Take It or Leave It

It's hard to describe this book, but it's basically a second-hand narrative of a French immigrant that joins the army, and is going to take a trip across the country on 30 days leave before he gets shipped to the Korean war. The story weaves through the past, talking about living in New York, Detroit, working in the Catskills, playing jazz sax, living with a bunch of redneck paratrooper soldiers, and the struggle to drive in the middle of the night through a horrific Vermont snowstorm so he can get his paycheck and start his trip. The story is interesting, compelling, and funny - but that's the icing on this oddly structured cake. The narrator weaves through points of view, retells parts, changes things, comes back, and keeps going. There's some experimental text here and there, where he breaks out of the traditional paragraph to express anger, rage, or confusion. And no page numbers. It's circular, confusing, entertaining, and one of the best post-modern books out there.