Sign in with Facebook
Loading...
3rd out of 23 books
—
11 voters
Saturday Night and Sunday Morning
A rousing and uproarious novel of the life, loves, and misadventures of a working-class rogue, Saturday Night/Sunday Morning marked the arrival of one of the most cherished authors in the twenty-first century.
At twenty-two years of age, Arthur Seaton is a hard-drinking lathe operator in a bicycle factory. Sharp, rowdy, and attractive, he is a lover of life in the raw, and...more
At twenty-two years of age, Arthur Seaton is a hard-drinking lathe operator in a bicycle factory. Sharp, rowdy, and attractive, he is a lover of life in the raw, and...more
Paperback, 256 pages
Published
September 1st 1992
by Plume
(first published January 1st 1958)
Friend Reviews
To see what your friends thought of this book,
please sign up.
Community Reviews
(showing
1-30
of
2,179)
Una pinta di birra tiepida.
Forse alla fine mi è piaciuta di più l'idea del romanzo che non il romanzo in sé.
Trovo molto bella la similitudine che Sillitoe sceglie per rappresentare la vita di Arthur, giovane inglese poco più che ventenne della Nottingham del secondo dopoguerra, la cui vita si divide tra il lavoro in fabbrica, più di un paio di birre al pub e qualche relazione sentimentale più o meno impegnativa; il sabato sera, quello che Arthur aspetta ogni settimana per divertirsi, diventa per...more
Forse alla fine mi è piaciuta di più l'idea del romanzo che non il romanzo in sé.
Trovo molto bella la similitudine che Sillitoe sceglie per rappresentare la vita di Arthur, giovane inglese poco più che ventenne della Nottingham del secondo dopoguerra, la cui vita si divide tra il lavoro in fabbrica, più di un paio di birre al pub e qualche relazione sentimentale più o meno impegnativa; il sabato sera, quello che Arthur aspetta ogni settimana per divertirsi, diventa per...more
This book is a good chronicle of the despair of young working-class England after World War II, but it is also ultimately surprisingly optimistic. Here was one passages I highlighted as emblematic of the main character's bitterness:
"What did they take up for? Bloody fools, but one of these days they'd be wrong. They think they've settled our hashes with their insurance cards and television sets, but I'll be one of them to turn round on 'em and let them see how wrong they are. When I'm on my fift...more
"What did they take up for? Bloody fools, but one of these days they'd be wrong. They think they've settled our hashes with their insurance cards and television sets, but I'll be one of them to turn round on 'em and let them see how wrong they are. When I'm on my fift...more
Saturday Night and Sunday Morning follows the rebellious, womanising Arthur Seaton, a man of 22 years old who likes to drink and fight on occasion if necessary. Working at a bicycle factory during the day and having an affair with his workmate Jack's wife Brenda, Arthur is completely defiant of the consequences as he feels Jack is somewhat of a lazy husband, working night shifts at the factory and spending money on the pools.
I was first introduced to Alan Sillitoe's work at high school in my Eng...more
I was first introduced to Alan Sillitoe's work at high school in my Eng...more
I was slightly disappointed by this book. It's a good enough read but, given that it seems to be held in high regard by a number of critics, I was expecting rather more from it. I certainly do not understand why it is generally considered to be a classic of 20th century literature. The novel is set in Nottingham in the 1950s. The principal character, Arthur Seaton, is a hard-working, hard-drinking, womanising, young man who works in a bicycle factory. His personality is complex. I found it diffi...more
Some great phrases that speak to the truisms of the working man's life: "For it was Saturday night, the best and bingiest glad-time of the week, one of the fifty-two holidays in the slow-turning Big Wheel of the year, a violent preamble to a prostrate Sabbath. Piled up passions were exploded on Saturday night, and the effect of a week's monotonous graft in the factory was swilled out of your system in a burst of goodwill. You followed the motto of 'be drunk and be happy,' kept your crafty arms a...more
"Don't let the bastards get you down" - Arthur Seaton
“For it was Saturday night, the best and bingiest glad-time of the week, one of the fifty-two holidays in the slow-turning Big Wheel of the year, a violent preamble to a prostrate Sabbath. Piled up passions were exploded on Saturday night, and the effect of a week's monotonous graft in the factory was swilled out of your system in a burst of goodwill. You followed the motto of 'be drunk and be happy,' kept your crafty arms around female waist...more
Aug 10, 2010
·Karen·
rated it
4 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
f2f-book-group-reads,
brits
Reckless, brash Arthur Seaton could see off any of today's binge-drinking chancers, it takes seven gins and eleven pints to floor him, but he still gets up for more. At twenty two he's the king of his little world, refusing to let anyone impose their laws on him. 'Don't let the bastards get you down' is his motto, and the 'bastards' are anyone who tries to stop him doing exactly what he wants. At some stage or other his life begins to spin out of control, he is on a helter-skelter that will deli...more
Had to read this for my English course, not a bad book, although I couldn't make myself care enough about the characters to get really involved. Worth a read and I would be interested in reading the follow-up book, 'Birthday'.
