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tangledinblue's review
dark
funny
reflective
medium-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
4.75
The Corrections, Jonathan Franzen's 2001 study of the turn of the millennium, begins with an electric chapter in the home of Enid Lambert, the neurotic and ever-suffering housewife to husband Alfred, the once formidable patriarch whose mind and body are rapidly going to seed. Franzen's picture of the Midwestern home of elderly empty nesters is frightfully accurate, describing Nordstrom bags overfilled with ephemera that I myself have stepped around in carpeted hallways and dusty basement pool tables holding burnt-out Christmas tree lights I have tried to illume. The alarm bell of anxiety is familiar as well. A house haunted by words unsaid and hopes unrealized. Franzen's stateless Midwestern microcosm, St Jude (the patron saint of lost causes, no less) is the American Dream in all its schlubby, misanthropic glory. Your parents' and grandparents' houses are immortalized here, in St Jude.
Franzen's strongest suit is the scientific way he captures his cast of dysfunctional characters, pins them down, and dissects them right there in front of you. Some tropes that would be hackneyed in the wrong writer's hands (the burnt-out professor sleeps with the pretty young student? Groundbreaking.) are made engaging and fresh by dancing prose and bracing wit. The five protagonists are insufferable in their unique ways, and we get to witness their lives falling apart due to their hangups and bad habits.
Reading about nasty people in nasty situations is a matter of taste-if you don't like it, don't bother; but the merit of reading unlikeable protagonists is, of course, the light it shines on your own shortcomings. Unlike trashy reality TV where we can point and laugh at people we are superior to, literature leaves little room for displacement. You have to lean into it: the absurdity, the disgust, the realism of it. You're weird because of your parents, just like the Lambert children.
The protagonists are four people caught in the orbit of the force Alfred Lambert. When their sun starts dimming, they are left to prepare for the rapidly approaching supernova and deal with the burns they're stuck with. The most compelling thing in this work is Alfred, present in the background of every story. He is the driving force behind every action his children undertake. An angry father who no longer exists is haunting the narrative. The story reaches its climax when each of them comes to realize the true nature of their relationship with their father, for better or for worse.
However, when we see through his eyes, his memory loss, hallucinations, and confusion have left him a shell of a man. Franzen's change in tone and style when writing Alfred to immerse the reader in his experience is unlike anything I've ever read. It's scary and heart-wrenching and perfect.
Read this book, if for nothing else, for moments like the page-long run-on sentence describing Alfred losing his way in a sentence, a conflation of "crepuscular" and "corpuscular" to describe the particulate twilight of an old man's train of thought, a meeting in a forest of that old man and his younger self, and the successful completion of that sentence to a person unaware of the depths of his confusion.
Franzen's prose is perhaps not beautiful, but it is witty and it is precise. Its flawless construction and flow had me underlining and dog-earing almost unconsciously.
This is a book about economic corrections and the turn of the century, and only some of what Franzen does works for me. If it gets docked any stars it’s because of the Lithuania nonsense. Lithuania may have been more interesting when the book was published or to someone more economically-minded, but to me it seemed like an idea that could've been pulled off in a few pages and was instead drawn out chaff. This is somewhat made up for in other, surprising social commentary in the form of moments like the woman on the cruise and a brief interlude about crime, justice, and grief; or Robin Passafaro's unsettling backstory that forgives this side character of her foibles.
"Tour de force" gets thrown around at an obnoxious frequency in book reviews, but I would be remiss to not say it now. Franzen wrote The Corrections at the turn of the century but it reads like it was written in the 2020s, despite what it really is- the last cultural snapshot of pre-9/11 America. If I had to explain to an alien the human condition using only literature, I would give it a stack of classics and The Corrections, and ask it to forgive us our trespasses.
Franzen's strongest suit is the scientific way he captures his cast of dysfunctional characters, pins them down, and dissects them right there in front of you. Some tropes that would be hackneyed in the wrong writer's hands (the burnt-out professor sleeps with the pretty young student? Groundbreaking.) are made engaging and fresh by dancing prose and bracing wit. The five protagonists are insufferable in their unique ways, and we get to witness their lives falling apart due to their hangups and bad habits.
