This is an outstanding novel. It is truly timeless, despite being firmly placed within a specific historical context. It delves into one of those eternal questions regarding human nature, and does so in an original and unique manner.

The first aspect that caught my attention at the beginning was how Roth structures his story. He embeds the writer (Nathan Zukerman) as a fictional character within the book, thereby creating the very novel we are reading. From just two encounters and limited factual information, Nathan Zukerman sets out to re-imagine the life story of a real man who was once the role model and hero of his childhood. So, from the start of the main story, we know that it is not entirely true, even within the context of the novel.

The main story itself is simple yet powerful. The Swede represents everything that people refer to as the "American dream." He is a third-generation American, a gifted sportsman, extremely likable, who loves his country, his family, and his life. He always attempts to consider others when making decisions and works hard to deserve his success. However, life treats him well until one fateful day when his 16-year-old daughter decides to become a terrorist, blows up a shop, kills an innocent man, and disappears. She does this in 1968 as a protest against the Vietnam War. That's all. For the rest of the book, he tries to understand why and what he did wrong. He explores various rational and irrational explanations for what turned his child into a terrorist. Although he cannot find the answer, in the process, he sees much more than he used to notice around him, and his "American Pastoral" slowly but inevitably disintegrates before his eyes.

I believe this novel is even more relevant today than it was 20 years ago when it was written. We have witnessed waves of terrorism around the world. I was initially going to write "motivated by the radical version of Islam," but it is far more complex than that. The majority of those terrorists were born and raised in families in the West who, ironically, moved there to ensure the best future for their children. Some of them many generations ago. These families face the same torments of guilt, incomprehension, and shame. Metaphorically, and not just in a literal sense, the whole society faces the same question: how is it possible that some young people view murder as a justifiable means for their purposes (even if it seems idealistically honorable to them)? There is also the question of whether to cooperate with the authorities and what is best for the child involved. It is an unlikely comparison, but Kamila Shamsie deals with a similar dilemma in her recent novel Home Fire.

There are many transgressions in this novel, ranging from the manufacturing process of gloves to the riots in New Jersey in the late 60s. Roth clearly enjoys the writing process and seems not to care too much whether the reader will follow him all the way. Sometimes, I felt slightly impatient with him. Also, I think some people on the left of the political spectrum might find some of his observations not entirely palatable. But fundamentally, it is a masterfully written novel about human nature, as exemplified by the quote: "The tragedy of the man not set up for tragedy that is every man’s tragedy."

Quotes:

There is no protest to be lodged against loneliness not all the bombing campaign in history have made a dent in it.

That people were manifold creatures didn’t come as a surprise to the swede, even if it was a bit of a shock to realise it anew when someone let you down. What was astonishing to him was how people seemed to run out of their own being run out of whatever the stuff was that made them who they were and, drained of themselves, turn into the sort of people they would once have felt sorry for.

I discovered Philip Roth last summer. It was when I picked up a used copy of "The Human Stain" and was completely blown away by both the story and Roth's incredible writing.

When I decided to dive into "American Pastoral", I wasn't sure what to expect. After falling in love with a book and pursuing the author's other works, there's always the risk of being severely disappointed. And people seem to either love or hate this book with a surprising passion.

I'm happy to report that I was not disappointed in the least. A quarter of the way in, I already felt like I had been kicked in the teeth (in the best possible way) by the story of Seymour "The Swede" Levov. Roth's ability to create vivid characters and put their thoughts and feelings on the page is truly impressive. I really feel like I'm in their heads. And when the characters have a story as devastating as that of the Levov family, it makes for an incredible reading experience. I put the book down dizzy, my head reeling with images and ideas, and I love when that happens.

Roth explores the idea that people are never what they appear to be on the surface. With great compassion, he delves into an All-American family man, his former beauty queen wife, and their stuttering daughter, turning them inside out to show us that nothing is as it seems. The American Dream might have been an optical illusion all along, and perfection is an unbearable burden that can't be sustained indefinitely.

