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3.98 AVERAGE
3.98 AVERAGE
reflective
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
challenging
dark
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
challenging
dark
reflective
sad
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Lush prose and clever narration kept me reading this book to the end, despite it having no lovable characters for me to be invested it—as I told a friend, when I wasn’t actively reading it, I didn’t look forward to reading it, but as soon as I started reading it again I didn’t want to stop. Similar narrative and theme to The Great Gatsby and Citizen Kane; well-portrayed political intricacies in which no progress is made and you know you’re in for a depressing ending. Casual racism and misogyny abound.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Racial slurs
Moderate: Misogyny, Racism
Minor: Gun violence, Slavery, Suicide, Medical content
dark
reflective
sad
Beautiful writing, but depressing. Not the political thriller I expected, but the writing was worth it
My full review of All The King's Men can be found at Keeping Up With The Penguins.
I was actually surprised, looking at the inside cover, to find it was written so long ago; it reads like a far more contemporary novel and as recently as 2006 the New York Times called it “the definitive novel about American politics” (though, that was pre-Trump, so it’d be understandable if their position has changed).
Warren fills the hole where the women should be by making a Very Big Deal of biological paternity, and how one’s father affects one’s sense of identity and morality. It’s central to every plot-line and character arc. My tl;dr summary would be: a bunch of white dudes chase political power in the Great Depression-era American South, in the hopes that it will help them all overcome their Daddy Issues (and, spoiler alert, it doesn’t work).
I was actually surprised, looking at the inside cover, to find it was written so long ago; it reads like a far more contemporary novel and as recently as 2006 the New York Times called it “the definitive novel about American politics” (though, that was pre-Trump, so it’d be understandable if their position has changed).
Warren fills the hole where the women should be by making a Very Big Deal of biological paternity, and how one’s father affects one’s sense of identity and morality. It’s central to every plot-line and character arc. My tl;dr summary would be: a bunch of white dudes chase political power in the Great Depression-era American South, in the hopes that it will help them all overcome their Daddy Issues (and, spoiler alert, it doesn’t work).
AtKM is one of those books where nothing really happens. Yes the plot occurs, but at the end nothing is very different, and it kinda ends up being a pointless book.
At the beginning you have absolutely no clue what is happening, but around chapter 6 you begin to see the big picture and understand whats actually going on in the book. In my opinion, Warren gets the reader to that point far too late in the book, at which time most readers who we're not required to read the book would put it down and leave it. Or burn it, depending the degree of hatred felt toward the book.
On the positive side of things, Warren's philosophical views and comparisons prove to be quite interesting, once you understand what is occurring in the book. I also enjoyed Sugar-Boy, he was amazing.
At the beginning you have absolutely no clue what is happening, but around chapter 6 you begin to see the big picture and understand whats actually going on in the book. In my opinion, Warren gets the reader to that point far too late in the book, at which time most readers who we're not required to read the book would put it down and leave it. Or burn it, depending the degree of hatred felt toward the book.
On the positive side of things, Warren's philosophical views and comparisons prove to be quite interesting, once you understand what is occurring in the book. I also enjoyed Sugar-Boy, he was amazing.
lighthearted
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
This book is a great depiction of the dissonance between the ideals we hold and the pragmatic choices we must make to uphold those ideals. The character development in this book is rich and allows you to connect deeply with the main protagonists.
I really enjoyed this. It took a little while to get into it, but once I was really into it I was caught and didn't want to stop reading. I have some inexplicable love of books set in the South in the early 1900's. I have no idea why. That's probably one reason I liked it. It's also a great book about human nature.
reflective
relaxing
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes