Comments on: Alice Adams: Booth Tarkington, Small-Town Snob

By: Diablevert

Diablevert — Fri, 11 Sep 2009 01:17:35 +0000

Thanks for the thoughtful comments, SocrMom78. That’s a really interesting point about the flipped use of gossip (the tool of the author is abhorred by his character). It’s kind of funny, because it doesn’t seem like either of them — George or Booth — would much respect the opinion of the town, but Tarkington is at least aware of it.

By: SocrMom78

SocrMom78 — Sun, 06 Sep 2009 13:20:20 +0000

This was a great, great article about Booth Tarkington. I am currently reading “The Magnificent Ambersons” for my website challenge. What I thought was most interesting about this book is how Tarkington uses gossip to bias readers towards Georgie Minafer (wanting him to get his “come-uppance”, what the Sharon girls tell Lucy about Georgie and what Mr Kinney tells Eugene Morgan about Georgie at the beginning), yet it is gossip itself that Georgie is the most averse to. He would rather silence the town gossips and run away rather than see his mother happily married. I’ve actually enjoyed this book, because Tarkington does such a good job of convincing you that Georgie deserves his come-uppance, yet even when it happens you still feel a twinge of pity for him.

By: Dreadful Penny

Dreadful Penny — Tue, 13 May 2008 15:18:28 +0000

I totally hear you on the Big Gulp book experience. I read too fast for good retention, a habit I’m trying to break (or get my memory to catch up.)

I also will be happy to be rid of Tarkington and his snobbery. Thanks for the look into his biography, d.v…. now let’s never speak of him again.