Rating: 
Summary: 3 and 1/2 stars...Pretty Good considering the length!
Review: I positively dreaded having to read this book for a class and I can't relate how relieved I was to find it enjoyable! Once you get past the idea of the sheer girth of the book, you begin to realize what a humorous writer Henry Fielding was.
The story is about Tom Jones, a hero. What's fabulous about Tom is that he is a "base-born" orphan and ut is this alone that is the cause of all of his troubles. Throughout the nine hundred pages of the novel, Tom is chasing after his true love, Sophia Western, and getting nowhere fast. The world itself seems to be keeping them apart. Every time he finds a way, an obstacle is thrown across his path.
In many ways the novel reminds me of something Dickens would have written if his sense of humor had been just a bit more intense.
It's true, there are parts, usually in the beginnings of the chapters where the author goes off about things seemingly unrelated, but you will quickly develop an eye for this and learn what can feasibly "be skipped."
The story travels through all kinds of Tom's crazy adventures and believe it or not, a major mystery is revealed at the end that is sure to surprise even the biggest stick in the mud.
Not only was the story entertaining but, upon finishing it, you are likely to feel an overwhelming sense of accomplishment as it is one of the longest novels written in the English language!
It truly is a book you take hold of in the winter months, or any time when you have large chunks of time to spend in doors.
Every one who reads this review should at least attempt it! It is an affordable world classic, and it is not every day that you talk to someone who can claim they read it.
Rating: 
Summary: an epic comedy
Review: I was first drawn towards "Tom Jones" when I heard about the controversy that surrounded its publication. "Proper" Englishmen were naturally ruffled by Fielding's dead on satirical depictions of the English upper class and by his disregard for their accepted code of ethics, and declared the book to be insulting and evil. Since all of my favorite movies and books had legions of people seething when they were first released, I figured "Tom Jones" belonged in my collection.
Apart from being amusingly raunchy for its time, it is also tremendously well-written and absorbing, drawing the reader into its richly detailed English countryside setting and its vibrant characters. The plot moves gradually, but never tediously, because to Fielding minor escapades and subplots are as important as the larger picture, and often factor unexpectantly in the central plot. Thus the book is very lively and animated despite its length, moving through a massive cast of characters, and a number of amusing charicatures and grotesques. Fielding is not above slapstick and lowbrow humor; he will follow up an eloquent exchange of witticisms with an absurd mudfight. If the reader can't learn to laugh with Fielding the book may become tiresome. The frequency of unlikely coincidences in particular seemed to be a test of the reader's patience, but I came to realize that Fielding intended it as a parody of his contemporaries. He is ruthlessly critical of his own literature and that of others.
The book is interesting historically, both as a detailed panorama of 18th century England and as a prototype of the great comic epics of Dickens and Thackeray. Its comic technique was revolutionary, and it is a classic belongs in every serious library.
Rating:
Summary: Great book, cheap edition
Review: I'm reading this book in the Wordsworth Classics edition now (about 150 pages from the end). Obviously, this is one of the world's great books--I particularly enjoy the essays the begin each section. One word of caution--buy a well-constructed edition, there are simply too many pages for a cheaply made version to stand up even to a single reading. At this point, I've resigned myself to the fact that I'm going to have to purchase a better edition for my book shelf, and I'm throwing away the old pages as I go.
