Questions About The Golden Bowl

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What is this about? Is it a clean book in terms of content? Could a young Teen read this?

Kate Schmidt It would be the rare young teen who could read this. Late James is at the level of Proust or Joyce or Faulkner in its abstruseness, circumlocution, an…moreIt would be the rare young teen who could read this. Late James is at the level of Proust or Joyce or Faulkner in its abstruseness, circumlocution, and indirection. When I was in high school, a prim old teacher of mine teaching American lit mentioned The Golden Bowl in passing, then remarked to the class, "But you wouldn't understand it." I was a bored, head-down-on-the-desk kid, but I took that as a challenge, and tried reading it several times over the next decade. I didn't get past the first couple pages till grad school—it's insufferable in many ways, just like the aforementioned modernists can be. But it is at its heart a deadly, creepy, absolutely chilling story, with unforgettable characters—once you can penetrate the verbiage. (less)

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