Monday 1 April 2013

The Magnificent Ambersons by Booth Tarkington

This was my book for the Classic Club Spin.

And what a lovely choice it turned out to be.

The Magnificent Ambersons is a delightful old-fashioned read; a family saga that highlights the declining fortunes of one family during the industrialisation of turn-of-the-century small town America.

George Amberson Minafer is one of the most unlikable characters in literature. He is arrogant, selfish, spoilt and careless. Like the local townsfolk, you keep hoping he will get his comeuppance.

The skill of Tarkington is such, that when it finally does happens, you actually feel a little sorry for George.
But only a little. George's remorse, when it comes, is too little, too late.
The true generosity of spirit shown by Lucy and Eugene right up to the end only highlights further what was lacking in George.

The tension in the middle of the novel as you realise what a dastardly deed George is about to do against his own adoring mother is heartbreaking. With each step you want to reach into the book and grab George by the scruff of the neck and shake him into commonsense and human decency.

As for Aunt Fanny - the conniving, manipulative bitch wrapped up in victimhood and helpless ignorance! It seemed fitting somehow that Fanny and George only had each other for company at the end.

Booth won the Pulitzer Prize in 1918 for The Magnificent Ambersons (and again in 1921 for Alice Adams).

The Magnificent Ambersons is the second book in Booth's Growth trilogy. The books are only related by theme, not characters. (The other two books, if you're interested are The Turmoil and National Avenue).

My edition of The Magnificent Ambersons is a Modern Library one. The inside front cover has a list of the Modern Library's 100 Best Novels of the Twentieth Century. The Magnificent Ambersons snuck in at number 100!

(This is the house that Tarkington based the Amberson mansion on - Woodruff Place, Indianapolis.)

8 comments:

  1. It was a lovely choice! Very different than what I expected and I loved the humour. Glad you enjoyed it too.

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    1. Thanks for stopping by Cat. I liked knowing there was someone reading the same book as me at the same time. It added a little extra to the CCSpin experience - thanks :-)

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  2. I read this book last year and I really enjoyed it!

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    1. I think I'd like to see the movie again too. I saw it so long ago I barely remember it.

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  3. The architects went a bit over the top with their house design didn't they - all those turrets. Glad in enjoyed your spin. Mine has been a struggle - farewell to arms by Hemingway.

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    1. I know what you mean - I struggled with A Moveable Feast and was very glad I had no more Hemingway on my TBR!
      Good luck.

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    2. Great review and I am putting this book on my list. George sounds like a flawed character but a fascinating one. Interesting about Booth Tarkington, clearly a talented writer. Two Pulitzer Prizes and yet not really remembered these days. That's a shame and another reason to read him.

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    3. Since writing this review I have acquired Alice Adams...now patiently waiting on my TBR pile for some attention. I feel the same way about Edna Ferber - another Pulitzer prize winning author, apparently forgotten by time.

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