You've never read Giles Goat Boy? You really should.
I plan on reading it, and I'm eager on getting to other stuff by Barth as well, but I only finished the sot-weed...hmm, I actually can't remember when I finished it. Sometime this year, probably more than 2 weeks ago? But beyond that I'm not sure.
Anyways, sometime over the summer I'll try and get my hands on a coupla more barth books.
I also love to lose myself in the story. Do some critical darlings fail write engagingly? Sure. On the other hand, most "populist" bestsellers suck and can't write. I very strongly believe that pound for pound, the most critically acclaimed writers write the best. There will always be those who are included in the contemporary canon because of pretension, but most of them will have very real and very compelling merit.
It irks me when people say they can't read the classics -- it's too difficult. Okay, if we're talking about War and Peace or Paradise Lost, maybe. But for the most part, I tend to think people who recite that line just aren't trying hard enough. I think that sometimes applies to contemporary writers, too.
Also, null, Alan Lightman is a fantastic writer. Einstein's Dreams and The Diagnosis are wonderful novels.
