>>7709964
Read JR and agape agape

>>7709965
Is JR better ?

>>7709964
No, but you're probably not ready

>>7709964
genuinely a very good book
I'm sure /lit/ will turn on it soon though

>>7709964
No. The Recognitions is great. If you end up liking Gaddis, I recommend looking into Gass.

>>7709969
No. Still great, though.

>>7709973
Gaddis is the new Pynchon

>>7709985
Not really, no. Gaddis is far too austere.

>>7709971
What can I read first to prepare myself?

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>>7710403
Again, you're probably not ready

>>7710417
I've read several works from each of those groups. I'm wondering if there's anything specifically I need to read before the Recognitions, like how some people say you need to read Crying of Lot 49 before Gravity's Rainbow.

>>7710417
V is more difficult than GR tbqh

>>7710403
The Corpus Hermeticum, a book of art history, and Faust would be helpful.

>>7710432
Faust is absolutely necessary, as it's alluded to in the very first sentence and just about everywhere else. It's basically the spiritual successor of Faust.

>>7710428
And Mason & Dixon is harder and better than both.

>>7710443
No. Not even close.

>>7710432
>>7710439
That would be Goethe's Faust right? I've read Marlowe's Doctor Faustus, will that not do?

>>7710533
Have you even read it?

>>7710561
Not at all. They're similar in some ways but are, in their entirety, radically different.

>>7710428
only because it's more boring

>>7710570
Obviously. Why else would I even have an opinion on this?

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Just bought this, did I do good?

>>7710761
Yes, disregard any naysayers and see for yourself. Gassposter converted me, I went on to convert many others. Join the Cult of Gass.

>>7709964
No, but you're in for some of the best dialogue ever written


JR has the best dialogue

>>7710761
>>7710830
Gassfags get out. Gaddis has actual talent, Gass' fiction is fucking terrible.

>>7710403
>>7710423
There's not really anything you have to read beforehand to enjoy it, but things will generally make more sense if you have a basic knowledge of literature (eg, who Dostoevsky and Proust and guys like them are), and the same for painters. Knowing about Faust and that the Recognitions began as a parody of it might lend some perspective, but really, it's not necessary.

>>7709964
You're not being memed. It's a genuinely fun book. And it's very chavenet.

Anselm best boy

>>7710761
Yes, you did very good. I also recommend buying Into The Tunnel: Readings of Gass's novel, as it will clarify things a great deal.
>>7711098
Gaddis--Gass' lifelong friend--was, himself, a fan of Gass' work, and, in terms of style, was outclassed by him.

>>7710428
I havent read GR but im over halfway through V and i would say the only difficult thing is keeping some of the characters straight, but you can use pynchonwiki to get the page numbers where a character appears if you want to go back and check

>>7711098
Nice meme.