-Nine Steps, which is infinitely better written, better paced, clearer, and engrossing.
But, finally, at the end, The Secret Integration was a sort of gem, a redeeming feature of this book for me. A surprise ending in more ways than one.
A collection of early, mostly not-so-good short stories, as Pynchon makes clear in his Introduction.
A Small Rain just kind of lies there. I found it hard to give a damn about the characters.
Low-lands is really a kind of fantasy: sort of like a Behind-the-Looking-Glass view of a favorite Leonard Cohen song.
I just didn't get Entropy.
As Pynchon mentions in his Introduction, Under the Rose was lifted largely from an 1899 Baedeker's guide to Egypt for a writing seminar he was taking at Cornell. It reads like an Baedeker-obfuscated parody of John Buchan, who Pynchon also mentions in his Introduction. Anyway, it inspired me to start The Thirty-Nine Steps, which is infinitely better written, better paced, clearer, and engrossing.
But, finally, at the end, The Secret Integration was a sort of gem, a redeeming feature of this book for me. A surprise ending in more ways than one.
qstew's review
5.0
three of these stories were 4/5 stars; one of them was 6/5, and the last was 7/5 - which makes this an average of 5/5 stars by my estimation.
briannap's review against another edition
challenging
dark
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
jlapsley's review against another edition
3.0
This collection is good for completists but I could have lived with just "Entropy" and "The Secret Integration" (but I did love "Entropy"). Also pretty sure "Under The Rose" is almost entirely contained in "V".
rocabarraigh's review against another edition
challenging
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.75
uhambe_nami's review against another edition
4.0
There's not much of the brilliance of his later work in here, but the candid introduction alone makes it well worth the read. A fascinating glimpse into the mind of Thomas Pynchon.
james_j_igoe's review against another edition
4.0
I've read much of Pynchon, so I expected a tough read, but found this collection of short stories surprisingly light, although the final story was excellent, thoughtful, and moving. As for the introduction, mentioned by someone as the worth of this book, he is nearly right, as it was an absolute pleasure to read, both light and witty; it wa so good that at times I simultaneously laughed and cried.
zach_collins's review against another edition
4.0
Slow Learner collects the earliest writings of the infamous Thomas Pynchon (all but one was written while he was still enrolled at Cornell). Like most short-story collections, Slow Learner is something of mixed bag. I was not at all impressed by two of the stories (Under The Rose was a boring thriller and Low-Lands was somehow brief and rambling at the same time). But the last story, The Secret Integration, was a superb tale of racism and alienation with some of the deepest, most thought-provoking characters Pynchon has ever produced.
I never thought I would praise a book's introduction, but Pynchon's self-effacing examination of his stories is intelligent and instructive, providing another level of enjoyment for the reader and offering some sage advice for aspiring writers.
Not the best thing I've read, but like the blurbs on the back of the book claim, "the apprentice work of a major novelist makes better reading than the mature productions of a dozen minor ones."
I never thought I would praise a book's introduction, but Pynchon's self-effacing examination of his stories is intelligent and instructive, providing another level of enjoyment for the reader and offering some sage advice for aspiring writers.
Not the best thing I've read, but like the blurbs on the back of the book claim, "the apprentice work of a major novelist makes better reading than the mature productions of a dozen minor ones."
erika_teal_1414's review against another edition
5.0
Some of these stories are utterly forgettable, but between the introduction of Pynchon looking back on his own work years later and the last story, damn this book really got me.
weyburn13's review
dark
funny
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.0