The literal explosion of the Swede's ideals, when his out-of-control daughter commits a horrific act of violence, and his disillusionment are detailed with heartbreaking precision. What do you do when everything you've ever held sacred and believed to be good and true disintegrates around you, no matter what you do? How do you pick up the pieces and move on? How do you make sense of the surreal failure that your dream world has so unexpectedly become? Roth explores the power of choices, how we can trace back so many things to that one fork in the road where we decided to turn right instead of left, the moment in time from which a huge series of events cascaded.

The Swede's compulsion to always be what other people want him to be and to live a life he feels is the highest ideal of American lives can seem naive, but it also comes from a truly earnest place. There's not an ounce of malicious intent in this upright man, and he can't understand it in others. His inability to conceive that the rest of the world doesn't mean as well as he does is his Achilles' heel, and his daughter - who is nuts, but more lucid than him - uses it to make him aware of his blindness.

I found myself wondering how I would have reacted if I had been Merry's age, sitting in front of the television and watching a monk set himself on fire because nothing else he could do would carry the weight of his protest against the powerlessness imposed on his people. It's only too realistic to suppose that a sensitive and intelligent child can look at this horrific image of a gentle monk burning himself to death and be forever changed by that event. I abhor violence, and I don't think I would have been pushed into the kind of radical revolutionary tactics that attracted Merry, but I know the home-life dissatisfaction, and I know how the anger and frustration that comes from that can burn inside someone until they don't know how to react except by lashing out. Obviously, Merry's reaction to her father's denial and passivity is completely disproportionate, but it's not impossible to imagine.

I can see how Roth's writing isn't for everyone. He's long-winded, and just as I had experienced with "The Human Stain", his rhythm took a few pages to get used to. But once my brain got in the right gear, I breezed through the pages maniacally. When the narrative becomes the rambling stream-of-consciousness of the character he is exploring, it can be hard to follow, especially if you were never particularly interested in the glove manufacturing business or Miss America pageants. Believe me, those are things that are as far from my reality as one can imagine, but I was completely enthralled despite my not giving a hoot about high school football culture. I think the only thing I can hold against this book is that it ended too soon for me. I wanted to know more about how the Swede decided to rebuild himself, which we know he did, but Roth skips over that part of the story entirely. But overall, it's a moving and hard-hitting read that I enthusiastically recommend to everyone.

That being said, I can't really recommend the movie. It tries very hard to incorporate every important aspect of the story but fails to convey the emotional weight of Roth's writing. I'm beginning to think his work might be un-adaptable for the silver screen, as I was just as disappointed with the movie version of "The Human Stain".

Just like a stone thrown into a calm pond, but beneath which there are tumultuous waves, unresolved dilemmas, perhaps even the atrocious doubt of not knowing who one really is, of having uselessly consumed one's life by fulfilling presumed desires of others or succumbing to tradition and social conformism, convinced that that and only that is the life to follow, the path to the only possible happiness.

It is only when an event comes to destabilize this false and fragile house of cards and Seymour, the protagonist, finds himself having to face demons of which the calm perfection of the life he had meticulously built had not even made him suspect the existence.

Seymour had always lived a seemingly perfect life, following the rules and expectations set by society. But deep down, there were hidden conflicts and uncertainties that he had managed to suppress.

However, with the arrival of this unexpected event, his world is turned upside down. He is forced to question everything he has ever believed in and to confront the true nature of himself and his existence.

This newfound awareness leads him on a journey of self-discovery and transformation, as he struggles to come to terms with the demons that have emerged from the depths of his being.

Will Seymour be able to overcome these challenges and find his true path in life? Or will he be consumed by the chaos and uncertainty that now surrounds him? Only time will tell.

Clearly, a significant amount of research was dedicated to this book.

Regrettably, Roth seemed overly compelled to flaunt every tiny detail, arcane knowledge, and esoteric tidbit (yes, I create words when needed) related to the glove-making industry in New Jersey.

