Reviews

The Drifters by James A. Michener

ceekaygee's review against another edition

adventurous challenging emotional informative inspiring reflective sad slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

pegish's review against another edition

4.0

Read many years ago - even couple of times at least. One of Michener's smaller volumes that doesn't start out with a geological history.

likethesolid's review against another edition

4.0

I was extremely impressed by this book- the first Michener book I've read. He develops the six main characters very well along with Torremolinos, Alte, Pamploma, Mozambique, Marrakesh and their individual hometowns. He uses an interesting device to introduce the chapters that foreshadows how the characters are developing.

I felt as though this would have been a polemic book to those of my parent's generation. It was easy to think back about how my reactions would be different than those in 1971.

The one curiosity the book raised that wasn't dealt with was the home life of Mr. Fairbanks. As the narrator, he had to make some stretches to get him amongst the main characters, but this unlikelihood wore off as the book progressed. I'd read it again if only there weren't so many good books to read.

cataye's review against another edition

adventurous lighthearted reflective medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

pat_g's review against another edition

3.0

Decent book good traveling story. Doesn’t hold up any longer. Way too long in parts that didn’t matter.

goodprime's review against another edition

4.0

Loved this book as a teenager. Reread it 30 years later. It's definitely dated but still has some great passages and insights.
"...I knew that the future work of society - the factories, the hospitals, the art museums, the city councils - would be accomplished by those who were back home learning and working in the way most people have done throughout history." ... "But then I had the nagging suspicion that the spiritual leadership of the society - whose physical continuance was assured by the standard students who stayed on the job - would probably be provided by those more adventurous ones who had picked up a vital part of their education in such unlikely dormitories as the Casino Royale in Marrakech or the pads of Greenwich Village."

mlrio's review

5.0

This is the kind of book that some people will love and some people will abandon after forty pages. I just happen to belong to the former category. I think what's so brilliant about it is actually the same thing that a lot of less enthusiastic reviewers have expressed their distaste for: namely, that it's a story about six young people coming of age in a volatile decade narrated by a sixty-year-old man. It could be easy to get hung up on Mr. Fairbanks' old-fashioned prejudices, but I think the juxtaposition between him and his band of adolescent vagabonds--and their unexpected rapport--are actually what make the book such a fascinating read. Neither Fairbanks nor the titular drifters can be remotely objective about the issues they clash over (sex, drugs, music, religion, Vietnam), and it's exactly that incompatibility of ideologies that made the late sixties/early seventies such a tumultuous time. Michener renders that universal identity crisis in vivid, precise, and often hilarious prose. But what really kept me reading were the people: the characters who populate the story are sometimes endearing, sometimes infuriating, but presented with such keen and uncompromising detail that you can't help hearing their stories and feeling some kind of kinship, even if it's just the conviction that you've met someone exactly like this somewhere in your life before. Lastly, of course, it's an epic adventurous travelogue in high Michenerian style. As someone who has spent much of the years between 18 and 25 rambling around the world with not much more than pocket change to live on and has always prized art, music, and cultural experience above steady paychecks, I couldn't help loving a story like this.

sknud's review against another edition

slow-paced

• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes

2.5

5.1

Unnecessarily long. Drags on. Poor character development. But some good bits. 

lucy1375's review against another edition

5.0

There was something about this book--the story of many lost souls who meet in Torremolinos, Spain (a place I would love to visit but afraid to as I'm sure it will never live up to my expectations), who find comfort in one another for a time as they drift along Europe. Again, at the time I read it, I think I related to that feeling of being lost, and it gave me comfort that clearly, I wasn't the only person who ever felt that way.

sarahthefrey's review against another edition

5.0

I can say with ease that this is my favorite book of all time. I read this book as a teenager and if it had done anything for me it instilled a vital desire to travel the world, especially Europe. The story-line is placed in front of a backdrop of rich European sites and culture that makes the reader crave the warm air of the Mediterranean. On top of this, the novel goes in depth to look at the politics and social conflicts of the late 1960's. It follows six very different travelers from six very different back grounds and parts of the world. They connect through music and coincidences challenging the ideals of the past and pushing boundaries towards a new modern philosophy. The perfect read for anyone who holds the era of peace and love close to heart.