Rating: 
Summary: a big disappointment
Review: What was all the hype about??? I couldn't bear forcing myself to plow through anymore after the first 1/3. Often I found myself finish a few pages and saying "who cares?". An unfortunate waste of time and money.
Rating:
Summary: Save your time and $$$
Review: Don't read this book. Before I get into why, let me tell you that I picked up the paperback and could not get through it. So, I borrowed the book on tape from the library and couldn't even get through that. Save your time and money. The novel itself is forgetable and uneven. It plods along by using numerous characters, each of which has significant psychological and emotional problems, and then tries to weave it all together as a protrayal of "these times in which we live". ... The reason for the characters and all their flaws is that the author can't develop characters strong enough to carry an interesting tale. It's not social commentary, it's social exploitation. It's an easy way to write a novel, and it comes of clumsy, rude, and annoying. If you've read some reveiws that make this book sound appealing to you, pick uo Kurt Andersen's TURN OF THE CENTURY instead. Don't buy the hype on this one.
Rating: 
Summary: THIS is serious literature?
Review: It's remarkable that a book like this could actually be taken seriously by the literary world. THE CORRECTIONS bears striking similarities to formula detective stories, and romance novels, where well-worn devices are employed to elicit predictabl responses. The primary difference, however, is that a mystery page-turner doesn't pretend to be anything more than simple entertainment, whereas the form and subject matter of THE CORRECTIONS make it obvious that this is about "Art" and "Literature". The characters in this novel are two-dimensional "types", many of them simply cast into stereotypical roles
in predictable circumstances. The other thing that strikes me about the novel is the cynical use of sex. The reader is never forced to go too long without be offered another sexual episode, almost as a reward for enduring the otherwise pointless content of the book. It reminds me of mediocre "high art" from the 19th century when the elite used mythological paintings to satisfy their desire to see more flesh than society would otherwise allow. The aristocracy could pretend that it was all about painting, and cultural references, but the real subject matter was plump women doing the full monty. THE CORRECTIONS allows today's literary minded to get a good dose of lesbian sex, seductions and fantasies, while still getting credit for reading an important work. My advice? Buy a REAL piece of literature, and a copy of Penthouse; don't try to satisfy both desires with a single product. On the positive side, the quieter moments in this book, and some of the comic situations, come across as genuine, and reveal that Jonathan Franzen has legitimate talent. He might be capable of writing very entertaining novels if he just took himself less seriously.
Rating:
Summary: I Hate Run-on Sentences!
Review: Okay, I'm not really qualified to write a review of the whole book because I only made it to page 11. But on page 11, there is a sentence that begins on line seven and continues to the bottom of the page, on line 36. After slogging through several lesser monster-sentences in the first ten pages, this was just too much. When I went to college, I would have been whacked on the nose with a rolled up paper for writing a 26-line sentence. When did run-ons become good? Okay, so Franzen's imagery is vivid, his cadence is catchy, his delivery is fresh. I'm willing to give him that. And I'm willing to admit that by page 566, the book might become so enthralling that it would have overcome my disdain for verbose writing. I guess I'll never know. To me, a verbose writer comes off as a pompous writer, and I can't overcome the desire to slap him upside the head. If I met a person on the street who droned on non-stop, speaking in Franzen-sentences, I think I'd poke him in the nose for his rudeness. If you don't mind pompous, windy writing, give the book a try. I hear it's great. If you loathe verbose writing, this is not the book for you. Whatever you do, DO NOT attempt to read "The Corrections" out loud, as you are likely to die of asphyxiation before coming to a blessed period.
