A kind of post-modern American tall tale. One can see in this a number of influences from the Paul Bunyan, Johnny Appleseed like folk narratives of the 19th century to the progenitors of the French new novels of the 60's and 70's with a large nod going back in time to Francois Rabelais or even maybe Voltaire while at all times paying much homage to James Joyce. Blue Pastoral follows one Serge Gavotte a hack musician (most often known by his nickname 'Blue') and his floozy of a wife Helene and child Zimmerman as they trek across the length and breadth of the United States in search of the perfect musical phrase. They travel by wagon--what propels it being anybody's guess. Mostly written tongue firmly in cheek Sorrentino delights in challenging his readers to translate their way through the numerous dialectical and slang ridden literary devices he places along the way. For some these may seem like minefields but let's keep in mind that much the same could be said of Joyce's 'Ulysses' and Sorrentino much like Joyce likes to play with language. Having said all this we might say that the plot tends to be rather pedestrian though the imaginative linguistic skills Sorrentino employs to bring this off are absolutely first rate and
puts him in the top tier (in terms of talent) of American writers of the 20th century. It is not an easy read but it does have many rewards. ( )

Woeful, substanceless, gaspingly self-conscious postmodern pissabout. An undergraduate wank with Flann O'Brien and Thomas Pynchon as the unfortunate centerfolds. ( )