DNF: THE OCTOPUS: A STORY OF CALIFORNIA by Frank Norris, 1901, 2005?, 1404322949.
Decently bound hardcover with no LOC cataloging-in-publication information. Odd, that is why a guess of 2005 for this print.
I read LAWN BOY a few months ago - not sure if I yet made any notes about the book here - and the narrator lists a number of books he is reading. OCTOPUS was one of those books and I decided to give it a try.
Wealthy farmers with large land parcels in California have to ship their grain. The only shipper is the railroad which has a stranglehold. The railroad sets the rates and has the legislature and any Fed commissions in their pocket. The farmers have pushed back over the years with no success. I left the book when the farmers are meeting and trying to form a league to fight the railroad.
I've had the book a long time and only read a fifth of the book. An interesting enough story but the older writing style requires a more relaxed reader than me. I did really enjoy how the shifting narration would take on the personality of each character. The quirks, the tics, the interests. One guy has a fear/desire for women that drives aggressive behavior. An older guy will talk forever and never stay on topic.
Anyhoo. I quit it.
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