Reading about nasty people in nasty situations is a matter of taste-if you don't like it, don't bother; but the merit of reading unlikeable protagonists is, of course, the light it shines on your own shortcomings. Unlike trashy reality TV where we can point and laugh at people we are superior to, literature leaves little room for displacement. You have to lean into it: the absurdity, the disgust, the realism of it. You're weird because of your parents, just like the Lambert children.
The protagonists are four people caught in the orbit of the force Alfred Lambert. When their sun starts dimming, they are left to prepare for the rapidly approaching supernova and deal with the burns they're stuck with. The most compelling thing in this work is Alfred, present in the background of every story. He is the driving force behind every action his children undertake. An angry father who no longer exists is haunting the narrative. The story reaches its climax when each of them comes to realize the true nature of their relationship with their father, for better or for worse.
However, when we see through his eyes, his memory loss, hallucinations, and confusion have left him a shell of a man. Franzen's change in tone and style when writing Alfred to immerse the reader in his experience is unlike anything I've ever read. It's scary and heart-wrenching and perfect.
Read this book, if for nothing else, for moments like the page-long run-on sentence describing Alfred losing his way in a sentence, a conflation of "crepuscular" and "corpuscular" to describe the particulate twilight of an old man's train of thought, a meeting in a forest of that old man and his younger self, and the successful completion of that sentence to a person unaware of the depths of his confusion.
Franzen's prose is perhaps not beautiful, but it is witty and it is precise. Its flawless construction and flow had me underlining and dog-earing almost unconsciously.
This is a book about economic corrections and the turn of the century, and only some of what Franzen does works for me. If it gets docked any stars it’s because of the Lithuania nonsense. Lithuania may have been more interesting when the book was published or to someone more economically-minded, but to me it seemed like an idea that could've been pulled off in a few pages and was instead drawn out chaff. This is somewhat made up for in other, surprising social commentary in the form of moments like the woman on the cruise and a brief interlude about crime, justice, and grief; or Robin Passafaro's unsettling backstory that forgives this side character of her foibles.
"Tour de force" gets thrown around at an obnoxious frequency in book reviews, but I would be remiss to not say it now. Franzen wrote The Corrections at the turn of the century but it reads like it was written in the 2020s, despite what it really is- the last cultural snapshot of pre-9/11 America. If I had to explain to an alien the human condition using only literature, I would give it a stack of classics and The Corrections, and ask it to forgive us our trespasses.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Mental illness, Excrement, Alcoholism, Dementia, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , and Suicidal thoughts
Moderate: Self harm and Murder
Minor: Racism and Drug use
Father suffers from debilitating dementia, bouts of psychosis, and suicidal ideation. Graphic descriptions of his experience as well as his family trying to treat him. One son has alcoholism and depression w/ graphic descriptions of both experiences. No adult/minor relationships or assault but two instances of men in positions of power sleeping with much younger women. A brief segment of the story is dedicated to a murderer, his crime, and the mother of the victim’s revenge fantasies.bookishbeccahale's review against another edition
dark
emotional
funny
reflective
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: Forced institutionalization, Mental illness, Police brutality, Sexual content, Terminal illness, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide attempt, Chronic illness, Dementia, Emotional abuse, and Adult/minor relationship
mondovertigo's review
emotional
funny
sad
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
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Dementia, Excrement, Toxic relationship, Infidelity, Emotional abuse, and Chronic illness
Moderate: Adult/minor relationship and Sexual content
Minor: Homophobia, Racism, Suicidal thoughts, Death, Car accident, Drug use, and Alcohol
grboph's review against another edition
dark
funny
lighthearted
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
I really liked this book. It was very slow-paced and I had some issues with the characters, but I liked the commentary it was making and it was extremely well-written - funny and sarcastic, while still handling some very depressing topics very well. I get that the whole point of the book is to showcase the flaws of the characters and how it affects their daily lives, but I felt like at times that crossed over into knowingly being a crappy person and doing absolutely nothing to try to change it (such as Chip's relationships with much younger women and the way Denise treats Robin). I really liked what the book had to say about capitalism, aging, and progress, and I think that the Lambert family and all of their flaws and dysfunction were a great way to make this commentary. I would recommend this book to anyone looking for a good dysfunctional-family story or something that is relevant to our society today (therefore, not anyone who reads to escape reality).
