Literary Fiction · DarkAt the end of World War II, a story built around the V-2 rocket with over 400 named characters
Gravity's Rainbow
A huge cast moves through Europe at the end of World War II around the V-2 rocket
The novel is set primarily in Europe at the end of World War II. Its wider story concerns the design, production and launch of V-2 rockets by the German military. It begins with Pirate Prentice, a Special Operations Executive employee in wartime London who is troubled by dreams and is then driven to the site of a V-2 strike. Tyrone Slothrop, a U.S. Army lieutenant, is the figure it returns to most often, though it has over 400 named characters and no single lead.
More about this book
Who
Tyrone Slothrop, a U.S. Army lieutenant, and Pirate Prentice, among more than 400 named characters.
World
Europe at the end of World War II, around V-2 rockets.
What makes it different
It has four parts divided into episodes, and the original Viking editions separated episodes with a row of seven small squares.
Feel
Dense and long, at 760 pages. It shared the 1974 National Book Award for Fiction with Isaac Bashevis Singer's A Crown of Feathers.
Page count and cover shown for: Selected edition
Further reading
- Gravity's RainbowWikipedia