Dtek Industries

after having it recommended to me a few years ago, i've been working on the USA Trilogy by Dos Passos.

it's a sprawling, panoramic look at early 20th century US of A. the huge vision is relayed through multiple intertwined narratives focusing on characters from blue collar shipmates, to labor organizers, to the heads of big capital. the big themes are the plight of the working class and the nascent power struggle between capitalism and marxism, with the country's relationship to the "great war" as the major backdrop.

the style is "pedestrian", as a friend of mine just suggested -- Dos Passos isn't a wordsmith, doesn't seem to choose each word with great care or precision -- but it's a herculean and stunning effort, and does leave you with a huge, sweeping, awe-inspiring landscape to admire, with poignant moments of empathy along the way for specific details of character, in delight or disgust. he switches to a new character, then starts a 5-, 10-, or 20-page almost stream-of-consciousness narrative that relays huge chunks of their lives, often flirting with other major characters of the book, often tying in massive social/political events of the time.

it's exhausting. i powered through the first book, then started to lose steam during the second. i just finished that one, but need to take a break before moving on to the third.