Rating: 
Summary: Pageturner for me
Review: This is not for those who want an intriguing plot or want to find heroes. There were times that I thought it got bogged down for a page or two. But, I couldn't put it down and I read it in three days. It's an insightful book about real life, and I enjoyed how details about the characters and their stories were revealed bit by bit.
Rating: 
Summary: Oh My!
Review: This book started out rather well, somewhat fast-paced; but by the time I was reading about poor Albert's hallucination of feces chasing him, I began to doubt my choice. A few chapters later a whole new character was introduced and I was sooo tired of the long "back and forth" scenes, I threw my hands up in surrender. I did skip ahead a bit to discover that poor Albert had fallen off the cruise ship...give me a break! I made the right choice.
Rating: 
Summary: A Great Big Fun Book
Review: Simply the best book I have read in years. Combines the brilliant high-minded literary style of a DeLillo with the accessability of a story to which we can all relate. Moving, hysterical, brilliantly inspiring, it is a book that never bores, never lets up and never stops taking our breath away at Franzen's tremendous talent.
Rating:
Summary: Baby, what a big surprise.
Review: This was much better than I thought it was going to be. The first few pages of the book that you can read here on Amazon don't do the rest of the book justice. Granted, the book has clunkers every few pages. One that made me roll my eyes was (and I believe I'm quoting correctly): "The air was the color of car sickness." What the heck does that mean?Anyway, Franzen gives you a big clue to the first part of the novel in the actions of one of his characters. This character is writing a screenplay, and evidently (we never see it) the first fifteen pages are a dry discussion of some tepid backwater topic in literary criticism, because it's post-modern to give the audience a hump to get over before they get to the actual meat of the piece. I think the "hump" of this novel is the first section, because once you get past that, this novel is actually a good read. Franzen is quite the stylist, and he hits just the right balance between precious and fun. Now, this is still an unrepentant post-modern novel, so everything is gloomy, everything smells or looks bad, only terrible things happen to nasty people, there is nothing upbeat, there are no heroes. The book is not "funny" as the gushing jacket copy claims. However, it is engrossing and it manages not to put you off with the degradations of the plot (what there is of it) and the characters. I enjoyed this novel in spite of myself. That's a pretty good accomplishment on Franzen's part (to win someone over who was determined to hate his book), don't you think?
Rating: 
Summary: Why didn't I like this book?
Review: There was so much praise for this book I actually felt guilty for not enjoying it. Then I kinda got mad at myself and the book. I mean it's not a bad book, I kinda like Franzen writing, it just seemed to go nowhere. The middle class angst, the dysfunctional family, the oh so flawed characters. It's as if Franzen took all the latest "hip" themes and just mixed 'em all up like some big bowl of Jello fruit salad. Now, I enjoy Jello fruit salad, I love the way it looks, and I'll always have a bite or two, but I can't stomach nearly 600 pages of Jello fruit salad.
Rating:
Summary: Wow!
Review: Once I started, I couldn't stop reading this book. It is a startlingly accurate portrayal of Midwestern small-town family life; I caught myself nodding more than once as I recognized aspects of my own childhood growing up in rural Illinois, and I think everyone, no matter where or when they grew up, will see at least a little of their own family in the Lamberts. Though there were moments that seemed just a little TOO unbelieveable, on the whole this book's "realness" impressed me greatly; the characters are painfully, beautifully human and were portrayed with a vividness that drew me into their lives and made them seem like old friends of mine. The Corrections is extremely well-written, sharply funny, and sometimes very poignant novel. Don't miss this book!
