Snopes: A Trilogy

A classic. All three novels in one, as WF always intended. But very bulky.

These books might be the most accesible Faulkner. They add structure, dimension, and color to the reality of his world of Yoknapataphwa county. The wealth of imagery, metaphor and symbolism is there for those who want it just beneath the surface of an engaging, at times laugh out loud saga of a family of unforgettable characters within a community of equally memorable characters. Through this portal, one can enter Faulkner's universe, get a feel for his style and an appetite for his work to proceed with momentum to his more complex books. The size of the book itself, with the 3 novels in one cover, might intimidate some and steer them away. The weight of 3 novels together can be uncomfotable during exended reading. But the text offers the trilogy to be read in succession - the story compels one to do so, and draws one back to do so repeatedly. Great work from a great writer - a real treat and special component for the library of any reader.

So far I have read The Hamlet, one of the three books in this collection about the manipulative Snopes family. It consists of shrewd methods the Snopes use to gain control of the "village" , or hamlet. There is a little too much conversation at the local village store, but it is Faulkner's method of advancing the plot and tying together the various episodes. Several sections stand out in my mind: The "professors" of the one-room school for all ages who tend to disappear when one of the Varners' ususually sexy daughters begins school, not walking anywhere she doesn't have to, and that is most of the time. The professors become so distracted by the girl's nearness that they eventually vanish before they succumb to her overwhelming enticements. Another episode that stands out is the wild, raucous wild-horse auction. This segment becomes hilarious and chaotic when the horses escape from their confinement and the successful bidders spend a feverish night rounding up their won prizes. A third episode relates a yarn about how Flem Snopes, the original, plays a trick on the hamlet's residents. While two catch on to the ruse, one of the horse buyers whose leg is broken when the auctioned-off horses escape in the earlier episode continues to believe that a large treasure of money is buried somewhere on hamlet property. He becomes so deranged and claims his special "hole" to dig in for the treasure, even when others have already caught on to Snopes trickery. The old man drives away anyone who comes near his claimed "hole", and a lot of locals make excursions expressly to watch the "show". The central point of this first of three books about how the Snopes build and control a town focuses on the village stage about a place called Frenchman's Bend. As in other works by Faulkner the reader has to like the challenge of his unconventional, convoluted style. I do.

I can not explain my love of Faulkner. I just do, love him! Ever since I read his magnificent short story, Barn Burning, in one of my college literature class; I've had, what you might call, a passion for Faulkner. Barn Burning was not only my introduction to Faulkner as a whole, but it also served as an introduction to one of Faulkner most fascinating characters, Flem Snopes. The Snopes Trilogy, which consists of the Faulkner novels: The Hamlet, The Town, and The Mansion; centers around Flem Snopes as he fulfills his quest of taking over the world...literally. In placing Flem Snopes as the sun of Yoknapatawpha County universe. And in doing so, Faulkner displayed the full spectrum of humanity. The characters are not only fully developed; they are downright interesting, with Flem Snopes being downright fascinating. I'm just a layman, but I can not put my finger on why Flem Snopes is the star of these three novels. If you add all of the words Flem Snopes speaks, or is an active participant in a conversation throughout the three books, the word count would not be more than 100 words, if that. The characters in the books all react to what Flem Snopes done, might do; said, could have said, or what he will say in the future. By presenting the three novels together in one volume, the intoxicating presence of Flem Snopes is at its maximum potency. Not just Flem, but the entire Snopes clan. I have to admit I was enthralled with the Snopes, but then the more low-rent, trifling the behavior, the more I love reading about them, and there is no family more low-rent and trifling than the Snopes. You'll read about Mink, who plays an essential role in the novels, to Montgomery Ward Snopes, Wallstreet Crash Snopes to Ike Snopes, who falls in love (and I mean LOVE) with a cow. The trilogy, the Snopes, should be one of Faulkner's greatest invention.

Read them, read them all. There is a reason the man got the Nobel Prize for Literature. If you sat under the kitchen table as a small child and quietly listened to your Georgia grandmother talk to her women friends, you will be at home immediately, but it doesn't matter. If you are a human being you will recognize humans in all their complexity, confusion, ambition and self-delusion. Faulkner can be astonishingly laugh-out-loud funny, relentlessly compassionate, and as ruthless an observer as any primatologist on the veldt. Read these books because they are rollicking good stories about interesting people in a time and place of tremendous change, and read them because you will lift your head from the last page a more thoughtful and better person, as well as someone who has bathed and been refreshed in some of the finest English prose ever written.

It goes without saying that these three novels are modern classics and well worth reading. I was tremendously excited when they finally became available for Kindle -- and at a very reasonable price! But eBook formatting, even from major publishers and on outrageously priced items, often leaves a lot to be desired -- how does the Snopes trilogy stack up? I'm happy to say that it really couldn't be better! The book opens to a thoughtful critical essay. There are book marks set for the start of each of the three novels, plus the author bio at the end. Each novel also has its own linked table of contents. The digital conversion, as far as I have read since downloading last night, has been flawless, with no typos, odd spacing, or other glitches. The bottom line is that this is what every eBook should look like, and the presentation great literature deserves. Edit -- I am now about halfway through The Mansion and must report that this edition does contain some typos/conversion errors. They are few and far between, and don't ruin the reading experience, but they are there. The books themselves are even better (and funnier!) than I had remembered.

To understand the power of this novel, you have read both of the others in the trilogy. Filled with quirky characters, what appears to be a recap actually is a deep dive into psychological depths -- so Faulkner.

"The Hamlet", first in "the Snopes trilogy", is the only novel of the whole that I know. But even so, magnitude and genius of it would easily justify purchase of every other work related to it. Yes, it is just that good, or rather overwhelming, mind blowing, colossal, etc. More developed and sophisticated than "Absalom! Absalom!" or "Light in August", it makes a bold cultural statement, and one that is very provoking. Definitely, an important position to know for those found of modern prose and artistic style at its best. As always, Faulkner is extremely funny to read, conducts most entertaining narration, which switches from topic to topic effortlessly, and fades the border between the presented, and the intended, as it is of course much different thing to be able to tell what happens within the book, than to explain any consistent, self sustaining meaning of the whole work. It is not an easy read for most of us, but rewarding to those who will. As always, I advise double reading of Faulkner's books: the first time - to find out what to pay attention to, the second - to answer the questions aroused during first lecture. Oh, yes. Most often you will read that the title refers to the small village in which the story takes place. Let me warn you, that unless you can make connection to the Shakespearian prince of Denmark, you are not done with interpretation. If all the above does not sound like fun, the book may just not be for you. I have a few words of criticism, but these are only addressed to the edition of the book. On the positive side, it is a hardcover, and it collects the whole trilogy. On the negative side, the whole trilogy is just much too bulky, and inconvenient to hold, as three vast novels were squeezed into one volume. It would look so much better on the shelf, if made of separate volumes for each of three parts, and be smaller, as to match the size of the other Faulkner's books from the same publisher. Also, I can hardly imagine, that the people who read such difficult writer, wouldn't want to have critical editions of his works in hard covers. For these two negatives, I give the edition (not the novels!), only three stars. Still, it is probably as good, as you can expect to find.