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A Confederacy of Dunces
by John Kennedy Toole

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<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/422612.A_Confederacy_of_Dunces?utm_medium=api&amp;utm_source=blog_review" style="float: left; padding-right: 20px"><img alt="A Confederacy of Dunces" border="0" src="http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1174601154m/422612.jpg" /></a> <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/422612.A_Confederacy_of_Dunces?utm_medium=api&utm_source=blog_review">A Confederacy of Dunces</a> by <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/3049.John_Kennedy_Toole">John Kennedy Toole</a><br/><br/>
  <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/21816130?utm_medium=api&utm_source=blog_review"><h3>My review</h3></a>
  rating: 4 of 5 stars<br/>	Before reading A Confederacy of Dunces by John Kennedy Toole my favorite novel thus far had to have been J.D. Salinger’s Catcher in the Rye. Mr. Toole’s novel is full of vigor and life, quite an ironic statement being as how Mr. Toole took his own life at the relatively youthful age of thirty-two. A Confederacy of Dunces best fits into the category/genre of intellectual satire. Mr. Toole’s bold genius is quite prevalent throughout the narrative as he attacks his present, the 60’s, with Ignatius J. Reilly of New Orleans, Louisiana filling the role of main protagonist and common day leper, metaphorically speaking of course.  Ignatius Reilly is the epitome of outcasts whom is best described as a lazy, unkempt, obese, feudal loving, and queerly loveable man. Ignatius is the heavily fortified vessel that carries this novel, without Mr. Reilly the foundation, of which a great novel has been forged upon, would surely crumble. 
<br/>	Regardless of the positive criticism of which I am showering upon the book there are still negative aspects of the book that need to be addressed. The main problematic issue that troubles me is the extent to which some of the characters, specifically Santa Bataglia (mother of patrolman Mancuso), Mrs. Reilly (Ignatius’ widowed mother), and Mrs. Levy (the wife of Gus Levy, owner of Levy Pants), have been developed in order to annoy me past he ends of sanity. These three bickering bimbos threatened my drive to continue reading the novel. They truly angered me with their unnecessary nagging, repetitive bibble-babble, and their idiotic assumptions to the point that I felt highly compelled to rip my hair out and physically express the extent to which my nerves had been shot upon another being. Now it may just be that I am a violent individual that needs to seek medical attention immediately, but I feel that I am not the only person of which has been affected in a similar fashion by this book. My second, and last complaint, for this novel is the sheer fact that every single character in this book will not be forgotten. This may seem to be an aspect of the novel that should be viewed as a positive but I interpret as a negative factor. This is due to the fact that I personally feel as if Mr. Toole has left his audience dangling I midair. Simply put the reader wants to know more about the characters than the book offers almost to the extent that the reader wishes to have a personal autobiography for Ms. Reilly, Claude Raubicheaux (angry old man that accuses everyone of being a comuniss), Jones (your stereotypical African American), Darlene (the aspiring striper), Dorian Greene (the stereotypical homosexual), Mr. Clyde (the owner of Paradise Vendors Inc.), Mr. Levy, Mrs. Levy, Susan and Sandra Levy (daughters of Mr. and Mrs. Levy), Ms. Trixie (the senile secretary at Levy Pants), George (the shady employee of an orphanage), Santa Bataglia, Patrolman Mancuso, Mr. Gonzalez (the obsessively dedicated office manager of Levy Pants), and the three lesbians inhabiting Dorian Greene’s place of residence (Liz, Betty, and Frieda). Not once did I glance at the book in order to procure the name or description for any of the characters listed above. Still this may be viewed as a positive aspect of the book but I personally felt somewhat offended that these colorful characters were only presented with little or no background information whatsoever. Hopefully I have not discouraged any potential readers of this magnificent work of art because truly the positives outweigh the negatives by a very large margin.
<br/>	Personally, the most enjoyable experience I encountered while reading A Confederacy of Dunces was how the dialogue is so distinctly unique to each character. There really was no need for the common “this character said that indicators” such as “…said Ignatius.” or “…Jones quickly replied”. Each character’s style of speech fits them like a glove. For example Ignatius’ statements are easily identified by his unequalled fashion of intellectuality and complex metaphors that fill his speech. Coming in a close second as my most enjoyable experience of this novel is that no one is left unscathed by this book. The satire of this book has a personality of its own which spans across every individual personality type. Even Mr. Toole’s categorized personality of the rebellious, non-conforming artist is not spared. 
<br/>	I highly recommend this book to any whom posses the ability to read. This recommendation is coming from someone that is not fond of any form of reading whatsoever. It will change the way you view the world and yourself as a person. Read this book.
<br/>
  <br/><br/><a href="http://www.goodreads.com/review/list/1147425?utm_medium=api&utm_source=blog_review">View all my reviews.</a>

Jordan's review
rating:
recommended for: Everyone

Before reading A Confederacy of Dunces by John Kennedy Toole my favorite novel thus far had to have been J.D. Salinger’s Catcher in the Rye. Mr. Toole’s novel is full of vigor and life, quite an ironic statement being as how Mr. Toole took his own life at the relatively youthful age of thirty-two. A Confederacy of Dunces best fits into the category/genre of intellectual satire. Mr. Toole’s bold genius is quite prevalent throughout the narrative as he attacks his present, the 60’s, with Ignatius J. Reilly of New Orleans, Louisiana filling the role of main protagonist and common day leper, metaphorically speaking of course. Ignatius Reilly is the epitome of outcasts whom is best described as a lazy, unkempt, obese, feudal loving, and queerly loveable man. Ignatius is the heavily fortified vessel that carries this novel, without Mr. Reilly the foundation, of which a great novel has been forged upon, would surely crumble.
Regardless of the positive criticism of which I am show...more Before reading A Confederacy of Dunces by John Kennedy Toole my favorite novel thus far had to have been J.D. Salinger’s Catcher in the Rye. Mr. Toole’s novel is full of vigor and life, quite an ironic statement being as how Mr. Toole took his own life at the relatively youthful age of thirty-two. A Confederacy of Dunces best fits into the category/genre of intellectual satire. Mr. Toole’s bold genius is quite prevalent throughout the narrative as he attacks his present, the 60’s, with Ignatius J. Reilly of New Orleans, Louisiana filling the role of main protagonist and common day leper, metaphorically speaking of course. Ignatius Reilly is the epitome of outcasts whom is best described as a lazy, unkempt, obese, feudal loving, and queerly loveable man. Ignatius is the heavily fortified vessel that carries this novel, without Mr. Reilly the foundation, of which a great novel has been forged upon, would surely crumble.
Regardless of the positive criticism of which I am showering upon the book there are still negative aspects of the book that need to be addressed. The main problematic issue that troubles me is the extent to which some of the characters, specifically Santa Bataglia (mother of patrolman Mancuso), Mrs. Reilly (Ignatius’ widowed mother), and Mrs. Levy (the wife of Gus Levy, owner of Levy Pants), have been developed in order to annoy me past he ends of sanity. These three bickering bimbos threatened my drive to continue reading the novel. They truly angered me with their unnecessary nagging, repetitive bibble-babble, and their idiotic assumptions to the point that I felt highly compelled to rip my hair out and physically express the extent to which my nerves had been shot upon another being. Now it may just be that I am a violent individual that needs to seek medical attention immediately, but I feel that I am not the only person of which has been affected in a similar fashion by this book. My second, and last complaint, for this novel is the sheer fact that every single character in this book will not be forgotten. This may seem to be an aspect of the novel that should be viewed as a positive but I interpret as a negative factor. This is due to the fact that I personally feel as if Mr. Toole has left his audience dangling I midair. Simply put the reader wants to know more about the characters than the book offers almost to the extent that the reader wishes to have a personal autobiography for Ms. Reilly, Claude Raubicheaux (angry old man that accuses everyone of being a comuniss), Jones (your stereotypical African American), Darlene (the aspiring striper), Dorian Greene (the stereotypical homosexual), Mr. Clyde (the owner of Paradise Vendors Inc.), Mr. Levy, Mrs. Levy, Susan and Sandra Levy (daughters of Mr. and Mrs. Levy), Ms. Trixie (the senile secretary at Levy Pants), George (the shady employee of an orphanage), Santa Bataglia, Patrolman Mancuso, Mr. Gonzalez (the obsessively dedicated office manager of Levy Pants), and the three lesbians inhabiting Dorian Greene’s place of residence (Liz, Betty, and Frieda). Not once did I glance at the book in order to procure the name or description for any of the characters listed above. Still this may be viewed as a positive aspect of the book but I personally felt somewhat offended that these colorful characters were only presented with little or no background information whatsoever. Hopefully I have not discouraged any potential readers of this magnificent work of art because truly the positives outweigh the negatives by a very large margin.
Personally, the most enjoyable experience I encountered while reading A Confederacy of Dunces was how the dialogue is so distinctly unique to each character. There really was no need for the common “this character said that indicators” such as “…said Ignatius.” or “…Jones quickly replied”. Each character’s style of speech fits them like a glove. For example Ignatius’ statements are easily identified by his unequalled fashion of intellectuality and complex metaphors that fill his speech. Coming in a close second as my most enjoyable experience of this novel is that no one is left unscathed by this book. The satire of this book has a personality of its own which spans across every individual personality type. Even Mr. Toole’s categorized personality of the rebellious, non-conforming artist is not spared.
I highly recommend this book to any whom posses the ability to read. This recommendation is coming from someone that is not fond of any form of reading whatsoever. It will change the way you view the world and yourself as a person. Read this book.
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