For those familiar with delillo, well, you already know, and i dont think theres anything new i can tell you. It is delillo s fifteenth novel published under his own name and his first published work of fiction since his 2007 novel falling man. Teilhard was both a jesuit priest and a paleontologist, so. Feb 14, 2010 entirely too long at 117 pages, don delillos latest novel novella really, point omega, was inspired by an installation at the museum of modern art in 2006 called 24 hour psycho by douglas.
Point omega published by scribner, february 2010 isbn10. In the middle of a desert somewhere south of nowhere, to a forlorn. Twentysix years ago, in white noise, don delillo wrote about the most photographed barn in america, a tourist attraction that was an. Point omega is delillo s shortest novel to date, and he has said it could be considered a companion piece to the body artist. Don delillo explores the radical manipulation of time in this novel, which brings an iraq war planner, his daughter and a filmmaker together at a. The omega point has narrowed, here and now, to the point of a knife as it enters a body. For those familiar with delillo, well, you already know, and i don t think theres anything new i can tell you. Its not a particularly fun book nor does it yield any direct answers, but its also a rewarding, engaging, and often challenging read.
Jan 27, 2010 somebody please get don delillo a drink he pretty much predicted 911. It is delillos fifteenth novel published under his own name and his first published work of fiction since his 2007 novel falling man. Point omega is a short novel by the american author don delillo that was published in hardcover by scribners on february 2, 2010. Reading it is akin to a brisk hike up a desert mountaina trifle arid, perhaps, but with occasional views of breathtaking grandeur. That he has attempted to construct a piece of fiction in which perception itself serves as narrative is not the problem. I wouldnt say point omega is my favorite, i don t even know if i have a favorite, but point omega is a good read, and possibly a good entry point into delillo.
The omega point is a spiritual belief and a scientific speculation that everything in the universe is fated to spiral towards a final point of divine unification. Now, after years of war in iraq and afghanistan, hes predicting our final doom in point omega. If we continue with the game metaphor, then i think. Point omega by don delillo don delillos austere new novel is an object lesson in latephase literature says james lasdun janet leigh in psycho, don delillos framing device.
Don delillos point omega, the anthropocene, and the scales of literature pieter vermeulen 911 fiction after trauma in a widely noted essay from 2009, richard gray diagnoses 911 literature with a double failure of the imagination. Don delillo looks into the mind and heart of a defense intellectual. Jan 31, 2010 don delillos point omega is an iraq war tale stressing insight over action simon pemberton for the times by matthew sharpe. Elster, the central figure in delillos 2010 novel point omega. Point omega is the worst book don delillo has ever produced. And in the 117page point omega, delillos lean prose is so spare and concentrated that the aftereffects are more powerful than usual. Feb 07, 2010 don delillos spectacular career seemed to have reached some kind of omega zone almost 20 years ago. Buy a cheap copy of point omega book by don delillo. In the middle of a desert somewhere south of nowhere, to a. The plot seems fragmented at first, and this too is a familiar delillo device. Don delillo s point omega, the anthropocene, and the scales. In its reflections on time and loss, this may be a philosophical novel and maybe, considering its themes, the book shares a place in my work with the body artist, another novel of abbreviated length. Now, in point omega, he takes on the secret strategists in america s war machine.
Delillos deeply engaged description of what its like to. What does don delillo share with marilyn manson and dilbert. The suggested questions are intended to help your reading group find new and interesting angles and topics for your discussion. It reminded me of a better version of philip roths novel, the ghost writer, a young artist, an old wise man, and a mysterious girl.
A page on don delillo s 2010 novel point omega don delillo 2010. Don delillo on point omega and his writing methods wsj. There is no room for false steps, and even the surefooted will want to double. Jan 30, 2010 don delillo s latest work point omega takes an oblique, subtle, and unnerving tackle at themes of time, perception, family, and, ultimately, personal apocalypse. Unlike some of delillo s others, point omega does not require a substantial investment of time, but if you do read this as your first delillo novel, then you owe it to yourself to read.
Don delillo s 16th novel, point omega, is a book about time, extinction, loss and whether art can make sense of those forces. Point omega, by don delillo abe greenwald, commentary magazine. This onepage guide includes a plot summary and brief analysis of point omega by don delillo. He has done this before, and the effort has paid off in moments of crystalline revelation. Sam anderson on point omega by don delillo new york. It is precisely such pieties we find guiding the assessments made by his contemporaries to. In this potent and beautiful novel, the writer the new york times calls prophetic about twentyfirstcentury america looks into the mind and heart of a scholar who was recruited to help the military conceptualize the war. Point omega by don delillo is a surreal slice of intellectual prose poetry. Jan 21, 2010 the strongest material in point omega is only tangentially related to the books main story, and is essentially just art criticism. All the mans grand themes funneled down to local grief, one body, out there somewhere, or not. Gray notes that while canonical 911 fictions such as claire messuds the emperors children, don delillos. University of california television uctv 35,501 views 1. In his earlier novels, he has written about conspiracy theory, the cold war, and global terrorism.
After the redhot streak of the names, white noise and libra, his 10th. Unlike some of delillos others, point omega does not require a substantial investment of time, but if you do read this as your first delillo novel, then you owe it to yourself to read two or three others. Don delillo s spectacular career seemed to have reached some kind of omega zone almost 20 years ago. Don delillo point omega read and download epub, pdf, fb2, mobi. Sep 03, 2010 with the publication of point omega this winter, the latest in a series of unsatisfying late novels, it has come time for don delillos work as a novelist to be assessed by a standard less flimsy than the fashionable pieties and antipieties of the day. Like so much else he has had to say, his point omega theories are so much romantic, or maybe. Everyday low prices and free delivery on eligible orders. Delillos latest is hypnotic, if sometimes baffling. Don delillos austere new novel is an object lesson in latephase literature says james lasdun. Mar 04, 2011 buy point omega reprints by delillo, don isbn. One suspects delillo is setting them up for a fall, especially when elster maintains theyre closing in on the omega point, a concept postulating an eventual leap out of our biology, as. Point omega is delillos shortest novel to date, and he has said it could be considered a companion piece to the body artist.
Supersummary, a modern alternative to sparknotes and cliffsnotes, offers highquality study guides that feature detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, quotes, and essay topics. Point omega is a novella by don delillo that explores dread, paranoia, death, and violence. Point omega by don delillo don delillo s austere new novel is an object lesson in latephase literature says james lasdun janet leigh in psycho, don delillo s framing device. Don delillos spectacular career seemed to have reached some kind of omega zone almost 20 years ago. Spare and compact at 117 pages, the novel follows a filmmaker who is. But, in fact, point omega s excess of thought and brilliance is its biggest. The other thing that point omega does is partially restore me to my admiration of don delillo. In this potent and beautiful novel, the writer the new york times calls prophetic about twentyfirstcentury america looks into the mind and heart of a scholar. Don delillo s point omega is a hard book to critique because it is chockfull of brilliance and ought to be supported simply because we need books that allow humanity to think about the condition of being human. What don delillo s books tell him in a rare inperson interview, the novelist on his catholic roots and the inspiration for his new book.