A Confederacy of Dunces by John Kennedy Toole book review
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A Confederacy of Dunces
By: James Kennedy Toole
1980 (published); 405 pages
Rating: 1
"A Confederacy of Dunces" is the first book in a long time that I've been unable to finish. It was chosen by my bookclub, I bought it for my Kindle, and it's a Pulitzer Prize winner, so I felt obligated to read it.
However, at 61% of the way through, I decided that I just couldn't take it anymore. I didn't care about the story, any of the characters, and I had no desire to see how the whole thing played out.
I feel bad for Toole and all. He committed suicide. His book was not published during his lifetime. It took his mom 11 years to find someone who would publish it. There's a reason no one would publish it. Yes, it is a Pulitzer Prize winner, but I have no idea why. Maybe there were no good books published that year. Maybe the committee just felt bad for the Toole family.
According to Wikipedia, A Confederacy of Dunces is a canon of southern literature. Whatever.
I read over ½ the book, and I'm done. I also read that Toole worked in a pants factory and as a street food vendor. So, maybe Ignatius is really Toole "disguised".
I don't regret not finishing it. I regret the $9.60 I spent to buy it. I can't get that back.