American Pastoral in Constant Reader

Nov 18, 2008 Rosana rated it it was ok

Shelves: 2008, constant-reader-bookclub

I have made a commitment to myself that I would write a least a few lines about every book I read this year, and I am kicking myself that I did not write this one before the discussion on American Pastoral started on the Constant Reader group.

Well, I didn’t like it. But the discussion has been so good, and brought up so many nuances that I had previously missed, I am regarding this book better than the 2 stars I had given it. Yet, 2 stars it is, because as interesting as the points made about it I have made a commitment to myself that I would write a least a few lines about every book I read this year, and I am kicking myself that I did not write this one before the discussion on American Pastoral started on the Constant Reader group.

Well, I didn’t like it. But the discussion has been so good, and brought up so many nuances that I had previously missed, I am regarding this book better than the 2 stars I had given it. Yet, 2 stars it is, because as interesting as the points made about it, I simply have to say I didn’t really liked.

Roth seemed to play with the reader with a combo of meta-fiction and an unreliable narrator; two writing devices that I appreciate as clever and elegant. And he does a tremendous job at that. But I cannot get over the fact that the characters seem like stereotypes; too bland and perfect in their roles, to the point that they become unconvincing. Are the characters stereotypes or archetypes? I have wondered this question for a while, and realized that even if rationally I agree with the argument that portraits them as archetypes, they remain in my mind as poorly realized characters.

Gosh, I really wanted to have liked it! This is probably the best criticism I have read on the shattering of the American Dream in the 1960’s. I wrote in my post at the discussion, and I copy it here because I still feel it describes well this novel:

Yes, it is the history of the American dream – from rags to riches in 3 generations, of course – and the shattering of that dream with the rebel daughter, Vietnam War, multiple divorces, face lifts, alcoholism, the migration of jobs offshore, marital affairs, prostate cancer…

I also wrote:

I wonder that it just felt too distant from me because of my age and non-American background. At 44, I missed the baby-boomer generation by just one year. I am not trying to discriminate based on age here, but it does seem to me that this book would be more appealing to those that have lived through it.

And that is all…
...more

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Oct 22, 2009 Roy rated it it was amazing

A fascinating and beautifully written novel about the surface of our lives that we present to the world, the layers of truth that lay hidden beneath, and how the sum of these parts fails to add up to who we are.

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Nov 06, 2010 Laura rated it it was ok

Shelves: american-fiction, kindle, viciados-em-livros, pulitzer-prize, fiction-20th-century, mtbr-challenge-2014, e-books, read-2014, 1001-books-you-must-read-before-you, jewish

This book is too long and I've read better books on this subject. Sometimes we do not agree with the critics while assign a specific award to a particular book. ...more

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Nov 22, 2008 Ellenjsmellen rated it it was amazing

Another amazing read by American Pastoral. I like Roth's ramble on writing. I can also identify with the area where he's writing because I went to college & lived around there for about 7 years. I'm going to get another Nathan Zuckerman novel this afternoon. ...more

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May 19, 2009 Laine rated it really liked it · review of another edition

This author familiarly trips cascades of questions re: the truth and the whole of life ....

Anyway, I wanted more descriptive words, I read Philip Roth (again). He drowns you in words ... to paint as dark a picture as he possibly can ...

Despite his predictably gloomy Dorian Grey view it's still intriguing to consider the endless possibilities of his characters. It is really not fun to think about Philip Roth, but anyway...
The class stings (from a Boston Brahmin)
The colossol narcissistic egos
Th ...more

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Sep 17, 2011 Pang rated it it was ok · review of another edition

Shelves: why-did-i-bother, constant-reader, 1001-books-to-read, fiction

This was my first (audio)book by Philip Roth, and it may be my last book by him.

The book won the prestige Pulitzer Prize in 1998 and had been included, if Wikipedia is to be believed, in Time's "All-TIME Greatest 100 Novels." But... I just didn't get the appeal. It felt like Roth was rambling on and on, and all the characters were becoming more annoying to me as the book went on. In the end, I couldn't bring myself to finish the book. I wasn't going to like it. I wasn't going to get it. A loss-c ...more

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Jun 14, 2008 Jessica rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: vietnam-war, classic, 1001, audio

Normally authors like Roth make me crazy - I have a heavy distaste for authors that can only seem to write protagonists in their own image, and an even heavier one for old white guys talking about how good things used to be. And yet, somehow, I like Roth anyway. Sure, his women are flat and he has a tendency to get histrionic in places, but at the core of his work is some meaningful and interesting commentary on how we got where we are as a society. This one is especially engaging in light of th ...more

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