I just finished reading this book for the second time. The first time, I felt as if I formed my own musings about where the book would go and what it was about as I blindly went along. Then, I read the afterword and had my view shifted by the explanations for many of those key ideas. Then, now, I have just reread it some time later with the intent of the authors and the constituent parts the book is formed of in mind.
In spite of this, I feel as if my mind is even more divided regarding what I think of the book than before!
Some aspects I very much enjoyed. Both parts of the book, those that involve Candide and the forest especially, are very enjoyable to read. It is also quite freeing to know that you don’t need to make sense of it? That surreal aspect is very cool. But also you can see where they were going with one man trying to push into the future, and one unable to return from it, obsolete in changing circumstances but ultimately accepting of that fact. There are a lot of angles you can look at the overall themes from and I found myself pausing a lot at certain points but I think not trying too hard to look too much into every story beat like the first read was a better way to go about it.
I mostly just wanted to know what other people thought because I thought a lot of different things but I haven’t settled on any one overall verdict. It is probably not my favourite work of theirs but it has been great both times I have read it.
by Unlikely_Novel_7921