Tropic of Capricorn
Henry Miller · 1891–1980 · United States
Why it matters
Miller recasts his years as a Western Union personnel manager in 1920s New York into a raging, digressive assault on American respectability and sex. The autobiographical companion piece to Tropic of Cancer, banned for decades.
At a glance
autobiographical fictionexistentialist
Difficulty 7/10slow pace344 pagesFree-associative, ranting digressions with little conventional plot to anchor the reader.
Where to go next
Henry Miller · 1934Tropic of CancerLvl 7Slow burn
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John Dos Passos · 1925Manhattan TransferLvl 6Medium pace
Ernest Hemingway · 1926The Sun Also RisesLvl 4Fast paced
F. Scott Fitzgerald · 1925The Great GatsbyLvl 4Fast paced
Djuna Barnes · 1936NightwoodLvl 9Slow burn