Hailed by the San Francisco Chronicle as “a bright star in the literary sky,” Stephen Wright now extends his astonishing accompl...
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reviews
Jan 04, 2009
Pris
rated it: 
Both the Real Thing and A Merciless Parody, 1 Feb 2007
"Wright's title refers to a racist editorial cartoon of the period, which depicted "an amalgamation polka," where whites and blacks dance together in genteel costumes. This was meant to suggest, one presumes, that other mutually enjoyable physical activities might occur between the races later in the evening. Race mixing was the great shibboleth of slavery advocates and segr More...
Nov 29, 2011
Maduck831
rated it: 
It’s a boy,” Aroline declared flatly, thrusting into dramatic view a wailing, wriggling, shimmery thing of mottled red and blue that Roxana recognized instantly as a glistening piece of her own heart.” (15) “One idle afternoon, several months after Liberty’s passing under the tutelage of Ma’am L’Orange, Thatcher – curious as to the health of his son’s academic life – inquired casually, “Who is the president of the United States?” / “Jesus Christ,” Liberty promptly answered. / Father looked at
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Jun 04, 2010
Ruth
rated it:
323 pages.
Race relations before and during the civil war.
Hailed by the San Francisco Chronicle as “a bright star in the literary sky,” Stephen Wright now extends his astonishing accomplishment with a Civil War novel unlike any other.
Born in 1844 in bucolic upstate New York, Liberty Fish is the son of fervent abolitionists as well as the grandson of Carolina slaveholders even more dedicated to their cause. Thus follows a childhood limned with fugitive slaves mo More...
Race relations before and during the civil war.
Hailed by the San Francisco Chronicle as “a bright star in the literary sky,” Stephen Wright now extends his astonishing accomplishment with a Civil War novel unlike any other.
Born in 1844 in bucolic upstate New York, Liberty Fish is the son of fervent abolitionists as well as the grandson of Carolina slaveholders even more dedicated to their cause. Thus follows a childhood limned with fugitive slaves mo More...
Feb 05, 2009
Is it a curse or a blessing that the work of idiosyncratically original writers prompts the most divisive reviews? There's no preordained slot for Steven Wright (Going Native; Meditations in Green), so his fictions have to be read with an open mind and, perhaps, a predisposition for his "dark, hallucinatory world" (New York Times). The main point of dissension centers on whether Wright has balanced the strains of parody and the grotesque carefully enough. Critics also disagree about wh
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Aug 02, 2009
Ckbiffster
rated it:
i haven't read any other civil war novels, so i can't compare this one in context--but i feel confident in saying that there probably aren't any other civil war novels like it. i am a big fan of wright's previous work, which is about as postmodern as it gets. so i was curious how he would handle such weighty and thoroughly-covered territory.
i really liked the way he appropriated certain stylistic aspects of 19th century literature--most prominently baroque, complex sentences/paragraphs in More...
i really liked the way he appropriated certain stylistic aspects of 19th century literature--most prominently baroque, complex sentences/paragraphs in More...
Nov 09, 2009
Joanna
rated it:
This book started out as nothing less than fabulous storytelling about an era of American history (prior to and during the Civil War) that I actually know very little about, and I adored Liberty Fish from the moment of his birth. However, the story took a decided turn towards the bizarro the moment that Liberty set foot on the grounds of his ancestral plantation, Redemption Hall. Of course it was simply lovely to share my commute with Michael Emerson's phenomenal acting (he makes an excellent sm
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Dec 05, 2008
Kilean
rated it:
Devilishly talented writer that reminds me a lot of Pynchon but he's pretty damn distinct in his own right when it comes to story/characters/ideas. Loads of extravagant prose on display here. Whole thing is set during the time of the civil war and follows the life of Liberty Fish, son of abolitionist parents from upstate New York. And it's entirely unlike anything I've ever read that has anything to do with the Civil War. I'd probably give this more stars but I personally like a few of this auth
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Jan 29, 2012
Wu
rated it:
WM4: "Le donne barbute ballavano nel fango". Sembra il verso di un pezzo punk rock, invece è l'attacco di Amalgamation Polka (Einaudi Stile Libero, euro 16,50), quarto romanzo dell'eclettico Stephen Wright e già caso letterario negli Stati Uniti. Incipit straniante per un titolo ancora più strambo, tratto da una vignetta satirica di metà Ottocento che rappresenta la danza dei bianchi abolizionisti insieme ai neri vestiti a festa. Sì, perché il romanzo parla del conflitto politico che h
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Jul 24, 2010
Elaine
rated it:
Stephen Wright is, if not THE best, certainly one of THE best 21st century writers. His verbal pyrotechnics amaze. You hear, smell, see, and feel what is going on, both through a child's sensory input, and then an adult's. At other times, he allows you to sit back and just listen and watch.
