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Giant

Edna Ferber

Start date: June 1, 2026

Finish date: June 30, 2026

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By Lesle , Appalachian Bibliophile · 8 posts · 33 views

last updated Nov 27, 2025 11:36AM

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Feb 16, 2025 Kelly_Hunsaker_reads ... rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: classics, american-lit, read-in-2025

Edna Ferber's novel, Giant, transports the reader to Texas. It has the feeling of a sweeping, epic novel. It comes it at over 400 pages, and yet, I would have loved it to be much longer. Each character is realistic and intriguing. The era in which it is set is vividly portrayed, and of course Texas fells like a character itself. Ferber's writing is wonderful. And this book has prompted me to go down the rabbit hole, reading much more of her literature, as well as the biographies that highlight t Edna Ferber's novel, Giant, transports the reader to Texas. It has the feeling of a sweeping, epic novel. It comes it at over 400 pages, and yet, I would have loved it to be much longer. Each character is realistic and intriguing. The era in which it is set is vividly portrayed, and of course Texas fells like a character itself. Ferber's writing is wonderful. And this book has prompted me to go down the rabbit hole, reading much more of her literature, as well as the biographies that highlight the author herself.

Published in 1952, the book was a huge success -- although much of the state of Texas found themselves angry over her portrayal of the people there. And, of course, she did take a very strong stance against the racism towards Mexicans. (I found it sad that much of the language and attitudes found on the pages are exactly the same today.) The book is filled with unique and interesting bits of information about Texas. She talks about the history of the state, the people who inhabit it, the culture, the food, the ideas, the landscape. Her descriptions are sharp and pictoral, bringing very specific images to the mind of the reader. You will feel the heat on your skin alongside the characters. You will close the book and feel the need for an intense moisturizer on your chapped, wind-bl0wn skin. You will drink extra water, hoping to quench your thirst.

The story centers itself around a man named Bick Benedict who runs a cattle ranch of more than 2 million acres. He rules an empire, which employs large numbers of Mexican laborers. At the beginning of the story Bick traveled East to Virginia to buy a horse, and brings home a new wife named Leslie. She is an intelligent woman, who looks at things differently. She loves her husband, but struggles against the Texas ways. Through Leslie, the reader grows to understand Ferber. They are the lens to view the harsh conditions under which the laborers are forced to live. They allow the reader to understand the underlying racism. They are the reason we see the stories with empathy and compassion.

Although the characters are not always likable, they are realistic and flawed people, and I liked getting to know them.

I recommend reading the book and following it up by watching the Oscar winning film starring Elizabeth Taylor, Rock Hudson and James Dean. ...more

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