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On the whole, Pynchon's early works are flawed but disciplined exercises by an apprentice who already senses the sorcerer he will become. Pynchon's attempt to dismiss himself as just a regular guy is charming but a little disturbing, suggesting a weariness with the task of being different. He even includes a sentence that implicitly questions the wisdom of remaining in hiding: "Somewhere I had come up with the notion that one's personal life had nothing to do with fiction, when the truth, as everyone knows, is nearly the direct opposite." This might be taken to mean that Pynchon could pop up on TV at any moment, explaining himself to Donahue or Barbara Walters. But the best bet is that he will continue to let his books do all the talking. — By Paul Gray