cover image Vineland

Vineland

Thomas Pynchon. Penguin Books, $11.95 (400pp) ISBN 978-0-14-014511-3

Set in Northern California in 1984 and peopled with quirky characters, Pynchon's latest is a series of brilliant set pieces eventually overwhelmed by its own frenzied exuberance. 200,000 first printing. (Feb.)