Rating:
Summary: A comedy classic for all time
Review: It says a great deal for "Tom Jones" that after more than 200 years, it's still as fresh and alive as it was when Henry Fielding wrote it. Tom is a foundling who turns up in good Squire Allworthy's bed on the night he is born; he's given the surname of Jones because the household believes that his mother is Jenny Jones, a local lady of somewhat easy virtue. Squire Allworthy, out of pity for the foundling, raises him as his own son, along with his loathsome nephew Blifil, but it looks like Tom and his supposed mother have more than a little in common. To put it bluntly, Tom is no better than he should be. He's wild, rowdy, a womanizer, perpetually in some kind of trouble; but his heart is in the right place even if he thinks with the wrong head most of the time. He's kind, decent, affectionate, generous to a fault, everything his sneaky, tattle-tale, obnoxious cousin isn't. He's also in love with his neighbor Squire Western's daughter Sophia, who is very much in love with him; but Western has decided that Sophia is to marry not Tom but Blifil, and Sophia can't stand the creep. So when Tom is turned out of Allworthy's house on a trumped-up charge of aiding and abetting a criminal, Sophia runs away from her father's house to avoid being forced into marrying Blifil, and they both make their separate ways to London, where the book's action culminates.Fielding crafted his novel almost perfectly; of the 18 chapters in the book, the first third take place on Squire Allworthy's and Squire Western's country estates, the second third on the road to London, and the third in London itself. In the exact middle of the book is the hilarious adventure at the inn at Upton, where all the characters, unknown to each other, briefly converge. When the characters all come together in London, Tom finds out his real parentage, Blifil gets what he deserves, and the story, like all good stories, ends happily ever after. The most common criticism leveled at Fielding and "Tom Jones" when it was first published was that it was crass, low-down and didn't set the high moral tone expected of writers of his time. Fielding pulled no punches in writing this book. One of his most delicious characters is the hard-drinking, ham-fisted Squire Western, who has all the finesse of a bull in a china closet and calls it as he sees it (his description of Lady Bellaston is dead-on); and in Jenny Jones, he presents a lady of ill-repute in so sympathetic and likeable a way that she appeals to us much more than if she had been a prim and proper female. But Fielding knows what moral and immoral really are; Tom Jones, for all his faults, is truly good, just as Blifil, for all his pious moralizing, is truly evil. What's most refreshing about "Tom Jones" is that Fielding has presented us with characters that are truly believable; we see them in three dimensions, warts and all. "Tom Jones" brings us 18th century England as it was; raw, vibrant, bursting with life and energy. It's a book for its own time, our time, and all time.
Rating:
Summary: A comedy classic for all time
Review: It says a great deal for "Tom Jones" that after more than 200 years, it's still as fresh and alive as it was when Henry Fielding wrote it. Tom is a foundling who turns up in good Squire Allworthy's bed on the night he is born; he's given the surname of Jones because the household believes that his mother is Jenny Jones, a local lady of somewhat easy virtue. Squire Allworthy, out of pity for the foundling, raises him as his own son, along with his loathsome nephew Blifil, but it looks like Tom and his supposed mother have more than a little in common. To put it bluntly, Tom is no better than he should be. He's wild, rowdy, a womanizer, perpetually in some kind of trouble; but his heart is in the right place even if he thinks with the wrong head most of the time. He's kind, decent, affectionate, generous to a fault, everything his sneaky, tattle-tale, obnoxious cousin isn't. He's also in love with his neighbor Squire Western's daughter Sophia, who is very much in love with him; but Western has decided that Sophia is to marry not Tom but Blifil, and Sophia can't stand the creep. So when Tom is turned out of Allworthy's house on a trumped-up charge of aiding and abetting a criminal, Sophia runs away from her father's house to avoid being forced into marrying Blifil, and they both make their separate ways to London, where the book's action culminates. Fielding crafted his novel almost perfectly; of the 18 chapters in the book, the first third take place on Squire Allworthy's and Squire Western's country estates, the second third on the road to London, and the third in London itself. In the exact middle of the book is the hilarious adventure at the inn at Upton, where all the characters, unknown to each other, briefly converge. When the characters all come together in London, Tom finds out his real parentage, Blifil gets what he deserves, and the story, like all good stories, ends happily ever after. The most common criticism leveled at Fielding and "Tom Jones" when it was first published was that it was crass, low-down and didn't set the high moral tone expected of writers of his time. Fielding pulled no punches in writing this book. One of his most delicious characters is the hard-drinking, ham-fisted Squire Western, who has all the finesse of a bull in a china closet and calls it as he sees it (his description of Lady Bellaston is dead-on); and in Jenny Jones, he presents a lady of ill-repute in so sympathetic and likeable a way that she appeals to us much more than if she had been a prim and proper female. But Fielding knows what moral and immoral really are; Tom Jones, for all his faults, is truly good, just as Blifil, for all his pious moralizing, is truly evil. What's most refreshing about "Tom Jones" is that Fielding has presented us with characters that are truly believable; we see them in three dimensions, warts and all. "Tom Jones" brings us 18th century England as it was; raw, vibrant, bursting with life and energy. It's a book for its own time, our time, and all time.
