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fluffernutter's review
2.0
DNF. Clyde is the worst and I couldn't give him any more space in my brain.
Spoiler
Head canon is Roberta found someone better than this man baby and lived happily ever after.bookishedi's review
reflective
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
lindseyzank's review
4.0
I had tried to read this book, but couldn't get past page 300. The entire first third of the novel is full of background, character developing information. Once you get into the meat of Clyde's relationship with Roberta, the book gets intensely intriguing. The scene when Clyde "kills" her is heart stopping. The trial that follows is a repeat of pretty much the first two thirds of the book, making it hard to get through towards the end, but overall, the story is fascinating and it is a true psychological narrative.
thebookishmel's review
3.0
3.5
This book being inspired by an actual event, the historical murder, had me interested from the beginning. My biggest issue was the repetitiveness and excessiveness of this book. I'm all for a character driven book however certain scenes could've been cut WAY shorter and the level of emotional background behind each character just didn't do it for me for how long the book was. Overall it was an interesting story with a look as to how the American society can transform a person within any given time period.
This book being inspired by an actual event, the historical murder, had me interested from the beginning. My biggest issue was the repetitiveness and excessiveness of this book. I'm all for a character driven book however certain scenes could've been cut WAY shorter and the level of emotional background behind each character just didn't do it for me for how long the book was. Overall it was an interesting story with a look as to how the American society can transform a person within any given time period.
lindseysparks's review
4.0
Despite liking Dreiser's Sister Carrie, I didn't expect to like this. I was surprised at how much action this had and how crazy, but realistic, things got. Seeing Clyde justify his actions was really disturbing. He was such a well developed character. I was shocked by some of the things that happened. It was an interesting take on the American Dream and people who will stop at nothing to cling a ladder. This almost gets a 5 but it sagged a little in the middle, but is definitely a classic well worth taking the time to read.
anisha_sharma's review
5.0
There are three parts to the novel. The plot is based on a true New York criminal case, and the protagonist, Clyde Griffiths, is likewise based on a real person. Clyde grew raised in a destitute religious home and made a career preaching on the streets. Clyde, a young and frivolous server, worked in a luxury hotel in Kansas City and, due to terrible friends, drank all day. Clyde fled to New York to seek safety with his uncle, where he met and fell in love with Roberta Alden, a poor but moral worker. Clyde afterwards met Sandra Finchley's gorgeous daughter, which was enough to take him out of destitution and into the world of high society. Soon after, Roberta fell pregnant and requested Clyde to marry her in secret. Stay with a poor woman worker or a wealthy woman? Clyde came up with the plan to murder Roberta out of despair. Surprisingly, the situation does not turn out as he had hoped, and Roberta dies by accident.
Clyde was eventually apprehended and prosecuted. In the United States, there was an election, and the attorney general put pressure on detectives to establish Clyde was the killer. After his assistant manufactured evidence and his lawyer made a lot of money, Clyde was still sentenced to the electric chair. Even though God was unable to save him, his parents continued to condemn worldly materialism and laud God's grace. Is it the American dream or the American tragedy that we're dealing with here? The answer can be found in this book. The work vividly depicts the lived experience of the American people in the early twentieth century, in which money is king, desire is inflated, and a general sense of disenchantment prevails. An American Tragedy illustrates not only the grave repercussions of egoism's hyperinflation, but also the corrosive and toxic influence of the money-oriented American lifestyle on human crime.
Clyde was eventually apprehended and prosecuted. In the United States, there was an election, and the attorney general put pressure on detectives to establish Clyde was the killer. After his assistant manufactured evidence and his lawyer made a lot of money, Clyde was still sentenced to the electric chair. Even though God was unable to save him, his parents continued to condemn worldly materialism and laud God's grace. Is it the American dream or the American tragedy that we're dealing with here? The answer can be found in this book. The work vividly depicts the lived experience of the American people in the early twentieth century, in which money is king, desire is inflated, and a general sense of disenchantment prevails. An American Tragedy illustrates not only the grave repercussions of egoism's hyperinflation, but also the corrosive and toxic influence of the money-oriented American lifestyle on human crime.
comet_or_dove's review against another edition
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.75