9 reviews 4 YES · 5 DEPENDS Who this is

• LITERARY FICTION Roundtable Blindness José Saramago · 1995 Even with those problems, Blindness stayed with me because it is specific about failure. The Failure Is Not the Blindness YES
• NONFICTION Roundtable Into Thin Air Jon Krakauer · 1997 I finished Into Thin Air impressed, disturbed, and more skeptical of the word “adventure” than I was before. The Mountain Is Dangerous. The System Is Worse. YES
• HISTORICAL FICTION Roundtable Lonesome Dove Larry McMurtry · 1985 My final judgment is that Lonesome Dove earns its reputation because it is not really a celebration of the West. A Great Book About Men Who Cannot Stop Moving YES
• LITERARY FICTION Roundtable Set This House in Order Matt Ruff · 2003 I would recommend it to a reader who can tolerate an elaborate premise, wants characters who are specific rather than merely symbolic, and does not mind a novel that keeps showing its internal machinery. A Very Complicated House, Built One Avoided Truth at a Time DEPENDS
• LITERARY FICTION Roundtable The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier & Clay Michael Chabon · 2000 I would not recommend reading it when you need something efficient. The Escape Is Never the Point DEPENDS
• LITERARY FICTION Roundtable The Covenant of Water Abraham Verghese · 2023 That is a meaningful achievement for a novel this large. A Family Tree with Water at the Root YES
• SCIENCE FICTION Roundtable The Spare Man Mary Robinette Kowal · 2022 I recommend it to readers who enjoy character-driven science fiction mysteries and do not mind a long route through the evidence. A Murder Mystery With Too Many Permissions DEPENDS
• LITERARY FICTION Roundtable Theo of Golden Allen Levi · 2023 There is a version of Theo of Golden that I would recommend without hesitation. A Good Man, With Too Much Help From the Author DEPENDS
• NONFICTION Roundtable Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance Robert M. Pirsig · 1974 The honest response is to say that this one works intermittently. A Good Repair Buried Under Too Much Philosophy DEPENDS

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