Books aren’t like chilies and I can’t see the point in trying to consume as many as possible within the year, as if this was some kind of idiotic competition. In fact it seems to trivialize and undermine the whole point of reading, especially the kind of deep reading that is only possible in books as opposed to the surface skimming which we dedicate to the Internet or other types of screen-based reading.
This book is actually the weakest of the Rabbit books it seems to me, a coda that sings the sad hymn of decline, and witnesses the collapse of tough man, American from the perspective of the skittish, jumpy Harry. Despite that, its an absorbing read and I intend to keep going at it as slowly and for as long as possible, savoring each plodding scene on the golf course, each devastatingly honest examination of Janice’s shortcomings, each deeply offensive rumination on anything from AIDS to women to homosexuality or the particular abilities of Mediterranean immigrants. instead of reading challenges we need more of the mindset that inspired the slow food movement.