Rating: 
Summary: Good, but not a classic
Review: Some books are a pleasant, leisurely walk. This one is a robust climb up a hill, fulfilling, but not necessarily easy. Franzen has written a portrait of one particular dysfunctional family as its patriarch's health is declining. The challenge is that this is a novel where not a lot goes on. The forward progression of the story is slow, as Franzen meanders through the chronology of the main characters. The plot itself is both minimal and simple: The mother in the family is trying to get her three grown children to come home for one last Christmas together. But there is a lot more than that. After a brief prologue, the story is divided into five roughly equal segments of around one hundred pages each. Three of the segments follow each of the children, one follows the parents and the final one puts them all together. Each of these five principal characters is a flawed individual and not always very sympathetic; most of the misfortunes they suffer are the result of their own selfish actions. Nonetheless, each character is intriguing in his or her own way. This book has gotten a lot of praise, and it certainly has merits. Franzen is an adept writer and his prose is clear and often humorous. He is able to make his rather minimal story interesting and readable. On the other hand, I'm still not sure what the point of the book was. In serious literature (which I think this novel aspires to be), there should be something a bit more thought provoking than what is delivered. Overall, I rate this book as very good but not great; an entertaining read for those willing to climb literary mountains.
Rating: 
Summary: So uneven!
Review: Is the test of a good novel that it excites so many different opinions? If so I suppose this is a great American novel--but I struggled with how to rate this one and in a sense copped out by giving it a 3. Some reviewers have raved that this is the first great American novel of the 21st century--maybe that's so but I predict it will be quickly eclipsed by others with a lot more staying power. The novel vividly creates several not very admirable aspects of contemporary upper middle class America--the greed of the stock market boom, the self-indulgent college professor who self destructs by getting involved with a student far more mature than he is, the craziness of post-Soviet society in the Baltics, sexuality that destroys rather than liberates. But it already feels dated! Remember "Bonfire of the Vanities?" We loved it--for about a year. But would you read it today? Probably not, except as a remnant of the late 80's culture of Wall Street. But Franzen has the talent to do more. I found his minute examination of family life riveting. As the father slips into dementia, we learn of his earlier life--a cruel man, tortured by a warped view of sexuality--a legacy unknowingly passed on to his son. We get tantalizing glimpses of HIS parents--a father more cruel than he has become. The scene where he forces his little son to sit--and sit--and sit--at the dinner table until he finishes his meal was breathtaking in its commonplace cruelty. At the same time we find out late in the book that he made an enormous sacrifice to save his daughter from the consequences of her own foolishness. There are other examples. Franzen is much better when he stops trying to be clever and sticks to the timeless themes--love, old age, children and parents. He can do it!
Rating:
Summary: get the correction fluid
Review: I'm not sure why there was so much hype over this novel. I bought it based on the rave reviews I kept hearing, yet a third of the way through I still couldn't understand what all the fuss is about. I don't profess to being an incredibly intellectual person but I do love to read challenging, thought provoking and just simply entertaining novels. This novel was none of the above. I'm hard pressed to believe that Oprah considered featuring this in her book club. Perhaps she liked the cover art, the only intriguing and interesting thing about this book. In all fairness, I didn't finish reading the novel. Actually, I COULDN'T finish reading the novel. It was an ordeal, a chore. I felt myself getting depressed over the thought of having to trudge through 500+ pages just to get to the last paragraph. The problem with Franzen's writing is he makes you jump through flaming circus hoop after flaming circus hoop before rewarding you with the point he's trying to get across. His writing is dry, every other word is enormous, difficult and academic (no doubt to show off his impressive vocabulary) and he makes many references to people, places and things that leave the average reader clueless. This novel comes off as a bit pretentious, self indulgent (like the screenplay the Chip character was trying to write) and highly alienating to the average reader. Enid and Alfred were the only two interesting characters. The other characters were dull, annoying and just plain uninteresting. I found myself not caring what happened to any of them. I didn't even want to know what happened to them. I was surprised with myself when I put the book down and said "Enough is enough!" I usually finish every book I start but I wasted too much of my personal time on this book, not to mention my hard earned cash as well. "The Corrections " is intended solely for the literati elite. If this is the future of the great American novel, then give me Jackie Collins anyday!
