Rating: 
Summary: Excellent!!
Review: Ignatius T. Riely is rude. Ignatius T. Riely is fat. Ignatius T. Riely is a loud, obnoxious, over-educated, under-achieving boob of a man. Yet somehow, when it comes to life, he just gets it.Not only is this book funny as hell, it is deliciously thought-provoking wonderfully written. Worthy of as many stars as possible.
Rating: 
Summary: A lonely fence-sitter
Review: I've been struggling with this review for quite a while, trying very hard to take a stand on how I feel about this book. It's a book beloved by so many people (my husband among them), yet it's reviled by probably equally as many. I had a very hard time determining which side I was on. I think I may be one of the very few sitting on the fence. Toole's characterization of Ignatius is indeed a brilliant portrayal of a self-centered, lazy, cynical and repulsive man, but I had a hard time finding his exploits funny. I've met people like Ignatius, and quite frankly, I want to get away from them, not indulge them as they attempt to skew the rest of the world their way. I truly despised Ignatius, and couldn't wait to finish the book to be rid of him. But, how can I fault an author who managed to evoke such a strong feeling of disgust from me? That's obviously the result of some darn fine writing. The story flows smoothly, combining Ignatius' misadventures with those of the other characters in a climactic conclusion that brought them all together an effectively amusing little tangle. So here I sit on the fence - I don't want to meet Ignatius again any time soon, but I don't regret having spent a little time with him.
Rating: 
Summary: don't understand all the stars
Review: I've gotten into arguments about whether this book is any good. OK, reasonable minds may differ, but I'm baffled by the 400-500 positive reviews of this novel. I don't know how it rates as Literature (O'Toole obviously put a lot of effort into it anyway), but the story is uninteresting and the humor is utterly sophomoric. Imagine someone inserting chopsticks up his nostrils for laughs--that's what this book is like, somehow. When I tried reading it in high school (when I would read just about anything), I lost interest quickly; it was only a couple years ago that--after hearing someone rave about it again--I managed to slog through to the end. Boring boring boring. I'm not going to change anyone's mind by writing a long critique of it--which would be nothing against the avalanche of praise hereabouts. All I'm going to do is try to list some books and other stuff I DO find funny, or not funny: --> Some books and stuff I DO find funny: Catch-22; The 776 Stupidest Things Ever Said; Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy (esp. Restaurant at the End of the Universe); This is Spinal Tap; Wayne's World; Groundhog Day; The Darwin Awards; The Far Side; Seinfeld; Liar's Poker; The Onion (1/3 of the time); Letterman in the 80s-mid 90s; Saturday Nite Live when it was still any good; early Eddie Murphy standup routines; Mike Luckovich --> Some books and stuff I DON'T find funny: Austin Power II (didn't catch the first one); The Onion (2/3 of the time); SNL in the past 5-6 years (the lame jokes are not that different from O'Toole's); Steve Martin; recent Eddie Murphy movies; Art Buchwald. So that's me, and I DON'T find Confederacy funny at all. I know there are probably a lot of people who'd agree with me about all of the above picks--and yet still find Confederacy funny. There's no accounting for it. But I'll suggest that, if you just try reading the first 3 pages of the book, and you're not amused by it already, you never will be.
Rating:
Summary: not my style
Review: Confederacy of Dunces is brilliantly written and as a book probably deserves more stars than I gave it. But if, like me, you cannot like a book if you detest all the characters, you will not enjoy this one. If that's not a problem for you, go right ahead. Confederacy has biting wit, very in-depth characters, and some wonderful social observation. But don't expect to sympathize with anyone for more than a few pages.
Rating:
Summary: a dud
Review: Although I'm usually pretty critical of books, it takes a lot in order for me to give a book only one star. I picked this one up because it had won a Pulitzer and I was going to New Orleans soon and wanted some relevant (fictional) reading. I don't deny that Toole had some ambitious aims when he began this book--and yes, I agree it's a satire. But I didn't find it that effective because I could barely recognize humanity in these people. I usually think of satire as a social criticism involving humor and exaggeration. This book is filled with exaggerations--but I really didn't find it funny at all. Moreover, I could see what types of connections the author was trying to make with his critique, but I didn't find them at all compelling or even believable. In fact, I found the casting to be trite and ill-formed and am forced to agree with previous reviewers in saying that the majority of the book seemed redundant and annoying.
