This graphic novel reprints one of the classic X-Men stories of old -- the Dark Phoenix saga. For those who might not be up on their comic history, the Dark Phoenix Saga told the story of how Jean Grey -- one of the original X-Men -- found herself cruelly manipulated by the evil mutant Mastermind until she finally lost control of her own powers and became a threat to the very future of the universe. In the end, it falls to the X-Men (led by Jean's lover, Cyclops) to either bring her back to sanity or destroy her. This was perhaps the pinnacle of the Chris Claremont/John Byrne creative team and certainly very few subsequent X-Men stories have come close to touching the quality of the Dark Phoenix Saga. Chris Claremont's secret as a comic book writer was that he never wrote down to his audience. While some others might have simply said, "Hey, it's only a comic book," and cashed in their paycheck, Chris Claremont approached his X-Men stories with a sincerity and integrity that elavated the best of his work out of the super hero genre. As always the characterization of the individual X-Men is strong with Wolverine truly coming into his own. Even the usually somewhat dull Cyclops is given one of his few chances to shine in this story and Claremont manages to present a multifaceted view of this sometimes overly upright figure. The dialogue, especially Cyclops' final monolouge on the moon, is also far more powerful (and at times genuinely witty) than what is generally expected from a "comic book." Over the course of this story, Claremont and Byrne introduced several characters that would later become key ingrediants to the X-Men's success -- the Hellfire Club, Dazzler, Kitty Pryde, and all of them show their future promise from their very first appearances.

I was a kid when these issues first came out and I can remember what an impact they had on me at the time. Not to be overdramatic but back in 1980, the fate of Jean Grey affected me much the same way the fate of Jay Gatsby affects me now. Now, some might scoff at that or say that its easier to please children but that's not true. Even more so than adults, children and young teens can spot when someone's just going through the motions. Every year, hundreds of new comic books are released. Most cease publication after less than six issues. X-Men survived. It takes a lot to make an impact on you when you're young and that was what made Claremont and Byrne's X-Men so popular. Unlike future writers and artists, they never took their audience for granted. With the Dark Phoenix Sage, they crafted one of the great legends of my youth. When I recently reread it, I do so for the sake of nostalgia but I was overjoyed to discover that even though I'd gotten older and subsequent events in the X-Men had cheapened a lot of what those earlier issues were about, the story hadn't suffered. As both a piece of childhood nostalgia and as a story held up on its own considerable terms, the Dark Phoenix Saga is a powerful piece of work and it is a must-have for all comic book fans -- past, present, and future.

In the Dark Phoenix Saga, Chris Claremont and John Byre, firing on all cylinders, create the greatest comics story ever. It is a story that fits logically in the greatest run by an artist/writer team in a comic series ever (chronicled in the Essential X-Men Vol.2 graphic novel), but one that also stands so well on its own.

In a story where so many things are done right, it stands out because it is a primarily a story about conflict. There is conflict on virtually every page. Not just shot-em up, video game violence, but internal, character-driven conflict.

There is conflict between Prof. X and Cyclops over leadership of the X-men; between the fiery Wolverine and the control-freak Prof. X; Jean Grey struggles to control her dark side; Cyclops tries to mold the fiercly independent members of the X-men into a tight-knit team; Jean & Scott try to maintain their relationship thru the mounting chaos....

The X-men, the ultimate ousiders, rely on each other time and again and yet, their most powerful member turns on them and then saves them - repeatedly.

The X-men have a truly worthy opponent in the Hellfire Culb.

Obstacle after obstacle is overcome before the truly life and death battle at the climax. The escalation of tension is evere bit as gripping as when I read the original comics as a kid. Its lost none of the magic or mystery. There is none of the letdown so often felt when we re-visit the source of our nostalgia.

There have been a half dozen stories that were much more revolutionary than the Dark Phoenix Saga - from the death of Gwen Stacey in Spider-Man, to The Dark Knight, the Watchmen and Crisis on Infinite Earths over at DC. Yet, for my money, Dark Phoenix is better - not for its novelty or originality or life-like art, but because its that good.