Interesting, and I can see why it was so subversive and necessary (extra-marital shagging, boozing, deeply unpatriotic about the war and about National Service, etc) - but really not what I expected. I thought it was going to be a 'kitchen sink' socialist piece about hardship and hope, in the spirit of Love on the Dole. It isn't: it's almost proto-Thatcherite or proto-punk, even. Arthur ain't no socialist: he hates paying taxes, hates unions (as well as employers), wants to blow stuff up and lov...more
Black and Tan swillin' blokes is where it's at! gin-soaked abortions and falling down the stairs at the Publick? Yes, please!
This book took me a long time to read. I think maybe I felt too comfortable in the world Sillitoe creates. I felt at points it dragged or languished too long. This is also silli(toe) of me but the book is split into "Saturday Night" and "Sunday Morning", so I had thought it would take place in one weekend. So I was a little confused about time for a bit, but (spoiler alert) it's all metaphorical.
These criticisms aside, it's such an anthem book for those of us working hard for little money, but s...more
These criticisms aside, it's such an anthem book for those of us working hard for little money, but s...more
Saturday Night and Sunday Morning follows Arthur Seaton as he navigates his way through his life in Nottingham. Arthur is a good hard working man who lives for the weekend when he can pursue his to favorite things drink and women. In most cases the women he pursues tend to be the wives of other men.
This novel was good, it provides a brilliant snapshot of working class Nottingham and while I liked the characters the story is a little limited and I was disappointed in places.
This novel was good, it provides a brilliant snapshot of working class Nottingham and while I liked the characters the story is a little limited and I was disappointed in places.
This was a cracker. A bona fide work of blue-collar existentialism, full of unrefined rebellion and working class whit. I generally don't go for this kind of stuff - English novels about the working classes always make me feel a tad claustrophobic and/or depressed - but this had a real and palpable energy to it. Yes, it does have the slightly ragged feel of a first novel but that's part of what makes it great.
Wondeful illustration of northern working class life in the 1950s, as we follow the adventures of a young man who spends his days working in a factory and his free time drinking, living it up, or recovering. AS writes with dark humour in this gritty tale. It's worth looking beyond modern fiction to discover treasures like this.
I was hoping to like it much more since it's billed as a genuine working class novel. It is certainly that. I also liked how it details what British blue-collar folks did during and after World War II. My problem was that the plot simply didn't move briskly enough for me. Does that make me shallow? Probably.
May 26, 2012
Terri
rated it
3 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
20th-century-fiction,
cpl
This is a hard one to rate. It definitely evokes a time and a place. Arthur is frustrating, and appealing--despite his many shortcomings. Sometimes he's infuriating. Reading this book, I was reminded of Rabbit Run, which I hated. This book isn't nearly as sour as that one. Now and then Sillitoe includes a beautiful, perfect little description. In the thick of the book, I felt like the story got slightly mired and slightly repetitive--like maybe 20 pages could have been sliced off somewhere in th...more
A great look into the life of a member of working class England during the 1950s. Arthur Seaton is a slick character, efficient in his work at the factory, never one to turn down a pint, and skillful when wooing members of the opposite sex. However, the final two character traits do get Arthur into trouble on more than one occasion. A great book and a quick read, and though stories surrounding the life of the working class can ebb toward the depressing, Arthur's story ends on a high note.
