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Summary: I hope all the English teachers out there read this
Review: Nathaniel Hawthorne wrote a prolific and profound novel. Who couldn't feel Hester Prynne's pain, Arthur Dimmesdale's shame? Was I the only one who felt hatred towards Roger Chillingsworth? As a 16 year old sophomore, I was not happy when I was told I had to read this book. I am glad that I did. My honors English teacher told our class to read the book, write an essay, and take a test on it. I wish she would have spent more time examining the characterization, setting, and symbolism that Hawthorne used to create his stunning novel of sin, guilt, and redemption.
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Summary: How can the average rating of this book be 3 stars?
Review: You go Sharon Eisenberg! Reading some of these comments on one the most profound reflections on the American psyche, I came close to weeping tears of frustration and anger for what seems to be yet further evidence of the "dumbing of America." Perhaps high school is too young to grasp the full content of this book; a book that should be about more than just "finding" the literary characteristics of Romanticism, a book that should become part of one's everyday life as all pieces of great literature should. The Scarlet Letter is a beautiful and wonderfully moving piece of work that skillfully analyzes sin, guilt, and redemption in four characters. How some of the reviewers can say such negative things about the character development is beyond me--I know that I quite personally sympathize with Dimmesdale. This is not some big action flick or some trashy teen romance novel...this is a work of bona fide genius...which is I suppose why some people can't handle it. All in all, The Scarlet Letter is a must-read for anyone who wishes to better understand the human psyche....and who has the ability to understand and reflect on what they read.
Rating: 
Summary: Oh my...
Review: I want to start by giving some background information on me... I am a straight "A" student and I love to read, but one of, no wait, THE worst book I have ever read would have to be The Scarlet Letter. It has been more than I year since I read this book, but the suffering is still fresh in my mind. I don't want to sound like I didn't like it because I was forced to read it in English class(which I was), because many of the other pieces of literature that I have been assigned to read I have enjoyed.This is not the case with The Scarlet Letter, however. I DID "get" this book, in that I understood it, but there was a lack of an interesting plot and characters for whom you could care. The Scarlet Letter was filled with unnecessary language, which, even for me, was overwhelming at times. Another thing about this book that I dislike is its ability to tire and put to sleep. Many times while I was reading this did my eyes get tired and eventually shut, and I awoke later having to re-read some of the text. I tried a lot of things to keep this from happening, such as blasting my stereo, getting caffiene, etc. none of that seemed to work. All I can say is that when I was finally finished with this mind-numbing novel, I was relieved of a great pain in my neck. I cannot nor will I ever recommed this book to anyone.
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Summary: Overrated classic
Review: I usually like the classics. But when I read this book and a number of the author's short stories I couldn't escape the conclusion that Nathaniel Hawthorne wasn't a great writer. He doesn't belong among the immortals of literature. His short stories are predictable. After reading Hawthorne I read some Herman Melville and found him to be far better. The one thing in Scarlet Letter's favor is that it is politically correct. It's satisfying that the intolerant religious fanatics are the bad guys. The villain of the story is respected Roger Chillingworth, and the heroine is his wife Hester Prynne, adulteress. Would you consider it adultery if the husband was missing for years and assumed dead, as is the case here? It's not enjoyable to read about religious intolerance. The book gets quite dopy when something magical happens to Hester's boyfriend at the end, something right out of The Exorcist, and typical of Hawthorne's silly writing. It gets even dopier when Hester deserts her happy family to return to misery. Hawthorne has a thing for magical events and foolish endings.
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Summary: Childish Novel
Review: It is a travesty that this novel is even classified with the classics. This is by far one of the most boring and pointless novels in existance. The plot dribbles on about sin and adultry with few arguments. The contrasting of light and dark, with shadows, light and color is overdone and quite childish. Any third grade student can classify purity as light and sin as darkness. More over, there is over a hundred pages of belaboring the point, with no real conclusion. At the end of the novel, all I had was a headache, and I had fallen asleep more than a dozen times.
Rating: 
Summary: Good, But Difficult at Times
Review: I was a little disappointed with this book. After hearing all the hype (good and bad) about the movie, I was anxious to read the book when it was assigned in school. There was a lot of lengthy description in the book that was a little hard to follow. The novel didn't really "come alive" for me- I was too busy trying not to get lost in the descriptions. On the other hand, the book/writing does a good job of portraying human nature and human feelings. After reading the book, there's lots to talk about in terms of the characters' feelings, motives, and internal struggles as a result of Hester's and the Reverand's sin.