Rating:
Summary: Brilliance in hidding
Review: The words often found between the torn and tattered pages of waterlogged books are seldom those of pure brilliance, and not pure as in real, but pure as in straight from the depths of the earth spring water pure. In John Kennedy Toole's Confederacy of Dunces, pure brilliance cannot describe the literature present. Artistic views and ideals flow from the pages like a waterfall, sticking in the depths of the readers' brain, forever more, till death do you part. Brilliance is proclaimed in the first paragraph of the first page, with the eloquent and detailed description of the main character. " A green hunting cap squeezed the top of the fleshy balloon of a head. The green earflaps, full of large ears and uncut hair and the fine bristles that grew in the ears themselves, stuck out on either side like turn signals indication two directions at once. Full pursed lips protruded beneath the bushy black moustache and, at their corners, sank into little folds filled with disapproval and potato chip crumbs. In the shadow under the green visor of the cap Ignatius J. Reilly's supercilious blue and yellow eyes looked down upon the other people waiting under the clock at the D. H. Holmes department store, studying the crowd of people for signs of bad taste in dress." It is inconceivable that anyone would not want to read this book. A modern day Don Quixote, Ignatius proclaims his fame early in the book, making a scene regardless of his actual actions. He is accused of being a 'vagrant' by an Officer Mancuso, and after an on foot chase scene through the streets of the French Quarter, New Orleans, Ignatius' mother, a blatant alcoholic, hurdles her car into the side of a building after a little too much of grandpa's old cough medicine, and sends Ignatius out onto the street. How a person like Ignatius could ever survive in the world today is by all means, implausible. He appears to have a knack for finding just the wrong place to be at just the right time. He is a failure at alphabetizing anything, and could never sell any kind of food if his life depended on it, because regardless of how bloated he becomes, he seems to never stop eating. He somehow finds his way to a strictly gay party, attempts a speech, is hurled into the street, and becomes the mantle piece of an illegal-deal crack down. How one person, especially someone such as this, could ever get themselves into these kinds of situations is most likely the only unbelievable part of this book. But the brilliance is not in Ignatius, although he pertains to be the smartest character in the book. The driving forces behind this book are the supporting characters. Many books today have main characters that develop throughout the book, also known as a round character. In these books, the supporting characters are the ones that always stay the same, a flat character. Toole had the audacity to flip the system, and play with it. Ignatius J. Reilly on page 394 is the same Ignatius J. Reilly as the one on page 1, aside from a few more bruises, physically and mentally. Mrs. Trixie, Mrs. Reilly, Mr. Levy, Mrs. Levy, Officer Mancuso, and Gonzalez all become different people, because of Ignatius. This talented and artistic style of writing is sure to bring about new and creative styles that no one will be able to resist.
Rating: 
Summary: The Confederacy of the Dunces
Review: The Confederacy of the Dunces
By Drew Young The Confederacy of the Dunces is a book written by John Kennedy Toole. This book is an enjoyable read, and it always keeps you on your toes. The main character, Ignatius J. Reilly is a thirty-year-old man who lives with his mother in New Orleans. He is well educated, but he just sits at home writing on big peaces of paper on what he thinks the world should look like. He goes through a hard time when his mother forces him to get a job to pay off debt. The events that follow are humorous and entertaining to any reader.
The things that made this book interesting and good were, the unique characters, the characters personality, and the way the two plots were brought together in the end. The main character Ignatius comes across as a person who thinks he is the smartest person in the world. He is a large person with a unique personality and is often described as a whale with a mustache. He has a green hunting cap with flaps and he puts the flaps up when he listens and puts them down when he talks. His mother, who takes care of Ignatius, is a nice lady who has no friends. As the book progress she finds love, and becomes more social. Dealing with Ignatius's problems drove her to drink. At a point she gets frustrated with her son, and asks him to get a job. No job could fit Ignatius unique personality. The other thing that makes the book interesting is the way they have two plots run at the same time and they make no sense until almost two thirds of the way through the book. The author did a good job of making lose ends come together nicely at the end of the book.
The thing I enjoyed most about is book is the way the author incorporated humor into the novel. This is probably the first novel I have ever read where I have laughed out loud while reading. However, Toole jumped into a plot with out warning. In the first chapter the author introduced the characters and the plot, but he did it in a way that I hadn't expected. This book was an enjoyable read, and the author's sense of humor was enjoyable. I suggest you read this book.
Rating:
Summary: A Confederacy of Dunces book review
Review: The book, A Confederacy of Dunces, which was written by John Kennedy Toole, was far from intriguing. From the first sentence you could tell that it was not going to be an entertaining book. The lack of interest of the book came from the lack of personality of his characters. Toole's writing is descriptive but not enjoyable to the reader. He does not keep the reader wanting to come back to the book each night.
Ignatius, who was the main character, was a 30 year old man who still lives with his widowed mother. He is a very lazy nonsocial man who thinks that the world is out to get him. He hardly ever has a job, and when he does it is either as a hot dog vender or at a pant maker, which neither of them pay much money. Since he graduated from college and he received his Masters degree, you would think that he would have done something with his life. Ignatius' mother, Mrs. Reilly, who is an out of work widow, spoils her son to no end. Deep down she hates how her son is so lazy and thinks that he is very annoying. She worries that he will never find anyone to marry. Ignatius hardly ever comes out of his room and when he does it is to go some where with his mother and that is finally starting to bug Mrs. Reilly. She never gets any time alone to hang out with friends until she meets Santa, officer Mancuso's aunt.
Even though Toole puts every aspect of an American society in his book, he still is missing something to grab the attention of the reader. I would not recommend reading this book. I think this is just a waste of time and you don't get anything out of the book. There is no enjoyment.
Rating:
Summary: ~ A Confederacy of Dunces ~
Review: The novel A Confederacy of Dunces written by John Kennedy Toole is very unique. This particular novel takes place in New Orleans, one of the most infamous cities in America. New Orleans is generally known for its "upbeat" life style, which mainly consists of diverse people and parties. This setting alone would cause for a very interesting and original novel, filled with the many adventures...
