The format of this bibliography is without precedent. We suspect that this book will one day be considered the prototype for all bibliographies because of its clarity, ease of use, and the lavish production details.

This book provides the most honest and concise bibliography of one of the foremost authors of our time and Mr. Pastore has essentially re-engineered how a bibliography should be written - that "thin" can be better than "fat".

This book will serve as a high water mark for all bibliographies to follow. The numerous illustrations, the obvious painstaking care with which the material was assembled and, above all, the accessability of the material to all researchers, professional and novice, make this a necessity for any library.

Apparently Lewis didn't become disillusioned and embittered until after 1919, when this absolutely delightful book was published. We have an original copy that my mom got from a library sale or something. She loved it, I loved it, which is no suprise because I am a sucker for sweet old novels, but the most ringing endorsement it that my impossible-to-please dad loved it. In fact, he was the one who made me read it.

There really isn't a lot of substance to this book - it's mostly fluff. (There's some social commentary in the later parts of the book, when they're in Seattle, but I try to ignore it.) But it's grade-A, high-quality fluff we're talking about here. Claire Boltwood's transformation from a Brooklyn snob to a real woman is highly believable, and Milt Daggett is one of the sweetest, most wholesome men ever created. Set against the well-painted backdrop of the American West, the story shifts from amusing to heartwarming to bittersweet and back again flawlessly.

Just a good, simple love-story, unique and well-written. I would recommend this book to anyone just looking for a good read.

I really enjoyed this book immensely and agree with the previous reviewer. It gives a descriptive account of the trials and tribulations of traveling westward in a car during the early 1900's.

Reads as a social/class commentary, a Zane Gray western, with some romance added.

Corny in some ways, however, I thoroughly enjoyed it and would recommend it to other Sinclair Lewis fans.

One of my favorite books. I was lucky to get a copy (original edition) from the New York Public Library. Have read all his well-known books, but might like this best. His usual themes of Americana, social climbing, etc. But this is a "road" book and a very innocent love story - wonderful book by one of the best American writers. I'm surprised it's in print since it's such a minor title of his.

I was surprised at how relevant the stories were to the current times. Despite being written between 1915 and the early 1920's, workers ( and employers ) were faced with problems of sexual harrasment, boredom, stealing employees, and office politics.

Definately, you can detect parts of Babbit in many of the characters in the book.

All of the stories were worth reading. Some are amusing, some sad, and a few happy. All of them, however are thought provoking.

Overall, a great book to get a hold of, especially if you are a Sinclair Lewis fan.

"Honestly, if Possible" may quite possibly be the most wonderful short story I've ever read. Like other newer Sinclair readers, I'm amazed with the currency of all his work, and even more amazed that he isn't more widely known. I'm doing my best to get the story out-I've got a lot of PEP!

Lewis' early magazine pieces, printed here for the first time since their original publication in 1915-23, unmistakably contain the seeds of his later Pulitzer Prize-winning satirical novels and are irresistible in their own right.
The language is dated, and the modern reader may find some usage jarring (e.g., "love-making" for what we might call "flirting"), but it is remarkable in this postmodern age of Dilbert and e-mail that so little has changed in human nature, especially as expressed in office romances and politics. Look closely and you may see in some of Lewis' hucksters someone looking back at you; someone uncomfortably familiar.
(P) (The "score" rating is an ineradicable feature of the page. This reviewer does not "score" books.)

This book was such a surprise! I love Sinclair Lewis but I never expected such a great young reader's book from him. It's a terrific view of what he thought the future might be: lots of hope in technology and the ultimate triumph of good over evil. I don't know what the original book looked like, but this one is BEAUTIFUL!!!!

This book is truly an insight into the world of not only an incarcerated man, but a black man on death row. Lewis speaks honestly, clearly and uncompromisingly about the realities of death row, imprisonment and the conditions that see over two million people, mostly black and brown, caged there. If we are to ever get at the root cause of the boom in the prison industry, we won't get there through get tough on crime laws. It will be by humanizing those who are in that system, and that is something that Lewis does with talent and compassion.

You don't have to be a poet or a lover of poetry to understand or appreciate this book. Lewis' images are vivid, often cinematic and continuously palpable, harnessed by emotion.. Is Lewis off death row? What happened? Was he exonerated? Was his sentence commuted to life? But after reading through these poems, the meaning becomes clear. Lewis hasn't left, but he leaves all the time.