This is simply one of the definitive Marvel comic stories, nearly perfect in every aspect.

For me, much of the appeal to this lies in that is simply a super-hero story, capturing the essence of the genre like nothing else. So many of the critically acclaimed comics are heavy on the emotional philosophizing that at many points they cease to become entertaining. The Dark Phoenix Saga never quits, throwing harrowing action and life and death drama at you throughout. A reader can't help but wonder what he or she would do placed in any of the character's shoes. There is no "right" or "wrong", but simple necessity and loyalty which drives the characters.

Chris Claremont pulls out all the stops; it really appears that he is trying to write the X-Men to their peak. He most probably does, and John Byrne's work never looked better. There are simply no faults to be found.

Had this been a stand alone series, it would surely be placed alongside DC's timeless classics. But the story fits perfectly in the trade; the reader never wondering what had previously happened in earlier issues.

This story is great for everyone, young and old. Fans of heavy-duty stuff like Watchmen may snub their noses at this, but they would be foolish to do so. If you want a reminder of why super hero comics are so engaging, read this.

A Long Way from Chicago is one of Richard Peck`s novels.It is a story of two children,a brother & sister, who were visiting their Grandma Dowdel in an Illinois town. And that probably was between 1929-1942. At all these years the children have many strange adventures such as having steal property , helping Grandma fault , the dead man in the coffin ,and catching the sheriff in his underwear. This book contains many interesting parts . For example, "The Mouse in the Milk" , "Things with Wings" , and "Shotgun Cheatham`s" which I liked the most . It has a special atmosphere , when I read it first I was confused but then everything become clear.Generally , A Long Way from Chicago is a good book because it is rich with new vocabulary words for whom interested learning English also it is a comedy and has many funny stories . I recommed reading this book for it`s interest and value.

A Long Way from Chicago is a hilarious book filled with funny, side-aching adventures that take place at these children's grandmother's house. Every summer Richard Peck takes the reader (adult or child) to Joe's and Mary Alice's grandma's house in St. Louis. At the start of the book Joe is 9 and Mary Alice is 7. One summer they had a dead man in their house named Shotgun Cheatham. Then he comes back alive so grandma has to go to drastic measures. Every summer they go to grandma's house and they have some wild adventure and then they go home. They trespass on private property and meet a drunken sheriff. Later in the book Joe wants to learn how to drive, but it costs two dollars for the lessons and two dollars back in the 1930's was a lot so he has to get the money some how. At the end Joe wants to get in World War II.
I like how Richard Peck writes because he makes it funny and he makes sure that you don't want to put the book down. He makes it somewhat fantasy, but on some levels it's realistic. He also, puts just enough details to let you know the important ideas, but he leaves out some parts so your mind can wonder.
This is a great and wonderful book and whoever loves witty books should read this book for sure!

When Joey and Mary Alice Dowdel were sent to their grandma's house every summer for six years, they would experience summers that they would never forget.
A Long Way From Chicago is the story of two kids visiting from Chicago to see their wild and crazy grandma in the Illinois countryside. It takes place in the 1930s at the time of the depression. Every summer when they visit their grandma something strange or exciting happens, making it yet another unforgettable visit. What's so great about this book is that it shows you what it might have been like in a small country town during the time of the depression. What's also great is that every summer their grandma does something adventurous and exciting. Things that bring them nightmares, things that make them smile. A Long Way From Chicago has been awarded the Newberry Medal for being an excellent book for kids. I highly recommend reading this book. Hope you like it!
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A Year Down Yonder by Richard Peck is about the humorous adventures of Mary Alice, an average 15-year old girl from Chicago, and her wacky grandmother, Grandma Dowdel. Mary Alice has to live with Grandma Dowdel for a year because her parents had to move into a tiny apartment and don't have enough room for her. The story takes place in Grandma's country town in 1937.