The plot takes place between the 1840's through The Civil War, which is presented both through Northern and Southern eyes. People often think of that war starting with the firing upon Fort Sum More...
The plot takes place between the 1840's through The Civil War, which is presented both through Northern and Southern eyes. People often think of that war starting with the firing upon Fort Sum More...
Oct 20, 2008
Derek
rated it:
A largely successful but imperfect historical novel, The Amalgamation Polka offered a colorful and convincingly violent portrait of a Union soldier's journey "home" during the American Civil War. The plot was an interesting one, relaying the protagonist's (groaningly named Liberty) abandonment of his soldierly duties and his efforts to locate the Southern slave-owning grandparents he never knew. The author's voice, leaden with appositives that stretch sentences to the length of paragra
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Apr 13, 2009
Ellis
rated it: 
This book was pretty annoying to me. I sort of glossed over the beginning of the book because nothing seemed to grab my attention. The protagonist’s parents were involved in the Underground Railroad, and, early on, I thought that was what this book would be about. Unfortunately, that was not the case. Instead, this fine young man, Liberty Fish, joined the Union army when he was almost 17. Apparently, this was done because of his great desire to bring the slaves their due freedom.
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Mar 17, 2008
Rick
rated it:
The most recent novel by a gifted writer, The Amalgamation Polka channels Mark Twain with mixed results. There are brilliant set pieces and bizarre misfires, particularly at the end. Wonderfully rich dialogue and descriptions—you can’t beat the opening sentence: “The bearded ladies were dancing in the mud.”--but a sense that all characters share the same speechwriter. Freedom Fish is the son of a daughter of the South who, because of her abolitionist-leanings, fled north as a teenager. Roxana an
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Jan 09, 2008
Tung
rated it: 
The latest novel from the author of Meditations in Green (my top book of the year for 2003), this book is based on a picture drawn during the 1800s that shows African-American men dancing with high society white women with the caption “The Amalgamation Polka”. But this book is less about one picture, and more about America during the Civil War and its struggle with the issue of slavery. The novel focuses on Liberty Fish, the son of abolitionists, and it traces his time as a youth growing up in a
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Jan 10, 2008
Brian
rated it: 
Okay. I can pinpoint where this book went wrong for me. When you name a mulatto character SLAVERY and place her in a room completely painted WHITE where she has been held captive all her life by her slave master who is also her father, and she is being forced to have sex with a white man named LIBERTY in order to rid her body further of black skin color and this all takes place in a plantation called REDEMPTION HALL, where LIBERTY ends up not having sex with her but attempts to FREE her... Ye
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Aug 09, 2008
Charlaralotte
rated it:
Another great story along the lines of "The History of the Known World," though a bit less tremendously depressing. Well-researched story of family in North with ties to the South and horrors of Civil War. Started a bit slowly, though once Liberty & his father take a trip up the Erie Canal, there's great pleasure in the details of travel, strange characters met en route, wonderful descriptions of diversions of the time period.
Liberty's experiences on the battlefield not we More...
Liberty's experiences on the battlefield not we More...
Nov 11, 2007
John
rated it:
I might revise my rating on further reflection, but he is possibly my favorite modern author, and I went in with expectations the book didn't meet. Not that it wasn't good; a Civil War story written, for the most part, in the style of the period, which doesn't sound like my thing, but it was a surprisingly easy read. Maybe too easy; after three novels of poetic darkness, full of hallucinatory imagery, this was shockingly simple and direct. Oh, it started off with a gang of bearded ladies and inc
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Apr 30, 2011
Hannah
rated it:
I wish this book was a little bit better.
