Indignation

Just when you thought Philip Roth was writing his own swan song with the publications of EVERYMAN and EXIT GHOST, the master surprises the world with this small but powerful gem. It seems as if this incredible writer is still evolving, and in INDIGNATION Roth seems to pull it all together in this short but rich, humorous but shocking story.

There are many familiar Rothian themes here - for example, the protagonist being a young man growing up Jewish in post WWII New Jersey. The main character Marcus Messner is the product of hard-working parents, involved in a meticulously described trade; this time, a Kosher butcher. And to be sure, in a butcher's shop there is blood, LOTS of blood. Yes, the blood is just one of many devices in Roth's toolbox, effectively employed to foreshadow coming events.

There is an awful lot happening in this story; an over protective and paranoid father, a strong hard-working loving mother, a son who wants to do nothing but achieve, college life with all of the liberties and pressures found therein, and the threat of the military draft awaiting young men who do not qualify for a college deferment. Just over the horizon, the terrible war in Korea rages.

While derivative of some of the hysterically clumsy sexuality of PORTNOY'S COMPLAINT and the gut-wrenching familial strife of AMERICAN PASTORAL, this book is nonetheless unique. For me, the loving entreaty to Marcus by his mother, which borders on a Shakespearean soliloquy, is alone worth the price of admission.

I'm a big Roth fan, and George Guidall does great readings of the other books. This guy reads it like he's a Borscht Belt comedian, manages to miss every nuance, doesn't understand the character.

I am a Philip Roth fan and I cannot say that this one is my favorite Roth novel, or even in my top half-dozen. Of Roth's most recent short novels, I liked Exit Ghost, Everyman and the Dying Animal better, but even a second tier Roth novel beats almost anybody else's masterpiece. Many of the other Roth audiobooks are narrated by George Guidall, and I have to admit, George Guidall is the better narrator. Still, this audiobook is certainly worth the price and five and a half hours of your time.

This is the story of a young Jewish man who grew up in Newark and who seeks to expand his world by going to a private college in Ohio. The characters (his parents, other students at college, a supercilious dean of students) are fascinating...as is the glimpse of life in the 1940's and early 1950's. Great narration.

On one hand, "Indignation" has the Philip Roth stamp all over it - it's an interesting listen, Roth builds a good, eye opening plot, and presents the atmosphere and state of mind of student life in 1952. Some Roth-brilliant sarcasm is ofcourse part of the package
Altough the image of Marcus Mesner is a crossbreeding between a young Zuckerman and "the Swede" (from American Pastoral) - i wouldn't say Roth is repeating himself, this story does have it's own inimitable atmosphere and ideas.

On the other hand, as powerful as this book may be, i don't think it's Roth's best work - possibly because it's a short novel, which doesn't allow much development.
I do recommend the audiobook or the book - they are intense - but for those who never read Philip Roth before, i would recommend American Pastoral or The Human Stain.

Philip Roth at his best. Concise and detailed, lyrical and gut-wrenching bloody, a story about a young life told from the grave, about growing in New Jersey and Ohio during the Korean War. Please, please, G-d, do not make this book Roth's swan song.

Great book (as expected), but what a fantastic performance by DIck Hill. This is a really good example how a books wins with a great narration.

This was a quick little story. I tend to read crime fiction, but this "slice of life" story was a pleasant change of pace. I found it amusing and enjoyable, but fyi, it's not all laughs. I guess it surprised me in places too. The naration and sound quality were very good. I almost feel like summarizing by saying "it's good, if you like that kind of thing", but i know that's not much help... It is short, so no harm in trying it.

Interesting book, yet I was glad when it was finished (only 5 hours). I didn't much like the voice of the narrator - it was indignant in fact! (Dick something)- too expressive! and sententious! I usually love Philip Roth's writing but this was different but not necessarily in a bad way!Some parts were too long and too lecturing!

I found Indignation to be humorless, crude, and shallow.

This is basically the Forest Gump story backwards. Gump, though of simple mind, manages to tiptoe through turbulent periods of American history with his decency, compassion, faith, and humility. Marcus, the main character of this novel, is evidently book smart, but driven, angry, without faith, and narcissistic.

Marcus is concerned for no one but himself. While he says he prefers solitude, he is always ready for a verbal fight, and he is sure he's always right.

Nearly everyone at the rural Ohio college he attends is a unidimensional stereotype, and of course the social mores of 1950s America -- middle America -- are sufficating to this intellectually superior young man from America's largest metro area.

Marcus can't understand why the adults at the college are frustrated when he refuses to take even the simpliest suggestion. And he can't just accept a suggestion, but he has to argue his viewpoint and pound his superior intelligence into others.

There is nothing to be learned here, nothing to laugh at, nothing to ponder over. A few random situations occur, and our hapless, but intellectually superior main character trips, stumbles, and finally careens into disaster, basically because of his own stubborn attitude. While these events seem to happen to him, he ends up being the master of his own demise. No one to blame but himself and a few unforeseen occurences.