American Pastoral
Ratings75
Average rating3.6
i almost never give up on a book, but i gave up on this one. it's okay to put something down if you are halfway in to it and you can't stop rolling your eyes.
needless to say, this was not for me.
maybe there is a terrific twist that makes the first half of the book worthwhile, but i will never know unless i get into some spoilers here.
what i was able to stomach i could only characterize as reactionary, boomer self-indulgence; forrest gump for men of letters.
Most people in my book club did not enjoy reading this book. I'm not sure I did either, but it sticks to the ribs. It's trying to be a Great American Novel. I don't think it succeeds, but it's definitely a Very Good American Novel. The ending is bonkers.
Also: in a post-Trump world, I'd love to go back and read the paragraphs about the "indigenous American berserk." I bet that captured a real "the cruelty is the point" energy.
Interesting story and overall metaphor, beautifully written sentences here and there, but generally overbloated and full of repetitions. Could have easily done with at least 200 pages less.
Didn't make it through; too much narration and not enough actual action.
This books is so profoundly sad. It is beautiful, it's atrocious. The prose is great. As is the whole portrayal of not just an American household, but I think a very Western household. Divorces and affaires, wine and prestige, achievement and disappointment.
However the whole speculative nature of the story is kind of weird, and was kind of off putting. The main character: Zuckerberg is writing the story of the ‘Swede' (who is the actual main character), and does so mainly based on assumptions he is filling in after eating a meal with him and finding out he passed away shortly after.
I read American Pastoral about 3 months ago and haven't stopped thinking about it since. It's not just that the characters are so real and so tragic and the story so gripping, but it's the way the story is told. Everything comes across so informally. The narrator can hardly believe what has happened to his life. It feels like he's always skirting around looking his situation in the face. Something about that style of storytelling has made the entire novel stick with me, I'll catch myself looking at life sideways and bam. There's Roth again waving his American Pastoral in my face.