Quick thoughts

Just a few comments to get going on the board. I've gone back and read some of the earlier posts to get a feel for things and am excited about this blog.

I saw that Fred discussed Larry McMurtry earlier. I recently read Terms of Endearment. Sadly enough, I had not previously considered reading it because I honestly didn't realize it was a McMurtry book. I thought it was a "chick book", which I realize reveals a serious character flaw. After finally discovering McMurtry was the author I had no hesitation in reading it. My previous experience with him came by reading Lonesome Dove, Streets of Laredo, and a couple of the Berrybender Chronicles.

After reading Terms of Endearment, my personal opinion is that if John Irving isn't the greatest living American writer (who at least is still actively writing), then Larry McMurtry is. His character development is spectacular. A good plot is always nice, but give me rich characters and I'll enjoy the book.

The most recent book I completed is Larry Brown's A Miracle of Catfish. For those who aren't familiar, Brown was a fireman in Oxford, Mississippi for many years before he published his first novel, Joe. He was extremely well received by literary critics for his depiction of rural South (specifically Mississippi) characters. A Miracle of Catfish was his last, and unfortunately unfinished, work. Despite being unfinished, it is worth reading since Brown sent his editor notes on how he intended to resolve things, and they are included at the end of the book. The book is often crude, but is honest in its portrayal of the struggles of the lower class in Mississippi. It is often humorous, but more often heartbreaking.