One scene I thought was funny happens on Halloween night when some boys come to wreck Grandma's outhouse (or privy) but she is ready for them. She sets a trap for them and pours glue on a boy's head. When the boys are gone, Grandma looks around the yard and finds a knife with one of the boy's initials on it. The next day Grandma goes to Mary Alice's school for a Halloween party and serves pie. Mary Alice and Grandma see the boy that Grandma poured glue on. When he comes for a piece of pie, Grandma gets out his knife and cuts him a piece with it. He is scared and angry and runs away.

I liked this book because a lot of crazy things happen such as after an artist rents a room from Grandma. One Sunday when Mary Alice and her boyfriend are doing homework, the artist is painting a naked lady in the attic. A big snake that Grandma has to keep birds away falls on the naked lady while she is posing. She runs screaming down the stairs, out the door and down the street. When Grandma sees what has happened, this is what she does.

'"That's too good a show to keep to ourselves," Grandma said. With the thought, she was through the front door and out in the front yard. Planting her house shoes, she jammed the Winchester into her shoulder, aimed high, and squeezed off both barrels. The world exploded. Birds rose shrieking from the trees, and the whole town woke with a start.'

The Grandma Dowdel character is hilarious. Grandma always does things she is not supposed to do and is not afraid of anyone or anything. Here is another example from the story. After making the town's men pay unreasonably high prices for soup to make money for Armistice Day, one of the Auxiliary ladies says this to Grandma:

"I'm here to tell you that you're twice as bald-faced and brazen and, yes, I have to say shameless as the rest of us girls put together. In the presence of these witnesses I'm on record for saying you outdo the most two-faced, two-fisted shortchanger, flimflam artist and full-time extortionist anybody ever saw working this part of the country. And all I have to say is, God bless you for your good work"....... "Did your late husband go to war?" "Only with me," Grandma said, "and he lost every time."

If you are a person who likes to laugh, likes good storytelling and wild characters you will like this book.

Richard Peck's A Year Down Yonder chronicles the zany adventures of Grandma Dowdel and her granddaughter Mary Alice. Raised in Chicago, Mary Alice is in for quite a shock when she finds herself sent to live with her grandmother in a country town in 1937. Although Mary Alice has a hard time adjusting (she has to learn to keep her beloved cat Bootsie outside and play her Philco portable radio at night in bed), she grows accustomed to the wacky way of living in which her grandmother has grown to love. Whether Mary Alice is helping her grandmother steal pecans to make a pie or making tarts for the Auxiliary Ladies, she never forgets her family and how much they mean to her. As the story draws to a close, Mary Alice finds herself closer to her grandmother than she ever thought would happen when she moved from Chicago.
This book does everything it can to keep the reader interested. From Grandma Dowdel's outrageous acts to Mary Alice's adventures in school, this book is never boring. In fact, it's hard to put down! The characters are extremely well developed and the detailed descriptions of the crazy stunts Grandma Dowdel and Mary Alice take part in are wonderful. In some way, every reader would be able to relate to the characters-whether it being the new kid on the block like Mary Alice or having a silly relative like Grandma Dowdel. If you are ever looking for a book that has wonderful humor, a lot of adventure or a sense or realism, A Year Down Yonder is a top pick!

Join the fun during a Year Down Yonder. Following the life of Mary Alice and her fiery-tempered Grandma Dowdel. Mary Alice, the "rich Chicago girl" gets an education in real life. From Grandma Dowdel's relationship with her neighbors, her trigger-happiness, and her eccentric personality, she's just about the most lovable character I've read about lately.

The book includes everything a book should; humour, adventure, drama, and real life situations. Peck is a very talented author, deserving the awards his book has received, but this is more children's lit than teen lit. Still, I would recommend it to everyone, it's a great summer book, and the easy reading level makes it a quick read. Check it out, I think you'll like it.

This is the second novel I've read by Richard Matheson, the first being his other well-known book "I Am Legend".

