Oh god he's so terrible. But great.
It took me a while to finish reading A Confederacy of Dunces. I won’t lie. John Kennedy Toole created who is perhaps the most repulsive, atrocious character in, not only in literature, but any other medium for storytelling. This character, Igantius J. Reilly bends all forms of decency with the kind of conviction that would make George W. Bush say, “Okay, that’s enough.” Even Buddhists would find difficulty sympthasizing with Igantious J. Reilly. He is incredulous, bizarre, well-spoken, and obscene in an unusually un-obscene manner.
A Confederacy of Dunces is tough to slog through in the beginning because you will hate Ignatius J. Reilly. You will grow bored of the dialog between his mother and the mother of Reilly’s antagonist, Officer Mancuso. You may even put the book down for a while because you’ve lost patience. It’s okay. I’m with you but keep going. This is a snowball and Toole builds it bigger and rounder until its large rotund shape is ripe enough to toss. Let it hit you because the reward is laughter, heart-rending sympathy, and a satisfying ending.
The setting of New Orleans determines itself as the capital for unique characters and you will find them alive and depraved in Toole’s debut. Reilly’s interaction with the police, Quarter rats, local criminals, and gays is what one would expect from a character who takes pride in his work as a hot dog vendor while wearing a pirate’s costume and weilding a fake cutlass. He is a man seperated from 20th century New Orleans but by the end of the book, I promise you this, you will find yourself rooting for him.