It's a Faulknerian romp through the civil war, with a decidedly contemporary sensibility. It's funny, hyperbolic, and spot-on in some of its observations and fascinations. But it's the sort of book you'd write about in your dissertation because it's interesting, not because it moved you.
It's a Faulknerian romp through the civil war, with a decidedly contemporary sensibility. It's funny, hyperbolic, and spot-on in some of its observations and fascinations. But it's the sort of book you'd write about in your dissertation because it's interesting, not because it moved you.
Nov 12, 2011
Alison
rated it:
I loved this book and I don't often like novels about the US Civil War. Wright's language is extravagantly lush and gorgeous. The plot is rollicking, occasionally grotesque and at its best when it deviates quite far afield of what you might expect (and believe me, it does) into absurd picaresque. It's also very, very funny.
Nov 11, 2009
Dan
rated it:
Some really vivid Civil War battle scenes don't make up for a really disappointing final third. Just when the main character sets out on what should be the exciting last leg of his symbolic journey, the book veers off the rails. Also, he is a skilled talker but pretty much the most inert protagonist I've ever encountered.
Sep 03, 2011
Beth
rated it:
Listened to audio edition but would like to spend more time reading it. The author is a genius at lyrical conversations and I would like to spend more time savoring the written words.
Jan 26, 2009
Mark
rated it:
a major change of tactics from wright, without the post-everything despondency that floated among major characters in his first three novels. i think probably i would have enjoyed this more without connections to the earlier books, but overall i found it difficult to connect to his vision of a civil-war era youth.
Jul 04, 2010
Tristy
rated it:
I loved this book. Stephen Wright's writing style is delightful. He totally immerses you into a witty, strange, Southern world of violence, politics and beauty.
Jul 27, 2011
Unevenly fashioned but brilliantly written bildungsroman on the theme of American utopianism and set in and around the Civil War. I liked it a lot.
Feb 06, 2010
Rosina
rated it:
I was reminded of Grass's The Tin Drum while reading this. A coming of age novel with a war at its center, and a huge number of odd, interesting characters. The role of all these characters is to further the education of Liberty -- the boy we meet at his birth to abolitionist parents.
The prose is beautiful, if sometimes a little overwrought.
The prose is beautiful, if sometimes a little overwrought.
Sep 16, 2010
Aaron
rated it:
3.5. The first 50 pages has some of the best writing I've read in years.
Jan 06, 2009
Jeremy
rated it:
This book really deserved all the praise that sparked my initial interest. It's a good story. It's well-, if over-, written. I'm sure that it's full of deep meaning and symbology and bears up well upon repeated readings.
However, all the verbage - while unique, exquisitely correct, and often beautiful - serves to obfuscate the story rather than elucidate it. The story also seems a bit thin and is not particularly compelling.
I'm glad I read this book, but it's not one t More...
However, all the verbage - while unique, exquisitely correct, and often beautiful - serves to obfuscate the story rather than elucidate it. The story also seems a bit thin and is not particularly compelling.
I'm glad I read this book, but it's not one t More...
Sep 26, 2011
cal
rated it:
I've just started this - the author has an interesting writing style! Some sentences are so sublime that I have to go back and reread them over and over again!
OK now I have finished it. I really liked this book strange as it was. The story took a back seat for me to the author's writing style - which was terrific! (Unlike MY writing in this comment!)
OK now I have finished it. I really liked this book strange as it was. The story took a back seat for me to the author's writing style - which was terrific! (Unlike MY writing in this comment!)
Apr 20, 2008
Joseph
rated it:
Good book by someone who helped me out a lot in figuring out what I wanted. I enjoyed it mostly, though it falls apart in the final third and the ending just didn't convince me. I really enjoyed the language through most of the book. I wasn't too taken by the amount of time the novel condenses (it begins with the birth of the main character, Liberty, but the majority of the book is him in his twenties -- interspersed with some teen scenes) but it feels like a coming-of-age novel in a way so I ca
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Apr 27, 2011
Diane
rated it:
The story of a young man serving in the Civil War and seeing the effect on his country, friends, and family, was quite rambling. It did seem to tell how the war wasn't really present to those outside, and how they did not understanding why it was being fought.
