Tropic of Cancer

Not Really A Book

This "not really a book" plot-less, stream-of-consciousness, anti-everything, self-indulgent, crudely-rudely-gimme-some-boody, was one of the novels in the 1960s that tested USA laws about pornography. It is also regarded as a masterpiece of 20th century literature. Time magazine lists it in their 100 Best English-language novels from 1923-2005. The preface is supposed to have been written by Anais Nin, but many believe Miller wrote it. I've never been as impressed with Henry Miller and Henry Miller is impressed with Henry Miller, but I do appreciate his staggering (specifically chosen word) literary talent, his abrupt/curt one-liners, and some of his intoxicated poetic rantings/ramblings.

I first read Tropic of Cancer in a teen reading club. One boy in our group insisted that it is "an awesome read" if you are falling down drunk. One girl said she got a sexually transmitted disease from reading it---and she announced that she was going to stop engaging in one night stands, even with cute guys. One girl reviewed the book with her own curt one-liner, saying that "Tropic of Cancer was confetti of seediness" in her opinion. Three of us became even more determined to become "real" writers.

Jerry Seinfeld had a successful TV show about nothing. Maybe Jerry got his "nothing" idea from Miller. In a Seinfeld episode Jerry is accused of not returning Tropic of Cancer to the library after checking it out when he was in high school.

I admit, I'm no Miller scholar, but I think I can say anything I damn well please about this novel---Henry Miller couldn't care less.

4 out of 5 people found this review helpful.

Book lover/Actress from MN

Yes, I agree with the the reviewer above, that Miller basically says whatever it is that comes in to his mind. It's is easier to write a diary rather then sit down and write a novel. Diaries rarely have structures.:) But on so many occasions he says things that are so touching, yet raw and real and that makes parts of the book wonderful and human. Many brilliant remarks and obsevations and views. The thing it lacks most is form. I suppose that's what makes him great, his style and the fact that he didn't care for form and polishing.

3 out of 3 people found this review helpful.

henry miller is just swell!

wow! Henry Miller is awesome and this book was everything that i expected and more! some people might argue that it is too long and rambeling but this is just one of those books that you have to enjoy for the content if the storyline strikes you as dull. Miller has this incredible style that blends a storyline with deep emotions that aren't too obviously expressed, but hinted at enough to make the reader understand. this book is just splendid and don't let anyone tell you differently!

2 out of 2 people found this review helpful.

If these are the 'fundamental realities', you can keep 'em.

I read Tropic of Cancer a couple of months after Hemingway's A Moveable Feast, also a semi-autobiographical novel of its expatriate author in Paris. The time periods are different (AMF set 13 years earlier) but the major difference is in the authors' lives and perceptions. Diametrically opposed to Hemingway's burnished and cerebral Paris, TOC's is as sordid and squalid as imaginable. The story follows its protagonist on a seemingly unending filth ridden bacchnal: decit, disease, whores, purulence, weevils and lice suppurate the novel. Viscerally evocative and initally compeelling, after a while these seemy tales simply become tiresome. The prose is jarring and, while at times elegantly lyric in its depiction of the authors sordid affairs, tedious and diffuse. The narrative is a meandering tale, unintelligble and incoherent at times; and for the majority of the book, I was totally unengaged in any of the characters. However, by the conclusion, the protagonist's actions do coalesce to embody a personality, the events become coherent, and some of the fire and vitality other critics have spoken of is transmitted. Additonally, TOC is fascinating in its coarseness and vulgarity chronologically speaking. That Hemmingway and Miller could participate in the same Paris so differently, intriguingly bespeaks of the disconnect between public writing and private living. Bottom line: TOC is a chaotic and jarring book that for its majority reads like the methamphetamine-induced stream of conscious of a contemporary frat boy. One has long become disenchanted by the time its characters communicate their message.

2 out of 2 people found this review helpful.

A difficult read to put down.

Henry Miller's passion for Passion (redundant, yet true) is inspiring. The raw, uncensored, stream-of-consciousness quality to this book is truly fantastic. Having dog-eared certain pages in which I found his writing to be particularly visually brilliant, I noticed that, by the end of the book, nearly half of it was intricately folded, a constant reminder of the brilliance of Miller's writing.

1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

Prolific, Beautiful, Erotic, Insightful MASTERPIECE!

This book has said more to me in it's first 5 pages, than 10 books have throughout the entire book! Miller's language just flows beautfully and is so tragic, and joyous, that you cannot help but love this erotic treasure.

