Foucault's Pendulum, by Umberto Eco

Foucault's Pendulum
Umberto Eco

Well, I've finally read some Eco. Whoopee! Now I don't have to do it ever again.

Not that I didn't like Foucault's Pendulum. But did you ever see that episode of Seinfeld where Elaine wants to quit the group after finding a Bizarro Jerry, Costanza, and Kramer? In one of my favorite lines, she says: "I can't spend the rest of my life coming into this stinking apartment every ten minutes to pore over the excruciating minutia of every. single. daily. event!"

This book made me feel kinda like that.

Foucault's Pendulum is about 600 pages long--and I felt like it took the first 200 to really get going. It's filled with the minutia of every bit of esoterica ever assembled. From Cabala to the Templars, it's all here. I felt like I should have done a lot of reading just to prepare myself for what the hell Eco's talking about. And I've read Holy Blood, Holy Grail. I know (something) about Cabala. I've studied the pyramids of Egypt. I've struggled through The Golden Bough (for a grad course, not for fun). But Foucault's Pendulum involves this and more, much more.

So the story goes something like this: three editors of occult books, tired of hearing the rubbish continuously spewed forth from those interesed in all things extraordinary (and, of course, tempted by the prospect of selling a lot of books to the idiots who eat up these ideas), decide to come up with some theories of their own. A grand theory, in fact, that unites everything. And I mean EVERYTHING. Unfortunately, The Plan (as they call it) becomes real. Dum dum DUM!

The book was good, but I had read such raving reviews of it that I was expecting nothing short of the literary return of the big J.C. himself. Needless to say, I was disappointed. Foucault's Pendulum was *okay* - but instead of enjoying the read I'm just proud I can now say I've read Eco. He just sounds so literary. See:

Person: "What are you reading?"
Me: "I'm reading Umberto Eco's Foucault's Pendulum."
Person: "Oooh, wow. Sounds like quite a read."
Me: "Yeah, it's a little tough, but it's so worth it."

That last part isn't entirely true, but you don't want to necessarily admit that to someone who might be duped into trying the book on for size. Sucker!

Illumination Factor: Medium, if you can get past the long stretches of historical information. Basically (what irony) Eco seems to be saying that theories like those about the Rosicrucians, the Templars, alchemy, and so on are all trash. But they also provide the lost with something to believe in. In the absence of God, are these theories just as good? Oy vey. I don't know.

In a nutshell: Foucault's Pendulum is fun in parts. Unfortunately those parts are few and far between, and it just seemed like there was a lot of unnecessary junk strewn throughout it. I'll admit: I skimmed in some places. It didn't make much of a difference. But there's no denying that carrying it around makes you look ubersmart.

Bibliolatry Scale: 3 out of 6 stars