July/August, 2015: Sometimes a Great Notion

For July and August, in honor of our home here in Oregon, our selection is Sometimes a Great Notion.

The book (1964) was written by Ken Kesey, and though his One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest may be more famous, many people consider this one to be his true masterpiece. Kesey himself said, "I think Sometimes A Great Notion is the best thing I’ll ever write. People sometimes ask me why I don’t write something like that again and I reply that I simply can’t. I can’t keep all that in my head at once anymore. Why, on Notion, I used to work 30 hours at a stretch - you’ve got to have youth to do that.”

Sometimes a Great Notion is also a classic representation of the culture of the Pacific Northwest, a big sweeping tale that takes place in the fictional town of Wakonda, Oregon, during a divisive lumber strike. There's more on the book here, in this tribute from the Seattle Post-Intelligencer.

The novel was adapted into a movie in 1970. Paul Newman directed it, and also stars, along with Henry Fonda and Lee Remick. It was nominated for two Oscars -- Best Supporting Actor (Richard Jaeckel) and Best Song ("All His Children," by Henry Mancini, Alan Bergman and Marilyn Bergman).

The Book and Movie

Powell's has Ken Kesey's book available here: Sometimes a Great Notion.

And the movie is available at Amazon, either on DVD or on BluRay.