I didn't much like Phillip Roth's Exit Ghost. Granted there were interesting scenes: for example, his narrator goes to watch the 2004 presidential race results with some NYC yuppies. And there were interesting questions raised: for example, was Nathaniel Hawthorne really rumored to have had an incestuous relationship with his sister? That I'll be checking out.

Mostly though, Exit Ghost is long paragraphs that explain things. Actual scenes are few and far between. Particularly annoying are the dialogues between HE and SHE where the narrator tries to start a relationship with a young and married woman.

All in all, I think I like the idea of Roth as a writer better than I like reading his books.


Currently reading: Best American Mystery Stories edited by Lee Child and Otto Penzler. AARGH!