The book cover says it all: after a freak encounter with radiation, Scott Carey begins to shrink. Scott has been surviving in the basement, a hostile, Dali-esque environment where the only neighbour is a menacing black widow spider. Like all people troubled by the miseries of the present, Scott's mind frequently turns back to the past. These flashbacks chart the course of Scott's diminishing height, beginning with the anger and humiliation of total dependence, the loneliness of being a national spectacle, and the inexorable retreat into a nightmare world.

"The Shrinking Man" has much in common with "I Am Legend". We have the lone protagonist, an outcast, cut off and isolated from everything that was once safe and familiar. Both characters are trapped in their respective predicaments, virtual prisoners with no hope of reprieve. Like Robert Neville, Scott Carey also had a wife and daughter. While Robert's family succumbed to a plague of vampirism, Scott's family seemed to be turning into "giants". Robert Neville was armed with a wooden stake, hoping to kill his tormentor Ben Cortman - Scott is armed with a sewing pin, hoping to dispatch the persistent spider.

Scott's dimunition is constant. He is literally going where no man has gone before. Eventually he'll be able to see germs without a microscope, and perhaps see what atoms really look like. Maybe he'll even be able to see the miniature solar systems inside them. Didn't William Blake say something about the universe being a grain of sand?

In the film adaptation of "A Stir of Echoes" the babysitter reads a copy of "The Shrinking Man" - a little in-joke on the script writer's part. It's easy to see how Stephen King was influenced by Matheson's work, particularly in books like "Salem's Lot" or "Thinner". There really is no such thing as originality. Everything comes from something else. It's just a matter of good story-telling.

"The Shrinking Man" by Richard Matheson ("incredible" was added to the title for this release so readers unfamiliar with the book but who'd seen the movie would have a better chance of catching it on the shelves.) is among the very best sci-fi adventures, if not simply the best novels, ever written. Robert Scott Carey, the unlucky main character of this story, finds himself shrinking at a rate of 1/7th of an inch a day after exposure to a cloud of radioactive mist. Sure, it sounds silly, but trust me, this is one of the most fantastic reads around. Events that were not part of the classic film add moments of psychological horror that top even a Stephen King freak-fest. Carey's rapidly changing relationship with his wife and daughter (a character not in the film) is explored as well as several incidents with strong themes that serve to highlight the personal Hell Carey's world has become as it steadily outgrows him. Like the movie, the novel ends with one of the greatest climaxes in imaginitive literature as Carey learns the ultimate truth of his existance and provides the story with it's final, underlying moral.... Read it, Experience it, if not for the first time, then again... and again...

I read this book in 5th grade, and reread it recently on vacation (I'm close to 30 now, uh oh). It's the only Richard Matheson book I read and when I bought it again recently I was struck by the number of famous stories this guy has penned. In this book, for instance, the short stories "Nightmare at 20,000 Feet" (a Twilight Zone classic), and "Duel" (an awesome action movie that I believe was one of Steven Spielberg's first movies) are included. This guy also wrote "I Am Legend", which was made into "Omega Man" with Charlon Heston, a sci-fi movie that I also like a lot. I guess what I'm trying to get at here is that this guy is a sci-fi/horror pioneer. This story, although it's quite dated, is very well-written and compelling. When I was younger I was very interested in the protagonist and his trying to survive the world as a steadily shrinking man (the battle with the spider and so forth). As someone slightly older, I was more interested in his steadily deteriorating relationship with his wife, daughter, and coworkers. They shun him, much like a leper or terminally ill person, since they cannot understand the illness he has. The story, if you don't know it, was original at the time but has been copied in several forms. Basically the protagonist is a yuppie who is sprayed with a radioactive mist by accident and begins shrinking 1/7 inch a day. The book switches back and forth between the last days of his shrinking life and flashbacks of his past. If you like sci-fi and horror by all means try it!