Rating: 
Summary: The Story of a Foundling
Review: It was about time I read "Tom Jones." Fielding's 1749 novel gives us a panoramic view of 18th century British life. Its titular hero journeys among the low- and high-born trying to find his way in a world in which he occupies a precarious position. Fielding uses the sprawl of 800 pages to explore a multitude of social, political, and literary issues, gluing them together with an exquisitely outlandish, fully embodied sense of humour. The action of the novel begins with a view of the Allworthy family, a landed gentleman, Thomas Allworthy and his sister, Bridget. Into this family is dropped an orphan, a foundling - a child, if you will, of questionable parentage. This child, Tom Jones, is raised alongside Bridget's child, Blifil, as relative equals. Both are tutored by two ideologues, the philosopher Square and the theologian Thwackum. Jones is a precocious, free-spirited youngster, spoiled by Allworthy while Blifil, the heir apparent to the estate, becomes the favourite pupil and spoiled accordingly by his mother. As the two youths age, Tom develops a fondness for the neighbour's daughter, Sophia Western. Tom's sexual development begins to get him in trouble, as it tends to throughout the novel, and as a result of one such incident, coupled with the goading jealousy of Blifil, Tom is driven out of the Allworthy home, left to seek his fortunes in the world. Meeting his supposed father, Partridge, on the road, the two begin a quixotic ramble across England. Sophia, meanwhile, pressured into marrying Blifil, runs away from home, beginning her own voyage of discovery. "Tom Jones" begins with the narrator likening literature to a meal, in which the paying customer comes expecting to be entertained and satisfied. All 18 books of "Tom Jones" start out with such authorial intrusions, each cluing us into the writer's craft, his interactions with his public, and various other topics. This voice is actually sustained throughout the novel, providing a supposedly impartial centre of moral value judgments - each of which seems to tend toward enforce Fielding's project of a realistic, and yet, didactic portrayal of a world full of flawed characters. Some of the issues the novel deals most extensively with are modes of exchange, anxieties over female agency, and the power of rumour and reputation. Exchange and the ways in which value is figured include a wide range of goods - money, bodies, food, and stories - and are integral to the story. The treatment of women is a great concern in "Tom Jones": from Partridge's perpetual fear of witchcraft to the raging arguments between Squire Western and his sister over how Sophia should be treated, to general concerns about sexuality and virtue. A novel that can be in turns hilarious, disturbing, and provoking, "Tom Jones" is never dull. Despite its size, the pace of the novel is extremely fast and lively. So, get thee to a superstore and obtain thyself a copy of this excellent and highly entertaining novel.
