In Watermelon Sugar cover art

In Watermelon Sugar

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About this listen

iDEATH is a place where the sun shines a different color every day and where people travel to the length of their dreams. Rejecting the violence and hate of the old gang at the Forgotten Works, they lead gentle lives in watermelon sugar. In this book, Richard Brautigan discovers and expresses the mood of the counterculture generation.

©1968 Richard Brautigan (P)2017 Blackstone Audio, Inc. Dystopian Fantasy Fiction Genre Fiction Literary Fiction Literature & Fiction Science Fiction Comedy
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A fascinating possible post-apocalyptic society, and possible utopia, it hints at many things and leaves you with endless questions. I enjoyed it quite a lot and will read up on it to unpack it further. Contains some elements of magical realism that are never explained too. A unique book.

Sparse, ambiguous, mysterious

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I've read this book about 20years ago and was taken by it, so I immediately listened to it when I saw it on Audible (just a night after I listened to Kafka's Metamorphosis which is also available "for free"). I am truly confused by some of the negative reviews and think that people these days are used to everything being dynamic and full of action, heading to some clear result (I myself am guilty of it sometimes). If you expect that then you won't like this wee book. It's like a strange dream in a constant flux with a nightmarish dystopian pang to it. You can't rely on time, space ,or even the sun, to have its traditional properties. For me it's somehow almost like a 2D world, including the narrative. Like with the Metamorphosis, I carry it around with me for days, even weeks or months. It somehow invades your mind, which for me is a sign of a great literature. This doesn't often happen with dynamic stuff bringing clear results, as there's just no time for such nonsense.

Strange and touching

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while the book may be discribed as dystopian, don't go into the book expecting any world-building and sci fi grandiose extravagance. the first person pov and minimalist style makes it hard to understand what's going on alot of the time. the fun comes from trying to peace together what's going on from the little amount of context clues you get and from when you eventually feel attached to these characters you don't really know much about

what a trip

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an old gem from 1968, which depicts an interesting metaphorical world. fascinating details and very sad message, engulfed in an absurdist short novel. good world building.
good performance.

old gem

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Very surreal book. I think the author must have been under the influence of mind altering substances !

Weirdest book I’ve ever read / listened to

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