I have always loved the style and social politics of the Regency period (the time of Jane Austen.) But when I read "Sense and Sensibility" in 7th grade I found the first few chapters lifeless, dull and hard to read. Two years later I was encouraged by a friend to give "Pride and Prejudice" a try. I did and have since become a complete Janeite. I am now able to peruse joyfully through "Sense and Sensibility" with a new understanding and appreciation of Jane Austen. The reason? "Pride and Prejudice" is fresh, witty and is a great introduction to Jane Austen's writing style without the formality of some of her other novels (unlike S&S and Persuasion Austen does not give us a 10 page history of each family and their fortune.) If you have never read Jane Austen or have read her other novels and found them boring, read Pride and Prejudice. The characters, and the situations Austen presents to them, are hysterical and reveal a lot about Regency society and morality. This book perfectly compliments a great writer like Jane Austen and is essential to every reader's library. The Penguin Edition of the book is stellar and I personally recommend it not only for the in-depth and indispensable footnotes, but also for the cover that is non-suggestive of any of the characters' appearances. In summary "Pride and Prejudice" is a great book for beginner Austen readers and seasoned fans, and Penguin Classics is a great edition for fully enjoying and understanding the book.

Like all the other jane austen books i loved this one just as much. jane austen is famous for her characterisation and this book proves it to you even more.

elizabeth bennet and mr. darcy intertwined into their own fixed judgements and opinions make this book not just a must read for its witty satire and humour but for its indepth understanding of true love. eliza,prejudiced ....Darcy, too caught up with his high society unfold their true character gradually making you enthralled and wanting more.
mr. collins the cousin, catheran de bourgh his patron bring out the best in subtle humour.
mr. and mrs. bennet, both of them a class apart...their uniquely opposite personalities creating sparks. the four sisters: genuine, bingely:awesome...the story i leave for you to unravel. you'll love it to the best of your ability.

trust me; you're caught. you won't be able to get your hands off it. its the work of a great woman and a great writer, a true genius who to me is just as equivalent to shakespeare. but then thats just me.

a book that shows us how two minds can eventually meet and harbour friendship and love. YOU WON'T REGRET IT.

"It is a truth universally acknowledged, that a single man in possession of a good fortune, must be in want of a wife". That's how my favourite book of all time begins, and it just keeps getting better.

This novel deals with the pride and prejudices of the main characters Miss Elizabeth Bennett, and Mr. Darcy, as they try to find true love in pre-Victorian England. Elizabeth is a gentleman's daughter and Mr. Darcy is a gentleman, but Elizabeth, along with the rest of her sisters, are not good catches because, their inheritance is being entailed away to their cousin Mr. Collins, leaving them with very miserable looking dowries. Along with poor family connections, they stand little chance of marrying well or at all; they only have their charms to help them.

That is until Mr. Bingley moves into the neighborhood along with his sisters, and accompanying them his close friend Mr. Darcy. Mr. Bingley becomes captivated with Jane Bennett, Elizabeth's eldest sister, and Mr. Darcy has an eye for Elizabeth herself, but can he see past her poor conditions, and can she see past his pride in order for them to get together? That's the question that keeps the audience captivated right up to the end.

I try and find time to read this book at least once a year, and I've been doing that for a few years, and yet, it's always fresh when a get around to reading it.

The War With Grandpa was a pretty good book, but it wasn't my favorite. It's not one of my top ten favorites, but it was pretty funny. I liked it when Grandpa pulled that dirty trick on Peter in the morning on a school day. It was pretty funny, but I wouldn't want it to happen to me because it was still pretty dirty. I liked the book a lot because it was comical and sad. This book also taught me to respect and love your elder relatives . I recommend this book to any other person that likes to read, but that's just my opinion.

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WOW! this book is very good. I would recommend this book to people that love their room because the main character, Peter, does. His grandpa came to live with Peter and his family because his wife died and he was all alone. He sold his house down in Florida and came to live with them. Peter's mom and dad gave Grandpa Peter's room. Peter did some stupid stuff, like getting into guerilla warfare with his grandpa to get his room back. I think that is weird, but he did like his grandpa. You'll have to read the book to find out whether Peter gets his room back or not.

