Literary Party Games

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Permalink Reply by Kim Anderson on July 19, 2011 at 1:49pm

I ADMIT IT! I'VE NEVER EVEN OPENED MOBY DICK!!!!! IT'S ABOUT A WHALE, I THINK.

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Permalink Reply by Jason Neal on July 20, 2011 at 8:29am

It's basically "Jaws" with symbolism...

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Permalink Reply by Ken Egan on July 23, 2011 at 7:31am

That's like saying "Citizen Kane" is "Primary Colors" in black and white! 

My sad confession: Haven't finished "Gravity's Rainbow."  Stuck at 100.  Gotta finish it, gotta finish it. . . .

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Permalink Reply by Jason Neal on July 23, 2011 at 8:21am

It's like saying "Full Metal Jacket" is "Stripes" without the Aunt Jemima treatment.

(Now if that's not a dated reference, I don't know what is....)

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Permalink Reply by Samantha Dwyer on August 1, 2011 at 8:18am

I hated Gravity's Rainbow!  I think I got to somewhere around 400 before I quit in protest. 

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Permalink Reply by Lisa Simon on July 31, 2011 at 8:59pm

Kim!  That's my "Humiliation" winning text as well.  Although oddly I've read a lot of even more obscure Melville--Typee, Omoo--because professors always thought EVERYONE had already read Moby Dick.  Hmph.

 

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Permalink Reply by Kim Anderson on August 15, 2011 at 3:03pm

Hey, Slate is playing our game!

 

http://www.slate.com/id/2301312/

 

Plus, best Melville novel is definitely The Confidence Man.

And Gravity's Rainbow rocks!

 

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Permalink Reply by Donna L. Miller on September 21, 2011 at 6:08am

I'm joining this discussion late but finding the responses a pleasant walk down literary lane--I haven't visited some of those books for awhile!  A literary character that I'm drawn to is Atticus Finch--he's a champion father and role model, a voice for righteousness and social justice. 

 

In response to the favorite opening line thread, I've always kind of liked Robert Cormier's line from The Chocolate War: "They murdered him."  Tom Leveen's Party (2010) has one in that same spirit: "I'm the girl nobody knows until she commits suicide."  If you haven't read this new young adult title, Party explores the human need for emotional fulfillment and how we don't want to live invisible lives.

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Permalink Reply by Wylynn Shambo on October 27, 2011 at 3:41pm

I really like JR. in the absolutely True Diary of a Part Time Indian.

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Permalink Reply by Brenda Black Crow on November 22, 2011 at 5:04pm

Jr., in the book “The absolutely true diary of a part-time Indian” by Sherman Alexie. Jr. has such a good sense of humor in the book; while he narrates he will keep you laughing through the entire book. From my point of view with the help from my teacher, he needed to draw cartoons to, well let’s say, to keep him sane. Sherman Alexie did an awesome job at this book because he told reality on some of the Indian reservations. It starts off with one doing better for himself for others to follow. Yeah at first Jr. was “trader” as his hometown put it, but he wanted something better for himself, and he went out and did it, even though everyone on his reservation disliked it. If you truly want something you go get it, and don’t give up. That is exactly what Jr. did in this book. So I think the message could be go out and do what you want for yourself, and don’t give up.

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