books

The United States Of America
Literature
Contemporary

Books like You Must Remember This

You Must Remember This

At this point I think it’s safe to say Joyce Carol Oates is my new favorite author, closely — so closely! — followed by John Irving.You Must Remember This is quintessential Oates: bleak, experimental, scandalous. She is not afraid to write of uncomfortable sexuality (I cringed more than once while reading) and careless brutality. And often the two mix.Though I quite enjoyed this one, some parts — the parts focused on Felix, specifically — dragged just a bit. Felix is a professional boxer, and the sport has never appealed to me. JCO does her best to make it interesting, but for this reader it was a no-go. The stream-of-conscious style, while impactful and artistically exquisite throughout the rest of the narrative, made bits of Felix’s perspective fall flat. Though this is not a good entry point for those uninitiated to this writer’s output, it is a worthwhile and memorable read.
Picture of a book: You Must Remember This

Filter by:

Cross-category suggestions

Filter by:

Filter by:

Filter by:

Filter by:

Filter by:

Filter by:

Filter by: