John & Carrie (johncarrie@sprynet.com)
Thu, 30 Dec 1999 15:50:29 -0500
I just finished PICK-UP by Willeford - a very dreary and
depressing look at a couple of life's failures and
throwaways. But, still, very engrossing...kind of like
watching a car wreck. A question, though, for those more
familiar with Willeford's work than me: the last line of the
novel, where he announces his race as "Negro". Perhaps I
didn't understand the significance of this proclamation...was
there more to it than that? My instant reaction was, "Umm,
okay...*and*?" It seemed to have been posed as an almost
O'Henry like twist - yet it didn't seem to me to offer
anything to the book's prior storyline nor cast any new light
on what had come before it. Did I miss something? Or am I
just making too much of what was simply meant as a throwaway
last line?
Ron Clinton
-- No, there are some clues through out Pick Up that the male protagonist is black. For example, the scene where he and the female protagonist go to a bar and someone comments something to the effect that "I've seen it all" or something like that. Also, when her mother meets him at his flophouse. Little things like that. But it is never made really clear in the novel.
Tribe
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