1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

Stellar contribution to the literary canon

Henry Miller's 'Tropic of Cancer' is easily one of the best books written by any American author in this century. Written with a refreshing honesty and a realistic outlook, 'Tropic of Cancer' is a fine example of the autobiographical-novel form (so autobiographical that Miller says its not really a book at all and that he is referred to as Henry Miller in the book). It is sad to realize that this book was banned from 1934, when it was published, to 1961, when it finally got published in America (although the legal battles did not end until 1963). For nearly thirty years Americans were denied this fabulous book, and it makes me wonder why this was allowed to happen. But perhaps all the hoopla got more people interested in the book and therefore helped the exposure of it. What more is there to say? 'Tropic of Cancer' is an outstanding work and I personally will be reading more of Miller's books very soon. I bought this book along with Jackson McCrae¿s ¿Katzenjammer¿ as it was said that it too should be banned, but for different reasons. The McCrae book is funny---hysterical in fact, but nowhere near as off-color as ¿Cancer.¿ Still, it was a great read. Also try Miller¿s ¿Tropic of Capricorn.¿

1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

Raw and true depiction of man and the nature of existence

Miller's look at life in Paris in the thirties is stories and insight fused together with a vivid and poetic style. This work truly did restore a sense of wonder in me about the world around us. At a time when we are surrounded by fear, Miller's words bring an acceptance of the natural flow of the universe and puts emphasis on the importance of living in the instant...because it's all we have.

1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

This isn't a book, it's an experience.

The rich, undiluted candor of Miller's writing fills me with a hunger for life. This, to me, is the highest measure of any writer. That said, he probably isn't for everyone. It took me a while to warm up to him (his language can be a bit shocking at times). Well worth it!

1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

'Always Merry and Bright'

The miracle of life explored in Depression era Paris. If this book doesn't want to make you get up and live, I fear you are dead already--best check the pulse.

1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

Surrealist/Realist/Dadaist/Humanist handbook

This book is all of these and more. A carnival of ideas and a new way of looking of life introduced almost 70 years ago. Still, most people haven't caught on. This writer opened more doors than any other American writer and let loose all that was contraband in a land that preached freedom but practiced much of the opposite. Get this book in your hands right now and while you're at it, grab Tropic of Capricorn and The Rosy Crucifixion Trilogy.

1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

how come nobody has reviewed this yet

i can't believe noone has reviewed this book on here yet. the book is great. nobody writes quite like henry. the words just pile up. u start to think, 'my god, how long can he keep this up?' it's like watching a sports player that's 'in the zone.' i think both rabelais and celine have better literary reputations, but i enjoy henry more than either. he seems to combine the best of both.

1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

Dirty and desperate

Not what I was expecting, but I liked it. Very dirty and desperate, and a little humorous in a disgusting way.

Not my cup of tea

I'm tempted to say that Tropic of Cancer is overrated, but in its time it certainly was a break with the norm. Widely considered "obscene" when it first appeared on the scene, the book will not shock modern readers. Its stream of consciousness style became tedious, and its morally impaired narrator impressed me as callow and feckless rather than provocative. Still, as a companion piece to other novels of the post-WWI Lost Generation of ex-patriots in Paris, it does have some interest.

Conscious unconciousness

provoking different thoughts on madness. began to think about controlling unconsiousness.

If you're into the vague and surreal, read this.

This is one of the more difficult books I've read. For all of you arrogant readers, you're welcome to think I'm not smart enough. For the other 6 billion on the planet, treat this as a study of how an extreme writer likes to challenge the reader while they feel superior to them. I don't find a lot of purpose in this type of writing other than to put better writers in perspective of how they are able to write to a greater number of people and get their point across. If you like Henry Miller, my hat's off to you. But if you prefer the Fitzgerald or Hemingway, I don't think Miller would be enjoyable to you. Let's leave him to the level 4 college English course.

0 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

FAVORITE!!!

this book is definitly my favorite book alive..he's like literally my bible..my good friend donny introduced me to it.and he writes like its nothing.his words are soo strong.as if he examines everything in life..he speaks like sex is precious and if it was a surprise..o mann o mann i cant explain..BUT DEFINITLY NOT A TERRIBLE BOOK!!!

0 out of 2 people found this review helpful.

Tropic of Rambling

Rambling on and on about everything that came in to the author's mind. Very few coherent paragraphs. Only in the last 50 pages a story started to develop. Terrible book.

The Author is more interesting than the writing

Both Cancer books were a bit rambling. No doubt it's the way he wanted it, but I was lost half the time. Miller the person resonates far deeper than Miller the writer.

Get Real

I read this book from April 2000 to January 2001. It took that long because I hated it but I kept hoping that it would get better. Having finished it I have yet to find one quality that makes it a classic. YUK!!!