2002 by Nick Montfort and William Gillespie

A week or so ago, I got my copy of 2002. 2002 is a collaboratively authored narrative 2002 world long palindrome. In terms of raw length, it passed George Perec’s 1500+ word palindrome by quite a margin. My French really isn’t up to the task of making a serious evaluation of Perec’s work but my sense is that the quality of his palindrome is, on the whole, a bit better. That said, 2002 is in English and has some really fantastic moments, tells a largely coherent story and and is a 2002 word long palindrome.

You can read the palindrome online at the publisher’s website. You also buy the very small but beautifully illustrated book for $16. I did and was pleased when it arrived in a floppy disk mailer.

There is a cute little set of computer (even UNIX) references in there I think my audience might appreciate:

Type it, Bob; abuse vi and—"Abracadabra! Cabala!" Nitro terminal, .EXEs. Bob, nose Mandelbrot codes! A coder.

Here is the middle and the point of symmetry in the story. The X in "sexes" marks the exact middle. This bit is also about sex, which is fun:

Job? Mocha dude? Non! No. Works at node, wades on. Idée fixe snows Bob’s ass all under.

Pure …

Eligible Babs: flesh self’s eros revolts, rubs. Babs, looted under Bob, seXes Bob. Red, nude tools. Babs: "Burst, lover! Sores. Flesh self’s Babel big. I leer up." Red, null ass, as Bob’s won sex: "I feed; I nosed awe!" (Don’t ask.) Row on, none dud. Ah! Combo joy.

I highly recommend the whole thing.

3 Replies to “2002 by Nick Montfort and William Gillespie”

  1. I own Eunoia and have recommended it to many people. I have heard of Near a Raven and been meaning to pick it up. I have not heard of Cadaeic Cadenza. I will check it out.

  2. Christian Bök came to Philadelphia a few weeks ago to read at both Penn and Temple. I only managed to catch reading at Temple, but it was really fantastic stuff. Audio from the Penn reading is online here. Definitely worth checking out, especially if you’ve not heard any of the sound poems from his upcoming work, Cyborg Opera.

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