This book gives an insight into the mind of a man on death row. The work is honest, open and lets us have a glimpse of life on the row. The poetry is moving and haunting, the death of the authors friend was very emotional. I have since corresponded with Reginald and wait eagerly for his next book.

Schorer's 1961 biography of Lewis, while well researched, came off as particularly mean-spirited. I could never understand why a biographer would take on the huge task of an exhaustive biography when they seem to distain it's subject so much.
Finally Mr. Lingeman has given us a more even handed look at one of America's most neglected authors. Perhaps it was the great popularity of Lewis during the 1920's that brought about a more recent reaction against him but it seems that the time is ripe for another look at this most American of American authors and the Lingeman book makes that clear. This biography is clearly as in depth as Schorer's but, fortunately, does not have some strange axe to grind. Besides, the life of Sinclair Lewis makes for some interesting reading when it is put forth honestly.

Or, the first few along with mine.

Mr. Lingeman has done a wonderful job.

After reading this, I checked out a few 'professional' reviews. Yuck to a bunch of them. John Updike gave it a tepid review -- what a pretentious has-been. The irony, of course, is that Updike is the NEW Sinclair Lewis. Nobody reads him anymore.

However ... Lewis WILL have a rebirth of readers and admirers. Not sure about Updike.

Main Street, Babbitt, Elmer Gantry. Compare this output to .... gosh ... I forget the names of those books. Rabbits Run??? Something like that.

Okay, I haven't read Mark Schorer's earlier biography, but I have read a number of other critical works about Lewis over the years, and more than half of Lewis' twenty-odd novels.

I found this book fascinating and insightful, and I was moved by Lingeman's final argument - that the time is ripe for a rediscovery of Lewis, that the "license to consider Lewis an irrelevant hack" that Schorer's book had conferred on the academic world is expired. I think it's criminal that Lewis is hardly even read in colleges today, while Fitzgerald, Hemingway, Cather, Faulkner, Steinbeck, etc., are still read and discussed in detail. (Nothing against these great writers, all of whom I've read extensively, but Lewis was there first and made all their paths to brilliance easier.)

As long as America is still loaded with familiar George Babbitts, Elmer Gantrys, Sam Dodsworths, Carol Kennicotts, etc., Lewis will be a classic (if not THE classic) American novelist. And Lingeman's biography presents a revealing picture of the unique, angry, ultimately lonely man behind these characters.

A lot of Sinclair Lewis can be read as social history in our days at the turn of the 21st century. Social mores and the whole tenor of society have changed dramatically since the days of his major works. But ELMER GANTRY still reads like a story of our times. Though it covers a period roughly stretching from 1902 to 1926, and America has been transformed since then, the basic idea of the novel---how a man, selfish, ignorant, bullying, and posing as a 'regular guy', can fool most of the people most of the time---is still very much relevant to us. Business was the heart of America in Lewis' day, and it still is. But a career model drawn from that sphere could be used in many other walks of life. ELMER GANTRY is about a man who uses religion and a Protestant church to rise socially, to get and abuse power for his own ends. From Elmer's evangelical college days with his drinking, womanizing, total lack of ability or interest in studies, and his lying and maneuvering to get what he wants, to the stunning but realistic conclusion to the book, Lewis paints a vibrant portrait of an unprincipled climber ; a man who will change any opinion, betray anybody, and do anything to get ahead. If we consider the sagas of TV evangelists in our days, the difference between their revealed hypocrisies and those written by Lewis is startlingly small. The sole difference was that in the 1920s, there was no television for Elmer Gantry to exploit.

Certain sections of the book read better than others--it is not of uniform quality---and sometimes you wonder why Lewis inserted a chapter here or there. I think particularly of the two chapters on the fate of Frank Shallard, Gantry's alter-ego. They seemed to be an afterthought, and the point was brutally taken, but for what purpose other than shock ? On the other hand, Lewis' use of the colloquial language of the times and inclusion of thousands of minor details of life in that era reveal a whole world which might, in the absence of ELMER GANTRY, have disappeared from our consciousness. On the whole, this is a powerful novel about an unscrupulous, offensive scoundrel which still resonates well in our day. The Gantrys of this world are endless. Unfortunately.