War With Grandpa is a good book.A boy named Peter and a girl named Jenny have a Grandpa coming to their house because his wife died from emphysema.The problem is that Grandpa takes Peter's room and Peter has to go upstairs!Then Peter goes to war with Grandpa,trying to get his room back.But Grandpa tries to get even by pulling tricks on Peter!To find out what else happens, read War With Grandpa.

Sister Carrie is probably best known for being the American example of the Naturalist school of writing. Centering around Carrie, a girl who comes to Chicago to live the good life in the big city, it follows her action from being a factory worker, to a 'companion', to a housewife, and finally to fame and fortune on the stage in New York City.
Dreiser sets the measure of the game early, on the first page, with the statement that all women are provided two options in life. One is to work hard, live, and have children. The other is to fall into a life of sin.
For those who don't hold with that line of reasoning, the book will be a bit hard to swallow. Dreiser operates along the same line of logic that Emile Zola set down when creating this genre. Every action Carrie makes is predestined, in Dreiser's eyes, by her surroundings. She will not and cannot make any decision contrary to her 'nature'.
While this is all very well and good for Dreiser, it is not so for Naturalism. Thomas Hardy's famous Tess, and Jude, make decisions contrary to their nature all the time, it is society that is at odds with the characters and not the other way around. Carrie's society seems perfectly willing to accept her, but it is her decisions that one finds appalling. The feeling is more like being on a careening freight train, with the outcome inevitable and predestined but terrible nonetheless. There is none of the same despair and void that one finds in Hardy, and somehow that is the books biggest flaw.
Hardy's novels, that were written a full forty years before Sister Carrie, explore naturalism in such a way as to make the character the hero and society the villain. Dreiser's Carrie is no such hero, she is just the unfortunate victim of circumstance.

This book was written at the turn of the century and it is a great portrait of American life and ideals at that time. It is the story of a young girl named Carrie who leaves her small town to go to Chicago to live with her sister and find work. She soon finds that living with her sister and her husband is very boring and that work is hard and dull. Soon she is a mistress of a pretty wealthy man, and the rest of the book is the story of her rise in society.

One of the main themes of this book is materialism, and how people would do anything for money. During the book I could see how innocent Carrie becomes a victim of circumstances as she tries to fit into the environment around her and becomes swallowed by the anonymity of the city. I love Dreiser's style, although he goes off on unneccessary little lectures at times, and I really liked following the plot. The characters were drawn so well that I would forget they weren't real. This is a great book to read and it accurately portrays American cities at the rise of industrialism and materialism.

This novel hooked me from the first page - who can forget the opening scene where the young Caroline Meeber is "spotted" by the travelling salesman Charles Drouet on the Chicago-bound train? We follow in this novel two seemingly irreversible life flows: Carrie uses her beauty and ambition to rise in life, and Hurstwood falls from his secure position of middle-aged, upper-middle-class success to utter failure, all for the love of a woman half his age. It's the stuff of melodrama to some, but not when handled by Dreiser, who takes the reader into a vividly realized urban world with well-drawn characters whose virtues and vices are equally on display. You leave the book feeling that Carrie and Hurtstwood could very easily have stepped out of the pages of today's newspapers, such is the zone of uncomfortable truth inhabited by the denizens of this brilliant novel.

The story is about Joey who is dying of leukemia and fighting for his life while his brother is becoming a superstar. Joey and John share a special bond that John embraces by giving Joey the Heismann Trophy that he won. I read this book in a day which shows how much I enjoyed it. You will end up crying at the emotional and physical battle Joey puts up. You must read this book!

