American Literature
This collection of American fiction books was reviewed by teenagers in the Toledo area, and most of these books are still quite common in classrooms. Revisit them, or dive into them for the first time.
The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn
by Mark Twain
- Read the print copy
- Read the ebook through Overdrive/Libby
- Listen to the audiobook through Overdrive/Libby
- Read through Project Gutenberg
Rick Heberling - Anthony Wayne
February 1968: "The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain is the story of a young boy growing up along the banks of the Mississippi River, during the days of the steamboat boom.
The story is both philosophical and humorous. Its covers contain sad and tragic elements such as the killing of a young boy during a feud, Huck's drunken father, and Huck's inability to love Miss Watson. Biting satire of the adult world gives the reader a message and a chuckle. Huck's comments on prejudice, stiff clothes, and manners are so cleverly written that one practically forgets that the book is not only attacking the characters in the story, but also the reader."
Life on the Mississippi
by Mark Twain
- Read the print copy
- Read the ebook through Overdrive/Libby
- Listen to the audiobook through Overdrive/Libby
- Read through Project Gutenberg
Mike Vardinakis - Springfield
April 1966: "In contrast to Twain's Huckleberry Finn, Life on The Mississippi has no true plot. It is a collection of the experiences of Twain and folk tales of the Mississippi. The theme is closely intertwined with Twain's purpose in writing this book. He portrays the vitality and the love the people hold for it. The great Mississippi is life to the river people; they depend on it for their existence and it is the recipient of their dreams. The height of life to the river people is to guide a big steamboat down the mighty Mississippi. This too is Mark Twain's dream. Most of this book is based on this dream and the realization of it.
Although this book is hard to follow in some places, it is interesting and it does have some historic value."
Of Mice and Men
by John Steinbeck
- Read the print copy
- Read the ebook through Overdrive/Libby
- Listen to the audiobook through Overdrive/Libby
Leah Foley - McAuley
February 1966: "Of Mice and Men was a pathetic story of two men. One, a tall, strong ox of a man with a mind of a child, the other a small, sharp-featured man who tried to look out for both. Because of the big one's habit of unwittingly getting into trouble, they were constantly on the run, moving from ranch to ranch getting what work they could.
This novel of John Steinbeck's probes deeply into the moral fabric of our time. His powerful use of description lends a sense of realism but sometimes goes to extremes with an over-use of vulgar language.
The finest aspect of this book, however, was the characterization. Steinbeck goes deeply into all of the characters and makes you feel almost a part of them. This enables you to know why a certain character did what he did. Even such a minor character as the Negro cow-hand is portrayed so well that you can feel his hatred and prejudice toward whites in a matter of a few pages.
Steinbeck's style of writing is similar to that of Hemingway's, very simple. Even so, the impact of the book is not lessened. Of Mice and Men is a story of people, down-to-earth, practical people, and nothing but a simple style of writing would be appropriate.
I found this novel, as Hemingway's Old Man and the Sea, rather depressing. They both seemed to have a basic theme of hopelessness. In Of Mice and Men, it was Lenny and his futile attempt to live successfully with men of adult mentality. In Old Man and the Sea, it was the old man's futile attempt to catch the big fish or to try to accomplish something only a younger, stronger man could."
The Grapes of Wrath
by John Steinbeck
- Read the print copy
- Read the ebook through Overdrive/Libby
- Listen to the audiobook through Overdrive/Libby
Marsha Parks - Whitmer
November 1962: "I was utterly appalled by John Steinbeck's Grapes of Wrath. Before reading it, I was unaware of the poor conditions that existed, and still do exist among the migratory workers.
This book not only presented the truth realistically, but showed the closeness that a family can have. The family in this book knew the true values of life and the struggle for existence life poses.
This book is not a comedy or a book to be taken lightly, I recommend it to the person who wishes to learn through a harsh and thought-provoking book as this is."
George Van Fleet - Anthony Wayne
February 1965: "John Steinbeck's novel, Grapes of Wrath, is brimming with frank realism. He depicts the dust bowl farmers of the Thirties migrating from their impoverished farms, hoping to find work in the promised land of California. History tells us that California was no promised land, however. Steinbeck develops the brutal struggles, the human tragedies that made California a symbol of fear, prejudice, and death for many.
