I cannot fully understand, or put into words, the effect The Abortion had on me, and I have the feeling that overanalyzing the work will only dilute its already-fragile nature. There is very little in the way of plot, and the work as a whole has the effervensence of nostalgia. It's part fantasy, part romance, and part jarring clash with reality. There is no way the narrator's job can exist, and I never once believed it could (although I desperately wanted to believe). The Abortion is a clumsy little beast, and hard to defend from any traditional narative standpoint. But it is one that engenders great affection.

Read the rest of the review here. ( )

This is one of the quirkiest books I’ve ever read. It’s about a lonely guy who works in an obscure library that’s purpose is to home for all the books that have never been published. The novel is filled with extraordinary characters that Brautigan somehow makes believable. The books contained in the library have been written by random people, amongst them are children who submit tales told in crayon about their toys; teenagers who have written about their problems and worries, and elderly folk who’ve written their memoirs. All of these books are not shelved in the traditional Dewey Decimal System, but by placement on whichever shelf the author feels happiest with. Eventually the librarian meets a beautiful but insecure woman and they fall in love. She becomes pregnant and they travel to Mexico to get an abortion. At this point you have to remember the book was written in the 1960s and points of view were vastly different then. Brautigan created a surreal world with this novel, full of whimsy and offbeat humour. It’s an amazingly creative piece of writing and one that I will never forget.

The ‘Brautigan Library’ now actually exists, currently housed in the San Francisco Public Library ( )

Very good, but not Brautigan's best. The story and vibe feels a bit like an indie film, but with enough of Brautigan's typical quirkiness to make it enjoyable. ( )

Not my favorite Brautigan, but lovely none the less. The idea of the library for unpublished books is quite beautiful as well. ( )

I was drawn to this book because of the idea of a library for unwanted books. It's been a while since I read it, but I do remember it seeming a little dated - the protagonist's attitude to the female character was rather disturbing, though probably a product of its time. ( )