Inherent Vice
by Thomas Pynchon · first published 2009
65% recommend26% neutral9% critical
Why HN recommends it
A funny, loose-limbed detective story with a single main character and a Chandler-style noir backbone. It serves as an easy, entertaining entry point into Pynchon's work for readers wary of his denser novels.
Summarised by Claude from recommending comments
Doc Sportello is bewildered when an ex-girlfriend returns to recruit him in a plot to kidnap a wealthy construction executive. Soon, Sportello finds himself in the midst of a thrilling conspiracy with an undercover cop and a group of dentists who are swindling the IRS.
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…everyone should do that. It’s an insanely fun book once you have accepted you are not supposed to get everything. Pynchon is probably my favourite author all things considered. Still I think starting with Inherent Vice, The Crying of Lot 49 or Vineland is probably a good idea.
on “8-Part Film Adaptation of Tolstoy's Anna Karenina Is Free Online” ↗…- Freud Capitalist Realism - Mark Fisher Gateless Gate - Mu-men? Very old Chinese mystical text that somehow resonated w me considerably.. Neuromancer - William Gibson Snowcrash - Neal Stephenson Inherent Vice (currently reading and enjoying a lot! - loved the movie so much I got the book but I think I enjoy the book way more even) - Thomas Pynchon
on “Ask HN: Which books do you wish you'd read earlier in life?” ↗This is a more modern Pynchon, but this paragraph from Inherent Vice (set in the very early days of computer adoption) made me laugh: > As usual these days, Fritz was back at the computer room, staring at data. He had that ask-me-if-I-give-a-shit look Doc had noted before…
on “Well, duh (1996)” ↗Inherent Vice was Pynchon's attempt to write a Chandler novel. It was a pretty good attempt, IMO.
on “The Most Abandoned Books on GoodReads (2019)” ↗Glad to hear you are enjoying. I read Bleeding Edge when it came out, but was underwhelmed. It is characteristically Pynchon, but did not enchant me in the same way as did Inherent Vice some years earlier. Still, his best novels have got to be Gravity's Rainbow, Mason & Dixon, and Against the Day. Those are the monsters. But you get out what you put in.
on “Thomas Pynchon, famously private, sells his archive” ↗Deeply disagree. Inherent Vice is extremely funny. It’s like a more successful Vineland, itself a good book. They are extremely good. The Crying of Lot 49 is also good but it feels somewhat rushed. It was written to get some money…
on “Thomas Pynchon, famously private, sells his archive” ↗…normative interpretation of the text. If you keep a list on your phone of interesting-sounding authors and comb used book stores you’ll rarely run out of options. The jacket copy for Thomas Pynchon’s Inherent Vice is far and away the best I’ve ever read — not surprising that he wrote it himself.
on “The Case for Never Reading the Book Jacket” ↗…myself) https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=41225388 That said, any pointers from Altemeyer I should watch out for before I go into a deepdive mapping the NB axis to the DA axis? (Tangential edit: inherent vice is imho the most autobiographical (as Sortilège?) of Pynchon, you might enjoy the soundtrack from the adaptation as well, esp. the rewilding of Can https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Can_(band)#Style https://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sortilège_(groupe)…
on “Hilary Mantel Reviews “A Life of One's Own/An Experiment in Leisure” (1986)” ↗…actually gotten through Mason & Dixon.) He also writes smaller stories that generally focus on a single primary plot with a clear main character driving the story. These are The Crying of Lot 49, Vineland, Inherent Vice, and from the sound of the review, Bleeding Edge. These don't capture his insane manic complexity except in tiny flashes, but they are far easier to acclimate yourself to Pynchon. I do think of his…
on “From Thomas Pynchon, a novel of the dot-com era and the end of history” ↗…into the old age. There are rumours about him being both a professor or exCIA but I’m sure he’s been reasonably well off since the late 70s. While I haven’t read Bleeding Edge, his most recent novel, Inherent Vice is wild and excellent. Maybe keeping a job keeps a writer honest or at least in the public watching and note taking. But I don’t think this is always true and it would be heartbreaking to take the dream…
on “Gene Wolfe Turned Science Fiction into High Art (2019)” ↗It's amazing but a pretty tough intro to Pynchon. If you're going to read him I would recommend "The Crying of Lot 49" (a fun short novel) or "Slow Learner" (A set of short stories). "Inherent Vice" would maybe be a fun one to start with too. It's not for everyone in any case. One of my best friends jokes about the fact that every time I say I like a book, for a while she would buy it, read a…
on “Don DeLillo deserves the Nobel” ↗Read Inherent Vice. Its an easy and amusing read. Gravitys Rainbow is one hell of a trip. Had to read it twice. Something for self torture with some fun in it.
on “Thomas Pynchon, famously private, sells his archive” ↗I absolutely love Inherent Vice, both book and film. Really good fun, like The Big Lebowski's edgier cousin.
on “Ask HN: What are you reading these days?” ↗Inherent Vice is such a fun whacky read too. I kinda wanted to read Gravity’s Rainbow but my friend (who also recommended Inherent Vice) said I probably wouldn’t have the patience for it lol. He’s usually right
on “Dubious Math in Infinite Jest (2009)” ↗Inherent Vice was great too. Gravity's Rainbow took me a few times to get into but it was a wild ride. His early book "The Crying of Lot 49" was also really good.
on “Dubious Math in Infinite Jest (2009)” ↗