Is this book effective; does it have impact? It was burned in California; banned in Boston. I invite you to read this book which has provoked, at least, an uneasy conscience in many people."
Karen Wilson - Anthony Wayne
November 1965: "This intriguing and fascinating story is one of immeasurable interest to all who read it. The gist of the story is so thought provoking that it truly captures the heart of the reader.
It tells of people who were pushed from their farms. They were tenants of land farms and life was not easy to begin with. With high hopes, they dreamed of California and a "new day" with more opportunities and a chance to grow.
So west it was; and they began their journey to greater and better things. The tragic surprise when at length they reached California was that they were no better off than before. They lived in migrant camps with terrible living conditions. Their language was crude and often vulgar, but beneath this outer core, they had good souls and didn't deserve such a plight in life.
The families were closely knit as a result of their hard times. It brings you close to stark reality with the birth of a baby born dead. Even with all these depressing and seemingly unbearable happenings, they never abandon hope for a brighter tomorrow.
Steinbeck is often criticized for his crude language and bare truth, but really he is just expressing the truth. Beneath all this is a beautiful story of undying hope even though they were facing life in its lowest form."
The Catcher in the Rye
by J.D. Salinger
Marcia Mazziotti - Whitmer
April 1962: "Catcher in the" Rye by J.D. Salinger is an absorbing and moving novel. It is a book that goes deep into reality and creates an individual out of imagination and words. It is the story of sixteen-year-old Holden Caulfield, a boy lost who wants badly to find himself. He is a young boy of well-to-do parents who has no purpose and thus has been sent from one expensive prep-school to another. He goes underground in New York for forty-eight hours when he is unable to overcome the confusion that has come into his life. It is a book of rare feeling and will excite emotions of happiness, sadness, wonder and concern in the reader."
Bruce Mac Innis - Anthony Wayne
February 1964: "The Catcher in the Rye is an account of a 16-year-old boy's weekend in New York "searching for himself"(a conveniently meaningless phrase).
Holden Caulfield, the protagonist, is a peculiar combination of semi-adult emotion, and three-year-old logic. It must be admitted, though, that Salinger makes no pretense of creating a typical teenager. However, even with his prep-school education and sophisticated background, Holden seems quite unreal.
The plot, on the whole, is difficult to follow, and the situations highly improbable.
Catcher in the Rye does not make particularly good reading, and if taken seriously, presents a sordid and distorted view of adolescence."
Judy Twitchell - Clay
February 1968: "A great deal has been said about Mr. J.D. Salinger. Some claim his writing is nothing but filth, while others say he is a 'curious mid-century literary phenomenon.'
Regardless of your impression of Mr. Salinger's writing, his book, The Catcher in the Rye, has a very deep and thought provoking message. Every point Mr. Salinger makes is accentuated with creative symbolism.
Holden, the main character, is found craving the innocence of children and abhorring the phoniness of adulthood. The language used, although disgusting to some, is as much a part of Holden as roof is part of a house. Without the language, Holden could be just any person. The language sets his mood, displays his character, and conveys his objectives."
The Great Gatsby
by F. Scott Fitzgerald
- Read the print copy
- Read the ebook through Overdrive/Libby
- Listen to the audiobook through Overdrive/Libby
Judy Skeldon - McAuley
February 1966: "Based on the knowledge of the 'lost generation' of the Twentieth Century, this work by F. Scott Fitzgerald vividly expresses the attitude held by these fugitives. They are filled with a constant struggle of mind and conscience. Most of the characters, especially Gatsby, have to struggle at many intervals of life. Gatsby spends a good portion of his life preparing to please Daisy Buchanan, a married girl, who was once his sweetheart. It proves to be a pointless road yet he continues to follow it in search of happiness. The climax finds Daisy at last within reach, but still not touchable. The result causes much despair for Gatsby only too soon to be ended by his death and the point where he still never achieves all that he has struggled for.
