Am I in over my head with Gravity's Rainbow?

I like encyclopedic novels. My three favourite novels belong to this category (Ulysses, War and Peace, and Moby-Dick). Since I finished War and Peace I thought I might tackle the summit of the encyclopedic novel mountain: Gravity's Rainbow. I decided (foolishly) to skip the recommended "read Lot 49 first" tip and just went and purchased the book. I am 74 pages through my 760 page copy and I feel defeated. My only experience with postmodernism is what I have read (thus far) of Infinite Jest. Everyone says that I should not get caught up trying to understand what is happening and just power through. I feel as though I am not gaining anything that way. I have heard people say that that is how Pynchon writes and I am fine with that, but I just want to know how to get the best experience possible. Any thoughts on how to get get through this beast at a reasonable pace whilst getting the most enjoyment possible?

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Originally Posted by thekingrat

I like encyclopedic novels. My three favourite novels belong to this category (Ulysses, War and Peace, and Moby-Dick). Since I finished War and Peace I thought I might tackle the summit of the encyclopedic novel mountain: Gravity's Rainbow. I decided (foolishly) to skip the recommended "read Lot 49 first" tip and just went and purchased the book. I am 74 pages through my 760 page copy and I feel defeated. My only experience with postmodernism is what I have read (thus far) of Infinite Jest. Everyone says that I should not get caught up trying to understand what is happening and just power through. I feel as though I am not gaining anything that way. I have heard people say that that is how Pynchon writes and I am fine with that, but I just want to know how to get the best experience possible. Any thoughts on how to get get through this beast at a reasonable pace whilst getting the most enjoyment possible?

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This is good timing since I was about to post about it. We are doing a chapter by chapter summary and discussion of GR on the Pynchon in Public Podcast. We are about halfway through. Id hope you'd find it helpful and entertaining.
Www.Pynchoninpublic.com/podcast-2/

The three novels you mention are very (obviously) great works. Pynchon's is not. It is OK if you enjoy it. Otherwise, the best place for it is flying over your shoulder.

"Just power through" seems like a bad suggestion, I took more notes reading Gravity's Rainbow than any other book I've ever read, and it also demanded the most attention. I read Lot 49 and a few of his other novels which I thought honestly were mediocre at best, Gravity's Rainbow is immensely better and I consider it a first rate novel, I really only believe there are post-WWII books as good but not better. It's amazing.

Keep track of all the characters, use web resources, etc. If you start to feel you are getting lost, or glazing over pages, go back and give it more attention. The funny thing about Gravity's Rainbow is that it's not long or difficult because he throws in big words even educated people wouldn't understand, or intentionally confuse you. The language is very poetic and it has very abstract imagery but this was the most enjoyable part for me. It's a book that requires attention and note-taking but little more, and is very rewarding if you give it that.

You may be in over your head, I think it requries a little more-than-basic knowledge of WWII (especially), Protestantism, determinism, American history, etc., among some things. Even some history of rocketry. Alot of people who are new to Pynchon will talk about how the book requires a knowledge of engineering and mathematics, which isn't necessarily true (maybe a little of engineering history), but the mathematics & engineering bits won't lose you.

Pynchon is writing for a literary audience. I think you could tackle GR first if you really tried. Some people say V. is a good entry point and I'd agree, but it's not nearly as good.

It is partly a parody of the James Bond novel, Moonraker. I read GR first. I hated it but I was reading it on the recommendation of a friend who loved it.