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Summary: Everyone wears a "Scarlet Letter"
Review: In Nathaniel Hawthorne's tale of seduction, betrayal, adultery, and the consequences following these turn of events, Hester Prynne, the heroine that succumbs to her passions and in doing so reaps the punishments of her "sins", finds herself trapped in a lonely Puritain colony whose inhabitants hold only disdain, pity, and disapproval toward her. As a demonstration of her will and furvor, she sews and wears a scarlet "A" which stands for "adultery". Perhaps this "A" also stood as a reminder to the man who also committed these "sins" with her, the "pure and religious" Reverend Dimmesdale. Hester's unforgiving and avenging husband, Chillingsworth, soon finds that his unfaithful wife has borne a daughter from her "sin", a child she calls "Pearl". This even moreso enrages him, and causes him to seek out her lover. In life, our actions may not be condoned by society and there are certainly consequences to everything we do. Just as Hester Prynne wore her scarlet letter "A" on her breast so do we in our everyday lives (though of course our letters aren't tangibly displayed as was hers). The Scarlet Letter is a book with many lessons to teach. I read this book first when I was in fifth grade, a second time in high school, and now I own a copy. It shows us that not everyone is perfect, even the Puritains had their faults, and that if we truly love one another, we can look beyond these faults.
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Summary: Monica's Summer Reading
Review: The Scarlet Letter By Nathaniel Hawthorne Here's a book that Monica Lewinsky definitely hasn't read but perhaps she should have. Nathaniel Hawthorne's classic masterpiece, The Scarlet Letter , explores the shame, isolation, and ostracism that a woman, Hester Prynne, endured as punishment for her transgression in Puritanical New England. Hawthorne's criticism of Puritanical society is a constant theme that runs through his writings and is a reflection of the scorn he felt for his ancestors who played a crucial role in the Salem Witch Trials in 1692. This common thread is evidenced in his other works such as his short story, "The Minister's Black Veil" that once again focuses on a character who is isolated from society due to a personal indiscretion. In The Scarlet Letter , Hawthorne's depiction of a shunned woman reveals his insightful understanding of this complex character and the shame she had to endure for her transgression. One can't help but notice that such punishments are outdated in today's desensitized society, a society in which, on the whole, hardly an eyebrow was raised in response to the modern-day Hester Prynne character, Monica Lewinsky.
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Summary: A GOOD BOOK FOR ITS TIME
Review: I thought this was a great book, years ago, and it still is, but I think it is outdarted for those living today and this modern world. There are so many new, contemporary novles. If you want to another read a book that goes straight to your heart, read Stolen Moments by Barbara Jeanne Fisher. . .It is a beautiful story of unrequited love. . .for certain the love story of the nineties. I intended to give the book a quick read, but I got so caught up in the story that I couldn't put the book down. From the very beginning, I was fully caught up in the heart-wrenching account of Julie Hunter's battle with lupus and her growing love for Don Lipton. This love, in the face of Julie's impending death, makes for a story that covers the range of human emotions. The touches of humor are great, too, they add some nice contrast and lighten things a bit when emotions are running high. I've never read a book more deserving of being published. It has rare depth. Julie's story will remind your readers that life and love are precious and not to be taken for granted. It has had an impact on me, and for that I'm grateful. Stolen Moments is written with so much sensitivity that it made me want to cry. It is a spellbinder. What terrific writing. Barbara does have an exceptional gift! This book was edited by Lupus specialist Dr. Matt Morrow too, and has the latest information on that disease. ..A perfect gift for someone who started college late in life, fell in love too late in life, is living with any illness, or trying to understand a loved one who is. . .A gift to be cherished forever.
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Summary: Your all Around Average Book
Review: I too was forced to read this book in my Literature class, but I do have to say that I am a bit surprised that people my age did not like and understand this book. If anyone remembers there history, they would have known that Hawthorne nailed the Puritan ways with this book, and Hawthorne being a descendent of one of the Judges in the witch trials makes this book even better to read. The way he has written it shows that he is ashamed with his ancestors' ways. This book was shorter then most I have read and simply to the point. Although it's not my usual style of reading, I do have to say it was enjoyable.
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