Content Warnings
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Dementia, Excrement, Infidelity, and Suicidal thoughts
Moderate: Sexual content, Chronic illness, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , and Toxic relationship
Minor: Medical content, Cursing, Blood, Death, and Drug use
bail33's review
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
This book is one of my favourites I’ve ever read. It provides strong critique of late-capitalist America and the main disconnects between Baby Boomers and Gen Xers but manages to weave it all into a story focused on characters worth investing in.
You probably won’t finish the book feeling proud of any of these characters. You probably won’t want to declare your love for them. You’ll probably understand them, sympathize with them, and feel empathy for them— but you’ll be ashamed of it.
It is an extremely character-driven book and all of the characters are beyond flawed, but they feel like real people.
The book is slow-paced but very descriptive and well-written. If this is what Franzen wrote when he was trying to write a best seller then I’m excited to see what he wrote when he wasn’t.
You probably won’t finish the book feeling proud of any of these characters. You probably won’t want to declare your love for them. You’ll probably understand them, sympathize with them, and feel empathy for them— but you’ll be ashamed of it.
It is an extremely character-driven book and all of the characters are beyond flawed, but they feel like real people.
The book is slow-paced but very descriptive and well-written. If this is what Franzen wrote when he was trying to write a best seller then I’m excited to see what he wrote when he wasn’t.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Terminal illness, Dementia, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , and Excrement
Moderate: Sexism, Misogyny, Death of parent, Drug use, Medical content, Mental illness, Grief, Racial slurs, Racism, Sexual content, Suicidal thoughts, Cursing, Adult/minor relationship, and Alcohol
pppabblo's review against another edition
reflective
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
It took me THREE months to read this book. The writing is magnificent, you can tell Franzen is really skilled at his craft, but it does read a little bit pretentious at first. Once you get used to the style it's a lot smoother. All the characte are well developed and you can tell he focuses on presenting them as very flawed humans. No one character is good or bad, they're jut human. And I think that's what this book is ultimately about -- the struggles of an average American family in the early naughts and how they deal with illness, mental illness, loss of jobs, figuring out their passion, struggling to make good financial decisions, and ultimately mostly failing at everything they do. You could say the book is a little pessimistic because nothing seems to go well for the characters, but I think it's more realistic. In fact it's VERY realistic. Franzen doesn't sugarcoat things and there is definitely no happy ending. I read a review previously that said it feels like he doesn't even like his characters, and it might be accurate in the sense that this is not a happy story and Franzen doesnt give his chracters a break. But I don't think an author needs to like his characters, he needs to udnerstand them, and that's something that Franzen does extremely well in this book. He ultimately understands his characters and everything they're going through.
All of that being said, the book is very dense and it's definitely a SLOW read. A lot of parts feel like fluff and frankly could've been edited out. Again, the writing style comes off as pretentious very often, and it feels like Franzen just wants to show off how well he can write as well as how much stuff he knows about all sorts of stuff. It's admirable! He talks from anything from restaurant operations to depression, to LGBT rights, and even investing. But again a lot of that is unnecessary for the story and could've been left out. 8/10
All of that being said, the book is very dense and it's definitely a SLOW read. A lot of parts feel like fluff and frankly could've been edited out. Again, the writing style comes off as pretentious very often, and it feels like Franzen just wants to show off how well he can write as well as how much stuff he knows about all sorts of stuff. It's admirable! He talks from anything from restaurant operations to depression, to LGBT rights, and even investing. But again a lot of that is unnecessary for the story and could've been left out. 8/10
Content Warnings
Moderate: Sexual assault and Suicidal thoughts
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