A master of the sprawling, postmodern American novel of ideas, Thomas Pynchon has existed on the edges of the literary world since the publication of his first novel V. (1963) , not for lack of influence but because of his steadfast commitment to reclusion: throughout the six decades of his writing life, Pynchon has remained famously camera-shy, interview-averse, and almost mythically private. Rumours swirl about his whereabouts, but his writing remains the only real trace of his presence. Now, a new film adaptation has pulled him back into the spotlight – at least in spirit. Paul Thomas Anderson’s One Battle After Another , a radical reimagining of Pynchon’s 1990 novel Vineland, is earning critical acclaim and box-office success.

The man behind the myth

Born in 1937 in New York,

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