Rating: 
Summary: Just great : A slice of America's social history in fiction
Review: Why the media hoopla and frenzied ecstacy over the publication of Jonathan Franzen's "The Corrections", you might ask ? Well, because it marks the arrival of a truly great fictional work that also reads like a slice of contemporary social history of America. As Franzen peels off the layers hiding the dysfunctionity of each member of the Lambert family (first Chip, then Gary, Enid & Alfred, and finally Denise), we are brought face to face with the multiple influences of change that have crept up on ordinary Americans in the last 50 years, made redundant old social values and reshaped their lives without having in the least prepared them for it. Alfred's tunnel vision of his role as family provider and disciplinarian, his stubborn refusal to embrace the values of an age where cash is king, Enid's desperate sublimation of her sexual frustrations from an unfulfilled marriage through drugs and medication, and their three grown-up children's confused or angry revulsion for their parents' anachronistic lives in St Jude, are all unmistakeable signposts of a society undergoing upheaval. While the oldies live in a time warp and pretend that the steam engine (not the almighty dollar) reigns supreme and decent people live like folks in "Father Knows Best", the kids fare no better. Gary, Chip and Denise are all strung out, Gary from nervous exhaustion from the demands of his yuppy wife Caroline and their brats, Chip from derailment as his teaching career falls apart after being falsely accused by a student of sexual harrassment, and Denise from her own confused career aspirations and sexual identity. Franzen doesn't pull his punches. The Lamberts aren't especially likeable people, especially Gary (ironically the family's icon of success), whose selfishness and meaness borders on the spectacular. But even he is a victim. His wife Caroline comes close to but just escapes being a caricature. She's so scary but a hoot. A real send up of a character. Chip and Denise are complex human beings. They're flawed but real and rounded. Franzen is simply a master of characterisation. Making us care for these Lamberts takes some special talent. They could be tiresome in less expert hands. Enid gets her "one last Christmas party" wish at St Jude's but it's not a pretty scene. People bite each other's head off, arrive late, nearly miss one another, or wish they were gone no sooner than they get past the front door but somehow, this crazy and emotionally wired scene works. Franzen is an amazing writer. He has that rare ability to achieve an intuitive though precarious sense of balance that juxtaposes the serious with the ridiculous and makes you laugh and cry at the same time. "The Corrections" is exemplary of the best of contemporary American literature. Believe the hype. Go buy yourself a copy. You won't regret it.
Rating:
Summary: Great Story In Here Somewhere
Review: Amidst the extensive use of unintelligible vocabulary there is a great story in here somewhere. Mr. Franzen seems to be writing for a very small and select group of people that must have an absolutely phenomenal grasp of the English language. The story jumps around, digresses, and shoots off on tangents with such verbose ramblings in places that I feel the author is actually being condescending, intentionally sprinkling his passages with extreme doses of incomprehensible phraseology, strung together ad nausea, asserting his superior intellect, as if to say "I'm a lot smarter than you"...and he undoubtedly is...smarter than me anyway. The self-indulgent writing style is almost too much to take overall. Take my advanced education and my above-average vocabulary and make me feel like a dolt. I feel as though some people praise this book simply to ratchet up their perceived level of sophistication a couple of notches and so they can give each other knowing winks at cocktail parties, as if to say "We got it, didn't we"...as for those other simpletons... Having said all that, there is a lot to enjoy in this book if you can cut through the 200+ sporadic pages of whatever, but why bother when there is so much other good stuff out there. While most of the characters are strong and extremely interesting to follow in places, much of the book makes spastic jumps in chronology and I found myself disoriented half the time. How this won the National Book Award is beyond me, but then again, look at the other books which have won the award...enough said. Maybe I was spoiled by coming off of five straight Richard Russo books in a row, but all I can say is that I just don't get it.
Rating:
Summary: A big NO
Review: This is an honest attempt to write a novel that is contemporary; hence, lots of discussion about international trade agreements, pharmacology, hollywood and the whole culture industry, academic critical theory, et cetera, et cetera. Unfortunatley, Franzen has no style. And that's enough to kill a book. And it kills this one. I second the person who said ideas and characters were lifted from Delillo's WHITE NOISE, particularly the way the young children gang up and verbally attack their parents. The dialogue is uninspired; the description is unimaginative. Franzen moves through time in a very plodding way. Again, I have to second another reviewer: if you want to read a great book on families, read THE MAN WHO LOVED CHILDREN by Christina Stead.
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