In my opinion, ELMER GANTRY is Sinclair Lewis' finest novel, and that's saying a lot. I first read it some years ago during the height of the televangelist scandals, and while the turn-of-the-century vernacular seemed a bit quaint, the story itself was as fresh as the daily headlines--so topical that for a while there I regarded Lewis as something of a prophet. He wasn't, of course. His novel is set in the early decades of the 20th century, and the fact that it seems so current today is testimony not to Lewis' prescience, but to the persistence of the religious milieu in which real-life Elmer Gantrys thrive.

In the Hollywood parody, Elmer is turned into a square-jawed ladies' man; in fact, Lewis' protagonist could have been better portrayed by a peevish, scheming Jonathan Winters; for even though the book's title character is a philandering Baptist (later, Methodist) minister, womanizing is not its central theme. The story is really about how a dim-witted bully with little knowledge of theology and a complete lack of morals can make it to the top in the religion game. I have long suspected that the novel, while seldom read by anyone else, is on the required-reading list in many seminaries. If Lewis knew that his expose had been turned into a practical, step-by-step guide for advancement in the ministerial field, he would likely turn over in his grave.

Elmer Gantry is a preacher no one wants. Elmer was a cynical skirt-chaser who on rare moments rose above his baser self and found a meaning to life. What did Sinclair Lewis mean when he wrote this book? Was he fed up with the religious figures of his time? Perhaps he only let Elmer stand for a few of the charltans who became ministers. For the careful reader there are strong under currents with much deeper meanings than a casual reading brings out. I think it is worth your time to search out the truth that still appeal to our times. With the electronic ministers walking away with millions of dollars taken from the faithful, this is a novel all should read. Sinclair Lewis spent many nights in jail while he promoted Elmer Gantry, and I think he was telling the guliable something. Was his message that the church has screwed up the simple message of love taught by Jesus Christ? Luther Butle

Not a French Unabridge Dictionary, this is, in fact, a very good French-English English-French dictionary. While it is quite good, you should realize the title is misleading and it is written and compiled in England. You will find unfortunate translations which skew the real meaning. Example: 'tetes brulees' is translated as "desperado", when it really means 'hot-head', 'daredevil'. Another: "foutu" is translated as 'damn', 'bloody', when it really means the four-letter word "f---".

For a person who is hungry for words, this is THE dictionary to opt for. The umpteen entries make this dictionary the most sought-after bilingual dictionary to look up for new words. The additions of recent words, which have made an entry into French, make this a contemporary dictionary of the French language. This would have proved to be the best in all possible ways if only the manner in which the skeleton has been structured was more pragmatic. One would be dissatisfied after futilely looking up in the dictionary to find how to express certain expressions native to an English user like "receive a proposal" et al. If only this dictionary had been more user-friendly (by drawing heavily from corpus) like Oxford-Hachette is, it would have been an indispensable tool.

I wholeheartedly agree with those who say that this particular dictionary is THE French dictionary for students of French (and French enthusiasts). Not only is the vocabulary comprehensive, but the usage notes are invaluable; symbols indicate British versus American usage, the "slang quotient" of a word, and archaic and colloquial words, among others. The entries are full of examples that make it very easy to find out exactly how to use the word in context. There is also a special "Language in Use" section in the middle for particular cases, especially idiomatic phrases. The pronunciations are in IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet), with guides in English and French. Highly recommended!!

I loved the constant satirical wit and subtle depictions of character in Babbitt and Main Street (something of a forerunner of Friedan's The Feminine Mystique). Arrowsmith retains some of Lewis' virtues but it is a bit disappointing. Unlike the afforementioned novels, it is not primarily a satire but rather a medical bildungsroman. Martin Arrowsmith's character is subtly explored and his shortcomings and strengths closely examined. Lewis has some cogent criticisms to make of the commercialization of the medical establishment and here his habitual satirical bent seems appropriate but it does not always work when he takes occasional potshots at his main character, Martin Arrowsmith. George Babbit was an essentially satirical character that deserved Lewis' constant satirical attacks but the portrayal of Martin Arrowsmith seems at times out of focus, as if Lewis was not always sure if he wanted to stick with satire or just do a straight portrayal. Another criticism I have of the book is that the medical details occasionally seemed superfluous and plot details at times repetitive and monotonous. I think he could have trimmed about a hundred pages off this book. Arrowsmith is still worth reading and Martin Arrowsmith is an endearing character whose life story unfolds with much subtlety and insight on the nature of love, friendship, work, the struggle to maintain integrity in a commercial world, and the desire to do something meaningful in life.

