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3.58 AVERAGE
3.58 AVERAGE
funny
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
funny
informative
lighthearted
reflective
medium-paced
I thought a lot of this book was hilarious, particularly the descriptions of modern machines like alarm clocks. The pro and con of a satire is that you can't always tell which parts are the opinion of the author and what is characterization. Like, a lot of the story is sexist and anti semitic. Maybe that's satire making fun of people like that, but maybe it's not.
adventurous
emotional
funny
reflective
sad
medium-paced
This is not a book I would usually read, but since I've read it for school it actually turned out to be a refreshing, new experience.
Babbitt, reaching his middle-aged years, juggles his responsibilities as a business man, a father, a husband, and a good friend. For a while, he seems to be content with his position in society until discontentment settles in. Temptations bombard him from all sides.
The characterization was a bit bland to me at first, but as soon as the story picked up and more of the plot unfolded, Babbitt and even the most minor of characters were interesting. Babbitt's change of character is believable. I could sympathize with him, a working man who often found it hard to resist the enticing, yet destructive, pleasures of society. He even gave in at times, but the ending is one that will not disappoint.
I strongly recommend this to anyone who appreciates an early 1900's/Prohibition-Era story or a good moral tale. This book would have gotten four stars, but I cannot see myself reading it again. It's just not one of those books I would re-read for enjoyment. This is a book that will make you think and question what truly is important in our lives. Maybe we're missing out on those aspects that matter most without realizing it.
Overall: 3.5 stars
Babbitt, reaching his middle-aged years, juggles his responsibilities as a business man, a father, a husband, and a good friend. For a while, he seems to be content with his position in society until discontentment settles in. Temptations bombard him from all sides.
The characterization was a bit bland to me at first, but as soon as the story picked up and more of the plot unfolded, Babbitt and even the most minor of characters were interesting. Babbitt's change of character is believable. I could sympathize with him, a working man who often found it hard to resist the enticing, yet destructive, pleasures of society. He even gave in at times, but the ending is one that will not disappoint.
I strongly recommend this to anyone who appreciates an early 1900's/Prohibition-Era story or a good moral tale. This book would have gotten four stars, but I cannot see myself reading it again. It's just not one of those books I would re-read for enjoyment. This is a book that will make you think and question what truly is important in our lives. Maybe we're missing out on those aspects that matter most without realizing it.
Overall: 3.5 stars
slow-paced
This book is considered an American classic so I figured I’d finally get around to reading it. The narrative is satirical portrait of the middle-class white male American lifestyle, and the small circle of the world of which they think, and yet comically have no clue of anything outside that circle as it doesn’t pertain to “them”. The protagonist’s life shows the extent the white American will go to conform and take part mindlessly in capitalism, materialism, consumerism, and individualism. The small circle of which Babbitt thinks and travels depicts other white middle-class Americans as well and their very similar lives. By mid way through the book, readers feel like they’re conducting a cultural autopsy of Midwest 1920’s America. The narrative is such a slow burn and the protagonist, for me, was beginning to be insufferable. Readers learn in just how many aspects of this “perfect American life” Babbitt remains unsatisfied and dreams of more. Nearing the end, Babbitt finally begins to question the status quo as societal norms flood consequences towards him due to his decisions. Overall the book was fine to read once, since it is a classic, but I wouldn’t pick it up again unless I completely forgot its contents. The explored themes and morals are important to test and explore, but nowadays there are numerous other works that deliver the same themes and morals. If you’re a reader that thoroughly appreciates American classics (or a close-minded white American) then this is a great read.
dark
funny
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Hilarious. The fickleness of consumerism and the God of Economy. A fantastic satire.
“When he had played four or five holes, he relaxed a bit, his tobacco-fluttering heart beat more normally, and his voice slowed to the drawling of his hundred generations of peasant ancestors.”
“When he had played four or five holes, he relaxed a bit, his tobacco-fluttering heart beat more normally, and his voice slowed to the drawling of his hundred generations of peasant ancestors.”
funny
reflective
relaxing
fast-paced
dark
reflective
sad
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
The titular Babbitt hardly changes much at all over the novel’s course. Interesting to see how little people’s personalities have changed in the past century.