Reviews

A.B.D. 42. Enlem by John Dos Passos

_dilliam_william's review against another edition

adventurous informative medium-paced

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

3.0

I have some conflicting feelings about this book. It was my first assigned book for this year of university so obviously it will just automatically rank lower because I’ve been forced to read it. But that aside, there was a lot of this book that I really enjoyed, but there just wasn’t enough to get attached to and I felt like I was forcing myself to perceiver in the middle for a bit. 

This book provides a really interesting insight into the Lochner Era in America. Through it’s varying perspectives and narrative forms it’s gives a really jarring yet quite whole view of this era in terms of industrialisation, labour movements, the First World War from the American perspective, and what it means to be American in general during this period.

I like the form of the book, the camera eye and the newsreels provided a really strange, abstract, modernist style that I think I will find really engaging to play about with and analyse during class. However, the multiple character perspectives meant that although I got a wide range of perspectives, I didn’t really spend enough time with any of them to care about their highs and lows throughout the book. I really liked Mac’s story in the first 100 pages and I really liked Charley’s story.

One other note, I have never heard so many slurs for all different kinds of people in my entire life. If John Dos Passos was meant to be satirising racist viewpoints, it does not come through for the most part. Just a warning about the average way minorities are spoken about in 1930s America. 

Overall, this book was interesting for its historical context and its narrative style, but outside of a reading list I don’t know if I’d recommend this book. At least not with any urgency.

100reads's review against another edition

adventurous emotional hopeful informative inspiring lighthearted reflective relaxing sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

Need to reread. Also need to read the whole trilogy 

dern7663's review against another edition

informative inspiring reflective medium-paced

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

4.0

Enjoyed this book! Love how there are points of view from the 5 characters some of which become to know each other later. The Camera View chapters were a bit strange. Overall I love the writing and stories will read the 2nd book as well. 

jay_catsby's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional funny informative inspiring fast-paced

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

4.5

thedullestswall0w's review against another edition

adventurous informative reflective slow-paced

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

5.0

afoga's review against another edition

adventurous reflective sad slow-paced

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

4.0

jkwriting24's review against another edition

reflective slow-paced

3.0

watermanio's review against another edition

challenging hopeful informative slow-paced

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

3.75

Enjoyable introspection, but couldn't shake the feel that this is probably a set school reading text somewhere. 

virtualmima's review against another edition

• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

2.0

duparker's review against another edition

3.0

This is a complex and complicated book, that is written in such a way that it feels like three books crammed together, none of which tell a complete story. Taken in parts, there is a wonderful use of language and creativity in how the writing is presented. Similar to a Jack Kerouac book there are multiple layers and they are presented as stream of consciousness. The characters exists, but they don't have a clear purpose. In other words there was no start middle and end of the story. It is more or less snap shots of the time and days of these people, in their lives. The newsreel sections help to layout a sense of time, but there is no real connectivity for those times, and the camera lens sections are even more out of place, but fun to read.

I loved the experiment, and loved the complexity, but didn't like the lack of connection and didn't appreciate the brand new character being presented in the last chapter, which left the book with an uncomfortable cliff hanger.