Author Sinclair Lewis had some exposure to the medical profession early in his life through his father, who was a country doctor. Yet, even with some personal exposure, it's amazing how much of the idealism and cynicism, evident in modern physician practice, Lewis portrays in his 1926 pulitizer prize winning book, "Arrowsmith". Martin Arrowsmith, M.D. is a fictional idealist who is a human being before all else, but trying to bring science to the practice of Medicine. Actually, the story seems almost autobiographical due to the personal intensity and human fraility of the complex main character. As a registered nurse, reading Arrowsmith brings flashbacks of the past, like the cliches "deja vu all over again", or worse, "the more things change, the more they stay the same". Medicine for financial- profit, patient care challenges, personality conflicts, political shenanigans, professional competition, and overutilization of medical technology are some of the common problems Arrowsmith faces as he pursues a career in medicine after barely struggling through the politics of medical school in the mythical town of Wheatsylvania, Midwest, USA, in the early 20th century. This is not another novel about how physicians affect people's lives, but a masterpiece about the nuances of the medical profession as mysterious and suspect,of physicians who are heros and villans. Most surprising are the humerous vignettes sprinkled throughout the plot like bits and pieces of old Jack Benny radio show skits. When Martin Arrowsmith must decide if he is to fulfill his promise to marry Madeline Fox or betray her for his soul mate Leora Tozer, the genious writer Lewis creates such humor in the ensuing restaurant scene, that should be frought with melodrama, but, instead, is absolutely delightful reading. Similar humor engulfs the life portrayed of Arrowsmith's employer, Pickerbaugh, and his fleet of daughters named after flowers, like the saucy Orchid. Arrowsmith is simply a joy to read, especially for people who have a flair for some classic literature without getting too deep into concentrated philosophic thought. Simply put, Arrowsmith today, were he to practice in modern medicine, would probably be no better or worse off than he was in 1908 through circa 1920, when the novel takes place. Arrowsmith is a classic American novel and an entertaining story.

Unusual amongst the 'great' works of Sinclair Lewis (i.e. Main Street, Babbitt, Elmer Gantry, Dodsworth, and Arrowsmith), Arrowsmith doesn't deal with issues of cynicism and the artificiality of modern life. The lead character of "Arrowsmith" has a seemingly simple choice to make: happiness or money.

Martin Arrowsmith is a man interested in pure science. Pure science being investigation not for monetary gain but for intellectual gain. Unfortunately, pure scientific research not only doesn't pay the bills but it is usually very expensive to conduct. Arrowsmith is a brilliant scientist who could easily make lots of money developing evermore effective headache remedies for large pharmaceutical companies. Arrowsmith attempts this avenue but is forever pulled back to his true love of pure science.

Lewis meant for "Arrowsmith" to be a story about dreams. We all have at some point had a dream about what we wanted to do with ourselves in life. In "Arrowsmith" Lewis seems to be saying that our dreams are attainable but at a price. Arrowsmith suffers hardships and heartaches because of the pursuit of his dream but he is happier for having done so. One gets the impression that had he walked a different path and stayed a researcher at the pharmaceutical company that he would have been unhappy while he was there and would have made everyone around him equally so.

I came across an editorial recently referring to a "Babbit-type" person and decided it was time to read this book. It was a good read. At times I laughed aloud. There were passages I was tempted to memorize for quoting. I did care what happened to Babbit.

But I'd like to alert young readers that despite Lewis' efforts to make Babbit sympathetic, he is a charicature. In my mid-forties, I've known many businessmen, seen many unexamined lives and mid-life crises. Even 80 years after Babbit was written (when conformity is less in vogue in the US) I've known many conformists.

I haven't known anyone like Babbit. It is out of character for a people person like Babbit to be *so* fond of Paul and yet blind to Paul's needs. It is out of character for him to be so protective of Paul and yet so estranged from his own children.

Enjoy the book and let it remind you to think for yourself and to be real, but don't let it convince you that businessmen are doomed to conformity and to sacrifice of all their ideals. To be good at business is to weild power and though we don't see it ni "Babbit", that power can be used for good. Babbit is almost as much a charicature as are Ayn Rand's businessmen heroes.

