Upon rereading it, the themes of Freedom are more understandable. His description of a Midwestern childhood is especially notable.

Upon a rereaading, I’m fascinated by how many things Franzen anticipated about the decade to come.

Gary the banker was an especially well-drawn character, and Enid’s compulsion about Christmas, cruises, and designer drugs felt directly taken from life.

In some ways, there’s a freshness to this novel that Freedom doesn’t have. However, the construction of Freedom is more artful and the book hangs together better.

I read The Corrections more slowly the second time through and enjoyed each section thoroughly.

Reread this and it stood up after ten years.

The setting was interesting for the overlap in neighborhoods with my own; the ending felt contrived, but the style of the novel made it worth reading.

better the second time through.

Now, we are them.

Read this quickly, and thought the latter part was more interesting. Pollitt’s account of her parents’ experience in the Communist Party and growing up in Brooklyn had a certain resonance that the early essays lacked.

Beautifully written, too.

Second time through, it’s still making me laugh.

http://www.bookism.org/open/2007/01/25/dreaming-in-code-review/

Enjoyed this more than I thought I would—it was a quick two hours, and reminded me of when Salon was essential entertainment.

I didn’t realize how much the main character was modelled after Larry Ellison until I reread this.