New canons

A mate of mine is desperately seeking a copy of Don de Lillo's Underworld in shops because it was shortlisted as runner up in the New York Times list of best american work of fiction of the last 25 years.

I told him he was shallow for wanting to read something just because a newspaper said it was good. But then everyone else where he lives must be trying to do the same thing because he can't find it ANYWHERE.

I guess in these dark postmodern days of cultural relativism where the canon of dead white males is replaced by a hotchpotch of cultural theory, paid endorsements, advertising, instore promotions and 'I liked this book' style recommendations by colleagues who may have nothing in common with you, it's hard to find a good read.

Also I read his Great Jones Street years ago and thought it was fantastic if deeply peculiar.

I'm reading Umberto Eco's Island of the Day Before at the moment. It seems um like all his other books as in too clever by half and very difficult to read on the train. This one is set on a boat for at least part of the time.