The novel starts off with a physical description of the main character, Ignatius J. Reilly, which allows the reader to use their imagination and become interested in the character/surroundings. He is a 34-year-old man that lives at home with his mother, in which he is totally dependant on. Ignatius has a good college education and is smart, however, he has never been able to obtain a long-term job. He has many hopes and dreams of being a writer someday and he often writes, and/or expresses himself in his "Big Chiesf Tablets". (personal journal) His mother, Irene, is a very nice woman. She takes care of Ignatius and meets his every need. Throughout the novel, one may often find themselves feeling bad for Irene because she spends most of her time waiting on Ignatius "hand-and-foot" and does not seem to have much of a social life that she can call her own.
Ignatius is a very unique and unpredictable man. He does not give into the confinements of society, which makes him standout in public. Society often judges Ignatius by his appearance. The reader is able to see this instantaneously in the first chapter when Ignatius is outside on Canal Street, waiting for his mother to return from a doctor appointment for her arthritis. He is just standing there, not doing anything wrong when all of a sudden; a police officer arrests him because he thought that Ignatius looked "suspicious". This is just one of the circumstances in the novel in which Ignatius is judged.
Ignatius and his mother, Irene, were very upset with the situation and decided to go and have a drink at a local bar called The Night of Joy. The two of them each consume a few drinks and then they jump in the car where Irene tries to drive while being under the influence of alcohol. She ends up running into a town building and causes a damage of $1, 020. Ignatius is then forced to put aside his hopes and dreams and face reality; he was going to have to find a job to support his mother. After numerous unsuccessful job interviews, Ignatius finally gets a job at a factory called Levy Pants. However, this job did not last for long because Ignatius swas fired after he attempted to assemble and lead the employees of Levy Pants in a demonstration to "get rid of" Mr. Gonzala. He convinced all of the workers to rebel against Mr. Gonzala due to the low wages, poor working conditions, and long hours at the factory. This demonstration failed. Ignatius then got himself a job with "Paradise Hot Dogs", being a vendor, where he encountered many new and interesting people.
Over the course of the novel A Confederacy of Dunces, John Kennedy Toole takes the reader on a unique adventure through the life of Ignatius J. Reilly. Ignatius meets many new people and throughout the novel the reader is able to see the changes in Ignatius's life and the lives of the people that he comes in contact with. This style of writing is very effective in indulging the reader. This novel gets the reader curious as to what comes next in the story, which makes one want to continue reading until the last page of the novel...
Rating:
Summary: A Confederacy of Dunces
Review: A Confederacy of Dunces. John Kennedy Toole. New York: Grove Press, 1980. 394 pg. Many high school students detest reading novels. Students have come to hate reading because of dry, slow, or overly difficult novels chosen by their teachers. A Confederacy of Dunces by John Kennedy Toole is a perfect example of this type of novel. The story is about Ignatius, an obese man in his thirties that still lives with his mother and always stumbles into unusual situations. The slow plot and the ineffectiveness of the novel to captivate the reader only further restrain the reader's ability to enjoy the novel. Because of this disability, readers will find it difficult to empathize with Ignatius. A Confederacy of Dunces was long, drawn out, difficult to read and utterly pointless.
The author's style is very unique. John Toole uses precise words for describing not only character's emotions, but also everything else, "A green hunting cap squeezed the top of the fleshy balloon of a head. The green earflaps, full of large ears and uncut hair and the fine bristles that grew in the ears themselves, stuck out on either side like turn signals indicating two directions at once," (1). In this, the very first sentence of the story, the reader understands what an fatiguing read this novel will be. Because of the extensive descriptions the book seems ten times longer than it is. In Ignatius' diary, Toole uses language that is difficult to follow and focus on because of the complicated phrases and his long descriptions. For example, "We must hasten back on the wings of prose to the factory and its folk, who prompted my rather lengthy digression...and subsequent pratfall the sources of a great feeling of camaraderie."(123). The slow moving plot is another reason as to why the book is laborious to read. It is hard to concentrate and keep focus when there is so little action in the story and so much repetition.
This constant repetition becomes annoying and tedious to read. The entire story is surrounded by Ignatius' entries continuously repeating what has already been said. For instance, the reader finds out from an eye-witness account from Mr. Levy that, ""What are you people doing down there on the floor?"(86). Again the reader gets another account of the situation, when just pages later Mr. Levy states, [...] When I went there this morning everybody was on the floor. Don't ask me what they were doing. It could have been anything," (98). Unsurprisingly, the same instance is brought up again this time in Ignatius's journal, " My downfall occurred literally [...] and I plummeted to the floor [...]," (122). While Toole tries to allow the reader to see from the different character's point of views, he just makes it more lengthy and dull.
The author's style and the weak connection between the characters and reader made John Kennedy Toole's novel, A Confederacy of Dunces, monotonous and unexciting. I would not recommend this book to anyone ... but there are always exceptions to any rule. To people who have a large vocabulary or who have trouble sleeping at night; this is the book for you.
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