En un entorno obrero del norte de Inglaterra, Arthur es un joven rebelde dispuesto a no adaptarse al molde al que le empuja el sistema y a aprovechar su vida al máximo, evitando normas pues la amenaza de tercera Guerra Mundial no permite pensar en el futuro.
In my top 5 lifetime reads. This guy gets it. This is a magnificent work. People with Sillitoes background arent supposed to write BOOKS, they are meant to be educated just enough to follow simple written instructions and consume propaganda.
Considering the somewhat chauvinistic perspective carried throughout the book by the main character, Arthur, it was more Sillitoe's style of writing that appealed to me throughout the book as opposed to the storyline itself. Great read.. no beating around the bush in this one! My first Sillitoe novel to date, and I intend on increasing that number.
If you don't want to read the whole thing (which you really should want to do), at least read the first paragraph. The movie (with a young an dastardly Albert Finney) was also brilliant...beautifully filmed. Depressing as all hell, though.
I think this book was originally written as two books: Saturday Night AND Sunday Morning.
Sunday Morning was mind-blowingly fabulous. Saturday Night makes you appreciate the finally coherenet thoughts of the main character in Sunday Morning. Maybe there's a metaphor at work about being brought into the light of reason or being enlightened?
Anyways, if you can struggle through the first 200 pages or so, the last 40 pages are incredibly rewarding.
Psh...it only took me what...over 2 years to finish r...more
Sunday Morning was mind-blowingly fabulous. Saturday Night makes you appreciate the finally coherenet thoughts of the main character in Sunday Morning. Maybe there's a metaphor at work about being brought into the light of reason or being enlightened?
Anyways, if you can struggle through the first 200 pages or so, the last 40 pages are incredibly rewarding.
Psh...it only took me what...over 2 years to finish r...more
The quintessential working-class novel, this text illuminates and explains post-war cultural mileui and the violent tendencies of the welfare state... classic, and in it's own way, beautiful
Maybe the classic of its kind, the musings of an angry young man and how his grinding existence is made worthwhile by weekends. Which is pretty hard not to identify with, even forty years after it was written.
Remains to this day one of my favourite books, which captures the changing circumstances of working class aspiration after the war and leading to a period of cultural openness for young people.
A great British classic depicting Northern life in the industrial sixties, the passing over from the old to the new....some years since I read it so will re-read for a more detailled review!
Jun 02, 2013
Angel Serrano
rated it
4 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
821-111-1-3-literatura-británica
En un entorno obrero del norte de Inglaterra, Arthur es un joven rebelde dispuesto a no adaptarse al molde al que le empuja el sistema y a aprovechar su vida al máximo, evitando normas pues la amenaza de una tercera Guerra Mundial no permite pensar en el futuro.
If this book reflects at all accurately the inner workings of a 23-year-old English factory worker, then I consider it a must read.
I can't judge the accuracy, but it convinces me.
The middle parts started getting to me; this guy really is hooked on getting away with whatever he can, and as the incidents pile up I found it hard to keep reading, it seems so realistic in showing some pretty negative human tendencies. His living conditions and upbringing are a world away from mine.
So I feel I became...more
I can't judge the accuracy, but it convinces me.
The middle parts started getting to me; this guy really is hooked on getting away with whatever he can, and as the incidents pile up I found it hard to keep reading, it seems so realistic in showing some pretty negative human tendencies. His living conditions and upbringing are a world away from mine.
So I feel I became...more
Tremendously evocative portrait of working class British life. Arthur Seaton is held back by the boundries of his factory town, so he uses his time at the pub to distract him.
Apr 02, 2012
Rebekkila
marked it as to-read
I registered a book at BookCrossing.com!
http://www.BookCrossing.com/journal/11014372
http://www.BookCrossing.com/journal/11014372
There are no discussion topics on this book yet.
Be the first to start one »
Alan Sillitoe was an English writer, one of the "Angry Young Men" of the 1950s (although he, in common with most of the other writers to whom the label was applied, had never welcomed it).
For more see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alan_Sil...
More about Alan Sillitoe...
For more see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alan_Sil...
Share This Book
4 trivia questions
More quizzes & trivia...
“All I'm out for is a good time - all the rest is propaganda.”
—
16 people liked it
“Well, it's a good life and a good world, all said and done, if you don't weaken.”
—
10 people liked it
More quotes…
