Inherent Vice

By: Thomas Pynchon

Narrated by: Ron McLarty

Length: 14 hrs and 31 mins

Publisher's summary

Part noir, part psychedelic romp, all Thomas Pynchon - Private eye Doc Sportello surfaces, occasionally, out of a marijuana haze to watch the end of an era.

In this lively yarn, Thomas Pynchon, working in an unaccustomed genre that is at once exciting and accessible, provides a classic illustration of the principle that if you can remember the '60s, you weren't there.

It's been a while since Doc Sportello has seen his ex-girlfriend. Suddenly she shows up with a story about a plot to kidnap a billionaire land developer whom she just happens to be in love with. It's the tail end of the psychedelic '60s in LA, and Doc knows that "love" is another of those words going around at the moment, like "trip" or "groovy", except that this one usually leads to trouble. Undeniably one of the most influential writers at work today, Pynchon has penned another unforgettable book.

©2009 Thomas Pynchon (P)2009 Penguin Audio

Critic reviews

"What he does, and brilliantly, is open windows onto a universe where we're all in custody, but we're none of us sure who put on the cuffs...entertainment of a high order.” (TIME)

"An enjoyable book by a writer whose work can be daunting.” (John Powers, Fresh Air on NPR)

“With whip-smart, psychedelic-bright language, Pynchon manages to convey the Sixties - except the Sixties were never really like this. This is Pynchon's world, and it's brilliant. The resolution is as crisp as Doc is laid-back. Highly recommended.” (The Library Journal)

NOT HALLUCINATING

Lovingly rendered, masterfully written, endlessly fun. Pynchon's most accessible and enjoyable novel by far. A wild and mysterious trip through post-Manson California.

Tom Robbins Meets Hunter S. Thompson

If you don't think you remember the 70s, This book just might jog your memory

Great Presentation of Inherent Vice

Inherent Vice seems an unlikely masterpiece from Pynchon (The author of Gravity’s Rainbow) Inherent Vice manages to effectively combine psychedelics and PI Noir with the astounding learned wit of Pynchon- far more accessible than his other offerings. The narrator does an exceptional job with helping keep track of the numerous characters throughout.

Terrific romp through the 60's

This is one of the of the best audiobooks I've ever heard. It..like...totally paints a picture of a time and subculture that's now long gone. There is a plot, and it's pretty good once it gets going. The real genius is in the depiction of roaringly funny chararacters and situations from a drug hazed version of the 60's. The narrator completely nails all of the the characters voices. Just hearing him earnestly singing the author's absolutely excreble, hilarious song lyrics, which somehow work their way into the story is worth the credit alone. The book is a great satirical send up of the 60's, complete with hallucinations, bad driving, hippies, the FBI, biker gangs, and sinister corporations all mashed togther. Don't let what you hear about the author's reputation as an inaccessible "Great American Writer" throw you off, this is great fun.

Remembering the Late Sixties

Actually, I would give it three and a half stars if I could here. Good interesting well-defined characters in this story, somewhat interesting story. However, there is lots of druggies, drug use here which ramble too much, ruminating on their thoughts, feelings, and that gets old half-way through, for me. The theme is the late 1960's, a private eye, his friends, the cops who hound them, a mystery about the whereabouts of an ex-girlfriend of the private eye. It was an interesting change of pace for me but not sure I could recommend it to others. I think it will probably make a better movie than book as the music, visuals and sixties sets will most-likely help.

The narrator was okay, really didn't add or detract from the story. His performance was not notable. I felt there was no advantage in listening to the audiobook over reading the book in print myself.

Loved the movie and had to read the book.

It's been years since I've read a Pynchon novel. Inherent Vice has shown me that I need to read a lot more of him.

Great read man

If you're a Pynchon fan you don't need a review as you have doubtless already read the book. Mr. Pynchon is the finest writer of the last half century. If you lived in one of the Los Angeles beach communities in the 70s you will recognize the beat, or the loss of tune, or whatever. Before disco and coke flattened sensibilities there was a groove. Or maybe I tend, like most people not lost in the greed narcotic, to romanticize. Doesn't make a difference. You can catch some vibes here. Groovy. Do English departments still suck the life out of literature. Is deconstruction still the heartbeat of the unimaginative? Well then someone else can write an essay on all of that. Meanwhile, in my third read if this I am still finding note that impressed me about this. I haven't seen the movie so I don't know how that worked out. I don't know how it could. Anyway, great read.

Excellent all around

The narration for this book was spot on, even given random songs that I can only assume was not accompanied with any kind of musical notations. The book was fast paced and fun overall!

Immensely Helped Finish this Pynchon

Pynchon is sometimes a difficult read, but this performance helped me get through the physical book in a breeze. There’s only so many voices one person can do, but he did a great job differentiating in each scene. Really happy with the book and the narration.

Very good, ironic and fast pased.

Was expecting this to be a lot harder. But this was a good fun crime story that I'we enjoyed greatly.