Book Review
Jan. 27th, 2010 10:11 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
kenjariThe Magnificent Ambersons
by Booth Tarkington
In 1919, this book was the second novel to win the Pulitzer Prize. Compared to other Pulitzer winners I've read, it was only okay. It's set in a growing midwestern city at the turning of the 20th century. Tarkington uses the story of the decline of the once wealthy and prominent Amberson family as a lens through which to view the changes brought by increasing industrialization and modernization. The novel primarily focuses on George Minafer, the only grandson of the last Amberson patriarch. This focus is the crux of my disappointment in the book, because George is an ass. Over-adored by his mother, he is a spoiled, snobbish, arrogant jerk for most of the book. Sometimes this causes amusement, as his self-centeredness makes him oblivious to what is going on with his family and the town. However, the book is long enough that this wears thin, and George's improvement as a person comes much too late to prevent his deficiency of character from being a serious flaw in the narrative.
by Booth Tarkington
In 1919, this book was the second novel to win the Pulitzer Prize. Compared to other Pulitzer winners I've read, it was only okay. It's set in a growing midwestern city at the turning of the 20th century. Tarkington uses the story of the decline of the once wealthy and prominent Amberson family as a lens through which to view the changes brought by increasing industrialization and modernization. The novel primarily focuses on George Minafer, the only grandson of the last Amberson patriarch. This focus is the crux of my disappointment in the book, because George is an ass. Over-adored by his mother, he is a spoiled, snobbish, arrogant jerk for most of the book. Sometimes this causes amusement, as his self-centeredness makes him oblivious to what is going on with his family and the town. However, the book is long enough that this wears thin, and George's improvement as a person comes much too late to prevent his deficiency of character from being a serious flaw in the narrative.
