One more book question

[hifigator]

I am going to the library tonight to get my next assortment of books. I am going to get When Pride Still Mattered which is a highly recommended book about Vince Lombardi.

And thanks to suggestions from some of you, I think I will get A Prayer for Owen Meany by John Irving.

Given the overwhelming acclaim that you all had for A Confederacy of Dunces, I find it interesting that no one mentioned the only other novel by John Kennedy Toole. It was called The Neon Bible. Have any of you read it and if so what did you think?

Thanks in advance.

[afirth]

I've read The Neon Bible. It's not the masterpiece that Dunces is, but when you consider that Toole wrote The Neon Bible at only age 16, it's pretty good. Both works satirize modern society, but The Neon Bible has a little too much obvious preaching/moralizing, and doesn't have the same wit and charm that Dunces has. It is still worth a read though - it's an entertaining story, even if not written as well as his second book.

[hifigator]

Thanks for the input. I finally found a friend last night who had read the earlier work. He was even less complimentary than you. He too pointed out that it was written when Toole was only 16, but he suggested that the only reason it was even published was because of the success of Dunces. He said they went back after the fact just to make a buck. I will probably still read it if I stumble across it, but I don't think I am will go out of my way.