"Something for Joey" is the type of book that constantly sends chills running down your back. These types of books are the ones that are actually worth reading. It puts you in the suspense at some points and then you have to keep reading on to find out what happens and you can't put the book down. An example from the book would be from the end when John is receiving the Heisman Trophy. He is making his speech, trying desperately not to cry, and announces to four thousand people, plus thousands watching on TV; that his little brother is ill with leukemia. John tells everyone how people say he shows courage on the football field. But goes on saying, "Joey lives with the pain all the time, his courage is round the clock." Then he gives the trophy to Joey telling everyone, "It's more his than mine, because he's been such an inspiration to me." Obviously this little boy was an inspiration. He begged John to score four touchdowns, but John didn't think he could do it. He wanted to please Joey so he tried harder and he did it. It shows Joey was an inspiration to John and John was an inspiration to Joey, as well as his strength for surviving. They helped each other and kept each other strong. That shows a lot of inner human strength.

I fisrst read this when I was just a little older than Joey. It has been one of my favorite books ever since. Be warned, if the picture of the football player on the cover is what turns you on to this book, you will NOT like it. This book is NOT about a macho tough guy football player. It is about the love that a kind, gentle college player has for his little brother who is suffering from lukemia, and the special closeness they share. It is about a close knit family dealing with a devastating illness with faith and love. It is about a very brave little boy who is fighting for his life. Through this book John Cappeletti becomes someone to admire, not for being a good football player, but for being a good, loving person. In his speech accepting the Heismann Trophy, John minimizes his own accomplishments and tells a room full of people how much he admires his little brother and that his brother shows courage way beyond what John shows on the field. If you are looking for a touching, inspirational story about a real family dealing with a real problem, this is an excellent choice. If you want to read about football, look somewhere else.

Native Son is an excellent book that is quite deep on many levels. Richard Wright does an incredibly nice job of developing his main character, Bigger Thomas.

Bigger is a twenty year-old poor black man hired by a wealthy white family, and then accidentally kills the prominent young daughter out of fear. In covering up her death, he allows his emotions to get the better of him, and he rapes and kills another girl.

The first two sections of the book are loaded with intrigue, suspense, and drama, as the reader is right there with Bigger as he tries to mislead the murder investigation, and then runs from the large angry masses once his cover-up is foiled. The third section allows you to get into Bigger's mind and feel his confused emotions. Here, the reader is treated to Wright's views on society mainly through the voice of Bigger's trial attorney.

The language in the book is easy-flowing, and not terribly descriptive, which was done intentionally, so the reader could read between the lines and make clear assumptions. All in all, the novel was quite entertaining and rather eye-opening.

It`s my personal opinion that Richard Wright`s Native Son is one of the best books ever written by an African-American writer. In his book he desribes the pains of ghetto life for the negroes in Chicago`s black belt, cira 1920. Never has an author ever caught the thoughts and feelings of a single person as Wright did with the main character Bigger. Bigger`s life is portrayed as bleak and dark but, things start to look up when he accepts a job as a driver for the millionaire Dalton`s. He is getting paid well with extra spending money and the opportunity to get an education. His first job is to take the Dalton`s daughter to a university function but, there is a change of plans, a change that turns out to be fatal. I don`t want to give the whole book away so I highly suggest read and find out what happens to Bigger. So if you enjoy reading classic American books you will enjoy Richard Wright`s Native Son.

The novel, Native Son, is a great story that illustrates racism in America. The main character, Bigger Thomas is continually treated unfairly because he is black. When he gets a job with a wealthy white family he accidently murders their daughter out of fear. He tries to cover up the murder and burns her body. He continues to try to escape because he is afraid that he is going to get arrested. He continues to run and gets into more trouble trying to escape. All of Bigger's acts of violence were done out of fear. Bigger is arrested and treated as a violent criminal. This novel illustrates that people can be mischaracterized by their actions when people don't actually know the person. In this novel, the reader gets to know Bigger's innocent, fearful character. This makes the reader feel sorry for Bigger and allows the reader to understand the effects of racism. The novel is filled with action and suspense that keeps the reader interested.