#48: The Difficulties of Difficult Books

After a bit of a hiatus, Tom Roberge and Chad W. Post are back to discuss what we mean when we say that a book is "difficult." They use a range of examples, from Finnegans Wake to Mrs. Dalloway to define a few different categories of reading "difficulty," such as, not being compelled, and having to read a book like a puzzle. 

 

For a Three Percent podcast, this one is pretty serious, and even more interesting than usual. And for those who are interested, here's a list of all the books/artists discussed this week:

 

• Passion According to G.H. by Clarice Lispector


• Maidenhair by Mikhail Shishkin


• Finnegans Wake by James Joyce


• The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini


• Clockwork Orange by Anthony Burgess


• Mrs. Dalloway by Virginia Wolff


• P.T. Anderson's movies


• The Sound and the Fury by William Faulkner


• Hawthorne & Child by Keith Ridgway


• Only Revolutions by Mark Z. Danielewski


• Lolita by Vladimir Nabokov


• Pale Fire by Vladimir Nabokov


• Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger


• A Wilderness of Error by Errol Morris

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit threepercentproblem.substack.com