Each chapter brings about a deeper and clearer picture of the struggles faced by so many of the characters. The style is brief and straightforward, so as not to distract from the excellent characterization, Fitzgerald is to be commended on using simple direct form, descriptive, yet not outlandish vocabulary, thus allowing the reader to place full emphasis on the deeper meaning contained subtly in his novel."
Tom Rotterdam - St. John's
December 1967: "This book, which takes its name from the main character, is the story of Jay Gatsby, a fictitious millionaire of the 1920's. As a boy, Gatsby lived on a run-down farm in the Midwest. With great ambitions for the future, he ran away, joined the Army, and became a hero of World War I. When Gatsby returned to America, he found that Daisy Fay, the girl he loved, had married wealthy Tom Buchanan. From that time on, the ambitious Gatsby tried to win Daisy back. He created a vast fortune through crooked business ventures and built a life which he designed to please Daisy. But Gatsby's dream ultimately failed.
Through the use of a first-person narrator, the author gives good portraits of all the major characters, especially Jay Gatsby. Fitzgerald also makes this a tight-knit tale with humorous touches to hold the reader's interest.
This combination of a good story and Fitzgerald's style makes The Great Gatsby an enjoyable book."
Our Town
by Thornton Wilder
Judy Twitchell - Clay
May 1967: "Our Town is a striking, eye-opening play presented in a casual, different manner. Thornton Wilder expresses his ideas in such a manner that the reader feels as if he really knows the characters. You are so caught up in the emotions of the characters that you can visualize them and hear exactly what tone of voice they use.
In the play, Mr. Wilder sets the scene in a typical small New Hampshire community. He reviews the stages of life from birth to death. In the last act, which is the most impressing of the three, the prospect of life after death is considered. Your emotions rise and fall with the people being dealt with, for you you feel you have known them a lifetime.
I appreciated this play and would recommend it to any one who appreciates the values of life, and is a serious reader."
The Old Man and the Sea
by Ernest Hemingway
Mary Hessman - Anthony Wayne
April 1962: "Can you imagine what it's, like to be growing old and to be alone? It's not a very comfortable thought, is it?
Santiago had caught no fish in eighty-four days. Perhaps this would be his lucky day. Sure enough, he hooked a huge marlin. However, it towed him far out to sea. He battled the fish many days, existing on his bare rations of raw fish. He finally caught the fish and tied him to the side of the boat. Then his troubles began. Many sharks dove at the fish, taking out as much as forty pounds of flesh at a bite. When Santiago finally got home, he only had the skeleton of the fish. The story is very realistic, written in typical Hemingway style, no words wasted and everything bluntly stated."
Linda Randolph - Anthony Wayne
Spring 1963: "In The Old Man and the Sea, Hemingway has written a vivid description of an old man and a small boy, who is the old man's constant provider and companion. The old man has been a fisherman all of his life and has been toughened by the sun and the sea. He taught the small boy how to fish in the deep waters off the coast of Cuba.
After eighty-four days of bad luck, the old man went out alone in his boat; farther out than he had ever been before. He finally hooked a huge fish which dragged him around for days.
The way in which Hemingway tells the story is beautiful in its simplicity. The story is a very realistic picture of the old man and his emotions."
Christina Elling - Anthony Wayne
February 1967: "This novel by Ernest Hemingway is a story about an old man and the old man's worst enemy and best friend, the sea. The thoughts of the old man, the struggle between the old man's last bit of strength, the fierceness of the sea and the mighty fish he encounters create a fascinating story.
After you have read this book, you'll feel that the old man actually existed and wasn't just a fictitious character. You'll also feel that the old man, the sea, and the fish could represent many different symbolic things.
I think this book is an excellent example of a character sketch and a symbolic story. I'm sure every student in high school would enjoy reading it."
Bonnie Wells - Springfield
November 1969: "The Old Man and the Sea is a study of fisherman Santiago's deep respect and near kinship with a blue marlin and his undying struggle to bring it in. The capture of the fish is tinged with irony as the sharks destroy the largest blue marlin ever brought in, leaving Santiago with only the skeleton of the fish he had nearly sacrificed his life for.
Though this book is relatively short, it is packed with human nature and emotion."