
Babbitt
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Narrated by:
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David Colacci
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By:
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Sinclair Lewis
About this listen
In this sardonic portrait of the up-and-coming middle class during the prosperous 1920s, Sinclair Lewis perfectly captures the sound, the feel, and the attitudes of the generation that created the cult of consumerism. With a sharp eye for detail and keen powers of observation, Lewis tracks successful realtor George Babbitt's daily struggles to rise to the top of his profession while maintaining his reputation as an upstanding family man.
On the surface, Babbitt appears to be the quintessential middle-class embodiment of conservative values and enthusiasm for the well-to-do lifestyle of the small entrepreneur. But beneath the complacent façade, he also experiences a rising, nameless discontent. These feelings eventually lead Babbitt into risky escapades that threaten his family and his standing in the community. Though published 80 years ago, this acerbic depiction of majority Americans, obsessed with success, material comfort, and midlife doubt, still rings true.
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David Colacci has beautifully captured the "voice" of Babbitt, filled with bravura and yet with this undertow of vulnerability. I read the book in Whispersync, going back and forth between the written and the audiobook, but I preferred listening. Collacci breathed extra vitality into the story and its central character.
A Satire - and deeply human
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A must listen & now a must read
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enlightening! really love the narrator He made it fun to come back and listen everyday
greatness
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It’s funny to hear the conversations that go on between George and his friends especially at the first act of the story where they rail against unions and socialist policies but then in the very next few sentences praise the collectives that chamber of commerce and realtor’s associations to combat what they are complaining about. The conservatives are quite hypocritical indeed. Then when Babbitt goes liberal he just lives a vapid existence devoid of any real meaning besides indulging his own fantasies. Either of those existences are banal (certainly in his universe). He never really achieves any sort of life fulfillment until he realizes that the offspring he created still have a chance to find his failed fulfillment quest. This is a good book.
The ultimate story of trying to be what you might have been.
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Compelling story
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Mid-life crisis
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George Babbitt and his gang are much more believable than Nick Carraway and Gatsby. This book is much longer and shows the day-to-day struggles of someone who is living in a shallow society grasping at something that ultimately does not provide fulfillment, all while fighting the losing game of keeping up appearances in a culture that shines individuality.
One aspect of this book that I found especially enjoyable was its time capsule of 1920s clothing, slang, and descriptions of Daily life. This could have been just about anyone’s story 100 years ago. Sinclair Lewis is not quite Hemingway, but he is not quite Melville either. He waxes eloquent only in some parts of the novel, while others he treats with deadpan language to underplay the significance (especially the chapter where he gives the reader a panoramic of various tragedies and triumphs that are happening in the city during one night of the year).
David Colacci did a wonderful job voicing the characters. Everyone had a distinct tone and pitch, which made the parts easy to recognize even when the text did not provide a dialogue tag.
This was my first foray into the literature of Sinclair Lewis, and I plan to read more of his books.
The Other, Relatable Gatsby
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Great story
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But . . it was a long, correctly executed journey. I didn't hate it--not at all: I could recognize its worth and even its very modern applications. . . . But why didn't I enjoy it? It had a story line that worked . . .yet it went on endlessly.
It's just me, but I'm wondering if perhaps satires are most successful as short stories. I think most people either "get it" (the satire and wisdom) quite soon . . . or not at all. Alas, no amount of beating us over the head will often change our opinions one way or the other. And I guess that's the novel's one flaw: it goes on and on long after the reader should have gotten the point and learned the lessons. Lewis keeps beating us with satirical joy and despair long after we've had our fill of chuckling and internalizing.
Still . . . I strongly recommend reading Babbitt--it will do you good! (that's me as a teacher teacher speaking)
Makes You Think
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Brilliant Cultural Portrait
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