Tropic of Cancer
SEARCH IN  
Click here to buy posters
In Association with Amazon.com
 
ORDER BOOK
 BUY THE BOOK
  
 
I was twelve, as I recall, and a good friend of mine kept talking about this book he’d found at the library. “It’s called Tropic of Cancer, and it’s got all kinds of swearing and sex and stuff like that in it. You just gotta read it, man. It’s awesome!” My interest was piqued, and I immediately got on my bike and rode twelve blocks to the local library to see for myself.

Picture, if you would, the 1930s. This is a real period piece, void of any sugary coating, any attempt to pretty up the thoughts and words of the people who lived through this time. Upon reading Miller’s classic, it’s easy to see how such a book could have been banned for over sixty years (although, for the record it’s not a practice I condone). Within the first ten pages of the book, every single unsavory, crass, rude, offensive, and sexually depraved expression is used (some of which were even new to me) in the same flashy, in-your-face manner that can be observed in any modern rap video. In fact, the entire first chapter is a censor’s worst nightmare (and a wonderful example of freedom of expression).

Once you get past the language (assuming that you want to get past it at all), it’s easy to see why generations of readers have sought this book out. It’s a combination of Hemingway’s The Sun Also Rises and Salinger’s The Catcher in the Rye. It’s a novel about a moody, anti-social, anti-hero, writing in poverty, with drunks and hookers and bums, in Paris in the '30s. Does it get any cooler than that?

Tropic of Cancer explores the themes of heartache, jealousy, poverty, depression, angst, and rampant sexuality. It’s an ode to everything unsavory, but romantic nonetheless with all the red wine binges and cigarette-soaked, artist-infused conversations a person could possibly hope for. It’s as close as an individual can come to actually smelling a Parisian back-alley without being there in person.

Essentially, if you want to see how far the envelope can be pushed—or if you feel like being shocked by a text that’s more than seventy years old—then read this incredible novel for yourself. One caution though: if you’re the type of reader who needs a well-defined plot—that is to say a plot that’s complex, about spies and espionage or military intelligence, with twist after shocking twist and loads of action, developing into a brilliant climax that will blow your mind—then this is not at all the book for you. But, if you’re the type of reader who enjoys a character-driven plot filled with interesting views (and expressions!) about the nature of life, love, and the rest, then be sure to check out what you’ve been missing all this time.

Submissions Contributors Advertise About Us Contact Us Disclaimer Privacy Links Awards Request Review Contributor Login
© Copyright 2002 - 2024 NightsAndWeekends.com. All rights reserved.