Incidentally, as good as this was, I thought Lewis' "Arrowsmith" was better.

Sinclair Lewis wrote a series of satires that exposed the hypocrisy of early 20th century America. “Babbitt” is a snapshot of the life of George F. Babbitt, a somewhat prosperous middle class businessman who lives in Zenith, Ohio. Zenith has a population of 300,000+, and has an active business community. This community has its own rituals and ironclad rules. These rules consist of being one of the gang, being a member of all the right clubs and organizations, and never deviating from the ideals of business and money. These rules cause enormous difficulties for Babbitt when he goes through a midlife crisis at the end of the book and begins spouting liberal ideas and associating with the “wrong” crowd.

This is my first encounter with Sinclair Lewis. I really don’t know why I chose to read “Babbitt” first, as I also have copies of “Main Street” and “Arrowsmith”. I think it was the unusual cover of the Penguin edition, which is a picture of a painting called “Booster” by Grant Wood. To me, that picture IS Babbitt, and I’ll always be able to see Babbitt in my head whenever I’m reminded of this book.There really isn’t a lot of symbolism here (and the symbolism that is here is pretty easy to decipher) and the prose is much closer to our present day writing and speech. This is brilliant satire, and you’ll laugh out loud at many of the situations Babbitt gets himself into. An especially hilarious incident occurs when one of the local millionaire businessmen finally accepts an invitation to dine with Babbitt. The evening goes badly because Babbitt is in a lower social class. Lewis then shows Babbitt going to a dinner at an old friends house who is in a lower class then him. It’s hilarious to see the similarities between the two events, and it brings home how class is strictly enforced in Zenith, and by extension, America.

Babbitt is a person that I found myself both hating and liking, often within the space of one page. He’s ignorant, in that he is a major conformist who often repeats slogans and phrases merely because others in his circle say the same things. He’s a namedropper who refers to people he doesn’t even know as though they were his best friends. He’s also high volume. Babbitt is one of those people we all know who is always boisterous and noisy so they can hide their own insecurities or ignorance. Just when you think you can’t stand Babbitt for another second, Lewis tosses in a situation that makes you feel for the man. Babbitt is the boss at a real estate company, and he worries about his employees liking him. When a confrontation arises with one of his salesmen, Babbitt frets and doesn’t want to fire the guy, although the rules of business eventually force him to do exactly that. He wants all of his employees to like him. He also feels bad about cheating on his wife while she is away and worries about what his children will think of him when he comes in drunk after a night of carousing. Ultimately, although Babbitt can be a major heel, the reader is almost forced to sympathize with him. This is true especially at the end of the book, when Babbitt renounces his liberal ways and rejoins his old colleagues. His return to the pack is not quite complete, however. Babbitt is changed by his transgression, and has learned a few lessons that he imparts to his son on the last page of the book, thus ending the tale on an upbeat note.

I would like to have seen a better section of explanatory notes in this Penguin edition. While some of the more obscure references are defined, many are not. Also, some of the language in the book is very 1920’s slang, and for a 21st century ear, it can be difficult to pick up on some of them. This book is both funny and sad, but well worth reading. Sinclair Lewis eventually won Pulitzer and Nobel prizes for his literary endeavors. It’s not hard to see why. Recommended.

Sinclair Lewis is generally relegated to second-rate status by the academics - despite the fact that he was America's first Nobel Prize winner for Literature. As Robertson Davies, among others, asserted, Lewis is vastly under-rated and under-read among American novelists. He deserves far more attention - because of his literary gifts as well as his ability to mirror and illuminate the American character. Sinclair Lewis understood very well the forces at work in America in the early to mid part of the 20th century - not all of it positive. Perhaps Lewis' unpopularity in America is in part due to his caricatures of Americans in an unflattering light. No one should consider Lewis in the pantheon of literary immortals - but surely he fits somewhere in the curriculum. Lewis is highly readable, his satire is highly amusing, his prose is intelligent and his observations on the pitfalls and hypocrisy of pursuit of happiness in America are brilliant. His portrayal of Babbitt as the Lost Soul, knowing that he is lost but without the willingness or moral courage to find meaning in his existence, is a moving commentary on middle class America "getting ahead" that continues to be contemporary to subsequent generations.