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by Joe Wagner?
One of America's most prolific popular writers, Richard Brautigan, adds book #21 (the number is more memorable) to his fast-growing list of fiction and poetry with the release of his gothic novel, So the Wind Won't Blow It All Away.
It is the story of a young boy in a small town after the end of World War II, whose childhood suddenly is brought to an end by the kind of tragedy that usually rates space on Page 4-B of the daily newspaper.
The tightly constructed work inexorably drags the reader toward the climax, by which time one not only has guessed what is going to happen, but no longer cares. Concurrent with the action, such as it is, Brautigan includes a nostalgic look at a small group of people whose way of life, he mourns, is destined to end when "television crippled the imagination of America and turned people indoors and away from living out their own fantasies with dignity."
I enjoy nostalgia, too. I seem to recall, as a boy in the "post-World War II gothic of America," writers who turned out real books and didn't attempt to palm off long stories at exorbitant rates on groupies and dilettantes. There is no argument that Brautigan can write, and write very well; only it's time he began to write something worthy of his talent.
Baton Rouge Sunday Advocate?
October 24, 1982: 15
Copyright note: My purpose in putting this material on the web is to provide Brautigan scholars and fans with ideas for further research into Richard Brautigan's work. It is used here in accordance with fair use guidelines. No attempt is made regarding commercial duplication and/or dissemination. If you are the author of this article or hold the copyright and would like me to remove your article from the Brautigan Archives, please contact me at birgit at cybernetic-meadows.net.
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