Falling Man Falls Well Short of Being a Great Book?🌇

I just finished reading Don DeLillo's 2007 novel 'Falling Man' because it was one of the books featured in '1001 Books You Must Read Before You Die' ... and I don't know why.

I found it a dull and boring slog of a read.

There are even three more books of DeLillo's recommended in '1001 Books You Must Read Before You Die', which makes me wonder if by working backwards through the 1001 books I just picked the wrong book of Don's to start with?

Don DeLillo Should
Win the Nobel Prize?

The next book of Don's I would have to read working my way backwards through the book would be 'Mao II', which I don't think would be a good idea somehow, as reading about the Chinese Communist Party and Mao would bore me to tears, I reckon. 

A lot of "experts" seem to think that 'White Noise' is his best book, and that is another one of his books recommended in '1001 Books You Must Read Before You Die', and it was made into a Netflix movie, which I'm yet to watch, but have written about on this blog -

Greta Gerwig Shares a Birthday with The Meg? 🌊🎂🦈

White Noise (novel)

I was trying to get some feedback by listening to podcasts to hear what people thought about 'Falling Man' and Don Delillo's other books and stumbled across a podcast called 'Don DeLillo Should Win the Nobel Prize' but it looks like the hosts are yet to do an episode about 'Falling Man'.

"The Falling Man himself is symbolic of "the hubris of trying to make art out of horror", so the Wikipedia page for the novel tells us.

And features a street artist who dangles from a wire in the falling pose of the of the real "falling man" in the photo in the You Tube below.

But that is only really a small part of the novel.

I had borrowed the book from my local library and spent the whole of my last Sunday reading the book, as it was due back Monday.

So, there's a day of my life that I'll never get back, as they say, but a least it wasn't my last.

Listening to 'The Writers Institute' podcast below it sounds like Jonathan Franzen is a fan of Don DeLillo's novels, so maybe I will give Don one more chance?

Freedom, Just for the Birds?

Jonathan Franzen
(with Don DeLillo, Jamaica Kincaid,
Joseph Heller, Margaret Atwood,
and William Kennedy)

Episode 3: The 2023 Nobel Prize & Global DeLillo

From 'Falling Man'

I hear in episode 3 that DeLillo didn't win the Nobel Prize in 2023 to the disappointment of the podcast hosts.
Maybe he'll win it next year, when I may or may not have finished reading the three other books of his recommended in '1001 Books You Must Read Before You Die' ... that's if I live long enough and don't die from boredom?-)

Don DeLillo on writing his novel Underworld
 - books podcast

From 'Falling Man'

Maybe Don predicted Covid 19 in his book 'Falling Man'? 

Funny thing is, as I start reading my new library book, which a lot of people have recommended I read (Immaculate) I was pondering if the next DeLillo book I read should be 'White Noise' instead of 'Mao II'?
I was thinking if I'm meant to read it, I'm sure the "book angel" will give me a sign.

Immaculate

By the time I got to page 4 of the novel I guess I had my answer?-)
Warren Peace (War and Peace;-) and Other Great Books to Read in the Year of the Rabbit?💣☮🕊🐇🐰

White Noise/Balloons?🎈💭