Rating:
Summary: big,ambitious, serious, and very good
Review: I was deeply moved by this novel. It is about how a family deals with growing old and growing up, with all the tics of suburban despair, marriage wars, failed careers, and confused sexuality. In other words, it is a modern and realistic novel written in the broad-brush approaches of Balzac and Tolstoy; individuals as well as the broader society are portrayed. WHile I have met people who disliked all the book's protagonists as they made bad decisions and hurt a lot inside, I liked virtually all of them. They are painfully believable and sad in their isolation, which the omniscent narrator presents in a wonderful, shifting perspective that moves backwards and forwards in time and comes to rest on crucial moments of consequence and change. I think that many readers from similar backgrounds will find a lot of themselves in this book and will empathise with the characters. They also grow and evolve in realistic ways through the course of the novel, as their roles shift within the family equilibrium. There are also many funny scenes, however bitter sweet, that can be read on many levels. In terms of my personal preferences, I was happy to observe that this novel does not get into the dreamy "surrealism lite" that many popular American novelists indulge in to excess, such as Don Delillo. It is very realistic throughout, even if some of it appears exagerated at times. It is also beautifully written, indeed superbly. In addition, while dealing with a lot of sex, the author masterfully treads the fine line of description and titillation without ever venturing into pure pornography. I found that refreshing. THere are flaws in the book. SOme of the descriptions, as critics noted, are strangely clinical or scientific. There are too many incidents packed into detailed scenes, which can overburden the plot while seeking to advance it. Nonetheless, this novel is achingly close to being truly first rate and I can only anticipate better novels from this talented writer in the future. Warmly recommended.
Rating:
Summary: Pretentious load of you know what!
Review: I read somewhere that Mr. Franzen believes his novels should be transforming. How can they be? He is one of those writers who is more interested in dazzling us with endless lists of newly minted metaphorical turns of phrase than he is in satisfying readers. Yes, there's a point somewhere in all this drivel, but you have dig through a load of metaphor and simile to reach it. There are so many words, I felt like the kid who digs through a pile of excrement to get to the pony that must be there somewhere. No wonder Oprah wanted this book for her show. All of her book club books share a distinctly bleak view of people. The Corrections does too. There's not one person who is the least bit likeable. As someone else here among customer reviews said, I wanted to like this book. Perhaps Mr. Franzen is an acquired taste.
Rating:
Summary: More than just a dysfunctional family drama
Review: I bought this book on a lark and ended up enjoying this book about as much as I've enjoyed any book in a long time. I'm a bit surprised at the reactions of some of my friends who have read the book and the reactions of some of the reviewers here on Amazon. While I recognize there are some difficulties with the book, overall, I think Franzen weaves a highly entertaining tale about a midwestern family and constructs a story that's strangely heartwarming at the end. The beginning of the book is admittedly a bit painful to read. Franzen attempts to draw us into the world of Parkinson's Disease/dimentia by use of his narrative style in the opening chapter/prologue. Once past that section, however, (and once the reader gets past another similar narrative later on in the book) it's hard to put the book down. Something is constantly happening, and I was continuously surprised at how deftly Franzen moved between different time periods and different stories of the individual family members with a series of fairly seamless transitions. Franzen's narrative really drew me into the story, and by the end, I felt I really knew each character as well as I could know any fictitious character. While each had his/her failings, in the end, Franzen had me caring about what happened to all of them in spite of their faults, and sometimes, because of them. For me, the ending was strangely uplifting in a way. Without spoiling it here, the characters' stories are wrapped up in a fashion that was, to me, very heartwarming. Franzen's writing style is fluid, crisp, and fun to read. I wish I did anything half as well as Franzen can write. I've recommended this book to everyone I know who enjoys reading.
Rating:
Summary: An immediate book
Review: ...The opening of this book actually caused me to put it down and quit reading for three months. I call this an immediate book because it instantly drew me in to its world. I am not easily drawn, and I have no patience for weak writing, and I also tire quickly of books filled with unlikeable characaters and families full of dysfunction. But Franzen has just enough cleverness and humor mixed in with the problems his characters bring onto themselves that kept me actually devouring most of the novel. Yes, some of the scenes are just a little too manipulative and there may be a tiny bit of suspension of disbelief required here and there, but I found those to be a small price to pay for the overall pleasure of the dialogue and description. Franzen does accurately capture the problems that keep many families in America from understanding each other and getting along. I also think he describes the descent into the dementia of Parkinson's wonderfully.
| 
