Herman Melville, Moby Dick

Herman Melville, Moby Dick. One of my very favorites and every time I've forgotten.

Jonathan Miles, Want Not

Jonathan Miles, Want Not.  4? 5? 6? separate narratives, centered on excrement, effluvia, refuse, overage, built in losses, and trash. I particularly liked the morbidly obese linguist who somehow re-entered his wasted life in the process of hilariously and surreptitiously butchering the deer that smashed his car.

Alison Lurie, Real People

Alison Lurie, Real People. Not as captivating as Foreign Affairs, but I did enjoy the the snobbery and competitive social interplay at a very unusual writer's colony.

Katherine Dunn, Geek Love

Katherine Dunn, Geek Love. I wanted to scrub my hands until they bled after finishing this, except that it reminded me of scrubbing in for amateur amputation surgery.

William Styron, Darkness Visible.

William Styron, Darkness Visible. A frank (and surprisingly tender) memoir of depression by a pompous old man.

Neal Stephanson, Zodiac

Neal Stephenson, Zodiac. A little bleh, but quite distinct from other Stephenson in subject and tone.  Gonzo environmentalism with a very 80's flavor (I was not impressed by the microbiology/genetic engineering, but it was a decent story). Lacked the exuberance and obsession with information that often make up for a little immaturity in his novels.

Jose Saramago, Baltasar and Blimunda

José Saramago, Baltasar and Blimunda. 18th century Portugal, still baroque. Peasant couple survives inquisition and builds period flying machine.