I was always afraid to start this collection. Thomas Pynchon, himself, doesn’t make it sound like a good time. I’ve had the book on my library shelf for a few years now, from where I’d occasionally take it down, start reading the intro, that first page where he partly disowns the writing therein, and I’d get scared off.

But I did it. I must have been drinking heavily, that old Dutch courage (sorry, Dutch folks reading this, no offense intended). Maybe I was reaching for another book and grabbed this one by mistake, sat down, started reading and was whistling (literally, I suppose this was the type of stupor through which you whistle) through the introduction. It’s interesting to watch a literary giant, an invisible literary giant like Thomas Pynchon dissect his earlier self’s work, going into a critique of each and every story in the collection. If I had a time machine and memory-eraser, I would probably read the introduction last, as I’m sure it colored my impression of the stories.

My favorite story of the bunch was probably “Under the Rose.” I enjoyed the spy vs. spy rush about Egypt and the old, weary spies who have been enemies for so long it’s not clear which side they really back. I had a blast with the characters in “Low-lands” and I loved the secret history of a Long Island dump he’s created for the story.

“Entropy” I enjoyed, though it may be because I’d recently been reading up on entropy, and I loved the idea of this “lease-breaking party… moving into its 40th hour.”

The others were fine, as well, certain moments and situations, like the kid in AA in “The Secret Integration” or the practical joke planning and the intricacies thereof in the same story were excellent.

So in the end, dear Reader, the lesson is that you shouldn’t be afraid to start (and continue reading) this book. It’s not as good as his later stuff, but, paired with his own analysis in the intro, it’s a fun peek into his development as a writer.