“Well, I be durn if I like to see my work washed outen the ground, work I sweat over. It’s a fact. A fellow wouldn’t mind seeing it washed up if he could just turn on the rain himself. Who is that man can do that? Where is the color of his eyes?”

This was my second reading of this one, my first having been in December of 2019, and what a pleasure it was to return. Tells the story of the Bundren family in their journey to bury their deceased matriarch Addie in her home town of Jefferson and their travail in that effort. This is one of the greatest books I’ve ever read. In its short length is contained such a wealth of brilliance, skill, and vividness, that I be durn if I could name a novel more perfectly crafted than this one. There’s absolutely no filler, it’s simply flawless from front to back, with a nonstop stream of freshness and invention washing and foaming over the reader, like the great flooded river at the center of the narrative. Each character perspective is unique and well sculpted, and each element seems to be in perfect balance with every other. Better than The Sound and the Fury by far, at least in terms of the power and focus of the writing. So concentrated and rich, but never excessive or overwhelming. Faulkner’s economy and control in presenting so many great lines and concepts while keeping himself inside of the characters and circumstances is a lesson to any writer. The ultimate tragicomedy. I be durn if I aint looking forward to my third reading.

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“Light” by Odilon Redon, c. 1893 (CC 0).