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Why I Hate Faulkner by Denton Thomas
book review by Carolyn Davis
"Many authors have been praised for pushing the envelope to create novels, even though they fail to reward the reader... the works of William Faulkner are not good novels."
In this novel, written in sections of time that range from a boy's high school years to Texas in the 1800s, the injured captain of a high school football team tells a story about his best friend, his girlfriend, his health and the effect it has on his status, a little about some local history, and a note of particular irony—his basic dislike of William Faulkner's work.
The small book is crammed with insight into the life of a sensitive teenage athlete, whose knee is so seriously injured in a game that he becomes ineligible for a college scholarship. The boy learns quickly that life goes on: He must make up his exams and essays as soon as he is discharged from the hospital. His journal entries go back and forth through time—his own and that of Texas. The reader learns many significant facts and observations about the boy, his high school community, and the people who are most important to him. There are his best friend and his ex-girlfriend; for both he feels protective, tender, and respectful. There are "bad girls"—popular girls whose main hobby is trashing others. There are teachers who he begins to figure out. The reader sees the boy putting together information both to hone his observations and draw conclusions. Additionally, there are vignettes of his developing athletic prowess, as well as his trying to come to terms with the loss of his status as a star athlete. The boy who hates Faulkner writes a novel in vignette form to rival those of Faulkner.