836. Mao II

Mao II

Don DeLillo
1991
Around 240 pages

Why does Thomas Pynchon keep butting in? I swear he has called five different authors on the List the most important writer in America. Wait, I do that too. Ahem. Anyway, his praise immediately sours the read for me, but DeLillo and I weren't really clicking anyway. Unfortunately, the List has taken a shine to the lad.

A reclusive novelist named Bill Gray works endlessly on a novel which he chooses not to finish. Okay, so far, this is relatable. Although he hides from the world to keep his writing pure, and I just think it's icky out there. Bill agrees to be photographed by a New York photographer named Brita who is documenting other pretentious writers. Bill ends up accepting an opportunity from his former editor to publicly speak on the behalf of a Swiss writer held hostage in Beirut.

Well, you can see why Pynchon likes this, I'm sure the character of Bill Gray was heavily based on him. I do enjoy stories about writers, particularly when they are agonizing over unfinished works. There was a lot of ego in this novel, which is inevitable if you are going to capture these personalities realistically. I liked the connections and themes DeLillo explored here, but the ideas were delivered by unlikable windbags. It's interesting that this was published two years after the fatwa was issued on Salman Rushdie. I think it probably influenced DeLillo's gloomy take on where literature and free speech are going.

Can we take a break from boring white guys?

RATING: ***--

Interesting Facts:

The title is derived from a series of Andy Warhol silkscreen prints depicting Mao Zedong.

UP NEXT: Time's Arrow by Martin Amis