Vineland by Thomas Pynchon is a complex and surreal novel set in 1984, exploring themes of the America of the times, the counter culture of the 60s, and the Reagan era. The book delves into the lives of burnt out hippies, insane DEA agents, and a monomaniacal FBI agent, creating a narrative that weaves through parallel histories and layers of society, challenging readers with convoluted plots and a unique writing style that immerses them in a world of paranoia, absurdity, and intricate characters.

Characters:

Characters are eclectic and well-developed, often representing contrasting ideals and societal issues.

Writing/Prose:

The writing style is marked by dense, playful prose with a mix of absurdity and keen observation.

Plot/Storyline:

The plot revolves around Prairie's quest for her mother amid a complex web of subplots that explore historical and political themes.

Setting:

The setting encapsulates a chaotic California, merging historical events with fantastical and absurd elements.

Pacing:

Pacing can be uneven, combining slow, detailed exposition with quick shifts in narrative focus.

LATER than usual one summer morning in 1984, Zoyd Wheeler drifted awake in sunlight through a creeping fig that hung in the window, with a squadron of blue jays stomping around on the roof. In his dre...

Notes:

Vineland was published in 1990 after a long hiatus of 17 years since Pynchon's last novel.

The story revolves around a teenage girl named Prairie searching for her mother, Frenesi, who was a radical from the 1960s.

Frenesi is depicted as a once-revolutionary who has become a government informer, illustrating the theme of lost ideals.

The book explores how the counterculture of the 1960s transformed into the conservatism of the 1980s under Reagan.

It features a chaotic narrative style, with many intertwined subplots and characters that reflect a richly layered storytelling approach.

Key elements in the book include a psychic detective, female ninjas, a Godzilla attack, and references to popular culture.

The writing style includes long sentences and a complex structure, often requiring deep concentration from the reader.

The novel has been described as darkly humorous and filled with satire about American society and politics.

Characters often deal with themes of paranoia and the struggle between individualism and authority.

Vineland has been termed Pynchon's 'most fun' or 'most enjoyable' work despite its complicated narrative.

Sensitive Topics/Content Warnings

Content warnings for Vineland include potential triggers involving drug use, violence, government corruption, sexual content, and dysfunctional relationships.

Has Romance?

There are elements of romance present, particularly in the relationships surrounding Frenesi and Zoyd, but they take a backseat to the overall narrative and political themes.

From The Publisher:

"Later than usual one summer morning in 1984 . . ." On California's fog-hung North Coast, the enchanted redwood groves of Vineland County harbor a wild assortment of sixties survivors and refugees from the "Nixonian Reaction," still struggling with the consequences of their past lives. Aging hippie freak Zoyd Wheeler is revving up for his annual act of televised insanity when news reaches that his old nemesis, sinister federal agent Brock Vond, has come storming into Vineland at the head of a heavily armed Justice Department strike force. Zoyd instantly disappears underground, but not before dispatching his teenage daughter Prairie on a dark odyssey into her secret, unspeakable past. . . .

Freely combining disparate elements from American popular culture-spy thrillers, ninja potboilers, TV soap operas, sci-fi fantasies-Vineland emerges as what Salman Rushdie has called in The New York Times Book Review "that rarest of birds: a major political novel about what America has been doing to itself, to its children, all these many years."

Ratings (6)

Incredible (1)
Loved It (4)
It Was OK (1)

Reader Stats (15):

Read It (6)
Currently Reading (1)
Want To Read (7)
Not Interested (1)

What can you read after
Vineland?

See the list (100 books)

About the Author:

Thomas Pynchon is the author of V.; The Crying of Lot 49; Gravity's Rainbow; Slow Learner, a collection of short stories; Vineland; Mason & Dixon; Against the Day; and, most recently, Inherent Vice. He received the National Book Award for Gravity's Rainbow in 1974.

Meet New Books is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a way for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to products and services on amazon.com and its subsidiaries.
When you click the Amazon link and make a purchase, we may receive a small commision, at no cost to you.

Activity

Recommendations

My Stuff

Account

More

Vineland

Thomas Pynchon