Rating:
Summary: The Story of a Foundling
Review: It was about time I read "Tom Jones." Fielding's 1749 novel gives us a panoramic view of 18th century British life. Its titular hero journeys among the low- and high-born trying to find his way in a world in which he occupies a precarious position. Fielding uses the sprawl of 800 pages to explore a multitude of social, political, and literary issues, gluing them together with an exquisitely outlandish, fully embodied sense of humour. The action of the novel begins with a view of the Allworthy family, a landed gentleman, Thomas Allworthy and his sister, Bridget. Into this family is dropped an orphan, a foundling - a child, if you will, of questionable parentage. This child, Tom Jones, is raised alongside Bridget's child, Blifil, as relative equals. Both are tutored by two ideologues, the philosopher Square and the theologian Thwackum. Jones is a precocious, free-spirited youngster, spoiled by Allworthy while Blifil, the heir apparent to the estate, becomes the favourite pupil and spoiled accordingly by his mother. As the two youths age, Tom develops a fondness for the neighbour's daughter, Sophia Western. Tom's sexual development begins to get him in trouble, as it tends to throughout the novel, and as a result of one such incident, coupled with the goading jealousy of Blifil, Tom is driven out of the Allworthy home, left to seek his fortunes in the world. Meeting his supposed father, Partridge, on the road, the two begin a quixotic ramble across England. Sophia, meanwhile, pressured into marrying Blifil, runs away from home, beginning her own voyage of discovery. "Tom Jones" begins with the narrator likening literature to a meal, in which the paying customer comes expecting to be entertained and satisfied. All 18 books of "Tom Jones" start out with such authorial intrusions, each cluing us into the writer's craft, his interactions with his public, and various other topics. This voice is actually sustained throughout the novel, providing a supposedly impartial centre of moral value judgments - each of which seems to tend toward enforce Fielding's project of a realistic, and yet, didactic portrayal of a world full of flawed characters. Some of the issues the novel deals most extensively with are modes of exchange, anxieties over female agency, and the power of rumour and reputation. Exchange and the ways in which value is figured include a wide range of goods - money, bodies, food, and stories - and are integral to the story. The treatment of women is a great concern in "Tom Jones": from Partridge's perpetual fear of witchcraft to the raging arguments between Squire Western and his sister over how Sophia should be treated, to general concerns about sexuality and virtue. A novel that can be in turns hilarious, disturbing, and provoking, "Tom Jones" is never dull. Despite its size, the pace of the novel is extremely fast and lively. So, get thee to a superstore and obtain thyself a copy of this excellent and highly entertaining novel.
Rating:
Summary: Henry Fielding -- the man I'd most want to share a beer with
Review: It was so hard finally putting this book down. The friends you make! Tom, Sophia, Allworthy, even Western himself. But most of all, Henry Fielding. The humor, the humanity! What an author and what a man. And to think he
penned his comic masterpiece in his darkest days. With all that, Tom Jones can be tough going. The
language requires you read fairly slowly. And the
novel is huge. And the plot is intricate. You may benefit from book notes; I did, especially
during the second half. If you love Tom Jones, check out Thackeray's
Vanity Fair. And Guerney's translation of Gogol's
Dead Souls. While you're at it, grab The Brothers Karamazov
and go crazy.
Rating:
Summary: A long read. . . but well worth it. . .Guffaw your heart out
Review: Journey with a guy with much testosterone, but a HUGE heart. I was not looking forward to reading this book for my 18th Century British novel class, but upon starting to read I found it to be a pleasurable story. This piqaresque novel has a humor that I have seldom encountered in other narratives. What is ironic is that Fielding wrote this piece during one of the most traumatic periods of his life. His wife just passed away, his daughter was dying, and he was inflicted with the gout. One would never think it from the clever way the book is written. The point of view gives us an in so that we feel as if we ourselves have roles in the storyline. Rooting all the way for Tom despite his flaws, we find out more about human nature along the way. A good read, light a candle and sit down with some wine like they would've and enjoy this classic comical delight.
Rating:
Summary: an odd reading experience
Review: Readers will probably be amazed at how modern this book is in a variety of ways. Virtually every sentence is dripping with hilarious irony, and the hypocrisy of various ostensibly pious, upright citizens is pointed out everywhere possible. It's a remarkably kind-hearted book, though, for a work of satire. What makes the experience of reading this odd is the mix of this modernity with the denseness of the writing style. Sprawling sentences abound and there's far more (often hilarious) commentary on action than actual action, though there is definitely no dearth of plot. I found myself spending a lot of time figuring out what the heck a long, convoluted sentence was trying to say quite often. But that said, once I figured it out, I was usually laughing hysterically. All that adds up to a curious creature - a rollicking, yet somewhat slow read. Fascinating and tons of fun.
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