Sometimes a Great Notion vs. Cuckoo's Nest

[dward1]

Having just finished One Flew Over a Cuckoo's Nest I could not help but mentally compare it to the other Ken Kesey classic I have read, Sometimes a Great Notion.

My conclusion is that while One Flew Over a Cuckoo's Nest was an immensely enjoyable read and was a great starting point for thinking about questions of security vs. freedom and did have McMurphy who was one of the funniest, greatest characters in literature the book cannot match the epic sweep of Sometimes a Great Notion.

The latter book has a stronger plot and stronger characters and I was more invested in the Stamper's I guess (though that might just be a factor of the amount of time spent reading the two books)

Anyway, what are your thoughts?

[Hank Stamper]

there be a clue in the sobriquet..

both books are great, but Sometimes A Great Notion is definitely Kesey's best work

[Dinkleberry2010]

Having only read ...Cuckoo's Nest, and not ...Great Notion, I can't compare them, but I can say this: They enabled Kesey and The Merry Pranksters to go on many a trip.

[tscherff]

not only is Sometimes a Great Notion kesey's greatest work, it is my favorite novel of all time. as the union boss saw the stampers moving the logs down the river i turned the page hoping for more and was disappointed that there was none.
the point of view---starts at the end, goes back to the beginning, and returns to the end. the stream of consciousness viewpoint that also gives you multiple perspectives of the same scene. the continual assault of nature on the home, the loggers, the town, the stampers, everything. the relentless pursuit by each member of the stamper family to do their thing at all cost. the family so together and yet so at odds.
to those who have lived in coastal oregon, it also a love song to the pacific northwest.

simply an amazing book