The book is undoubtedly too lengthy, and the political allegory can feel rather burdensome as one struggles to believe in characters who remain just shy of being plausible (with the exception of a few minor players, like the bullying heart surgeon brother or the detestable little "revolutionary" who despises her upper-class upbringing).

I was also extremely confused about the narrative premise itself. It is a book about something an author (who is a character in the novel) imagines to have occurred. Besides adding ambiguity (the literary equivalent of monosodium glutamate) to the entire story, what does this achieve? Perhaps I overlooked something.

That being said, Roth is a skilled writer of undeniable competence. Any idea he has, he can convey it perfectly. However, his prose, while not formulaic in the affected Hemingway style, still remains rather ordinary.

As for the plot, it is engaging and keeps you turning the pages. I would never have criticized the book if it hadn't been so relentlessly hyped (being placed on the New York Times top-10 books of the last 25 years list), Roth so highly exalted, and American Pastoral so invariably cited as his masterpiece.

I found the ending disappointing, but by that time I had already been let down and was simply finishing a task. If only I could have discovered this book without ever hearing anything about it beforehand, I would have been left with this impression:

Hey, that was a good book. Intelligent. Wise in parts. I enjoyed it, and I'll soon forget all about it. Except when I look at leather gloves.

Wow.

What a magnificent, overwritten, powerful, inventive, angry and necessary book this is!

I am completely stunned into submission and admiration.

The author has truly outdone themselves with this work.

It is a masterpiece that combines so many elements in a way that is both captivating and thought-provoking.

Every page is filled with powerful language and vivid imagery that draws the reader in and keeps them engaged from start to finish.

However, after reading this intense book, I feel the need to read something much, much lighter to balance out my reading experience.

A review will surely follow once I have had the chance to do so.

But for now, I can't help but be in awe of this amazing piece of literature.

This is Roth's masterpiece. In case you want to read one or two of his books, now that he is gone. Apparently, Philip Roth was a complex and often controversial figure. He had a reputation, which he himself sometimes admitted to, as a cad, a bounder, and a profligate.

His ex-wife, the actress Claire Bloom, with whom he lived for around 18 years, criticized him harshly in a memoir. I seem to recall from reviews (though I never read the book myself) that it painted him as almost psychotically ruthless. However, I have no personal knowledge of the truth of these claims.

I read Roth's early works, such as "Portnoy's Complaint" and "Goodbye, Columbus," in the early to mid-seventies and loved them. At that time, in my late teens and early twenties, I found them hilarious. Roth writes about himself in some of his books, such as "My Life as a Man," in a way that is not entirely flattering with respect to women.

For decades, I didn't read anything else by him until fairly recently, when I read his memoir "Patrimony," which is about his relationship with his dying father. In this book, both he and his father are shown as not being particularly nice or easy people, but there is also a sense of depth and love between them that makes you understand why one might want to be around Roth.

Roth is known for writing autobiographical fiction, but the question of whether he is actually writing about himself is a matter of debate. His narrators, such as Nathan Zuckerman in "American Pastoral," are often seen as stand-ins for Roth himself. However, I believe that Zuckerman is not Roth, and this distinction is important in understanding the book.

"American Pastoral" begins with Zuckerman attending his 45th high school reunion and meeting Jerry Levov, the brother of his high school hero, Seymour Levov, also known as The Swede. The Swede was a star athlete with blond hair and blue eyes, who married a non-Jewish Miss New Jersey and took over his father's glove-making factory in Newark.

The first section of the novel, "Paradise Remembered," is Zuckerman's nostalgic回忆 of high school and the idyllic American Dream of the forties and fifties. However, as the story progresses, we learn that The Swede's life is not as perfect as it seems. His daughter Merry becomes involved with a radical organization and bombs a local post office, killing a doctor.

The second section, "The Fall," and the third section, "Paradise Lost," show the consequences of Merry's actions and the breakdown of The Swede's seemingly perfect life. The book explores themes such as the American Dream, assimilation, the decline of cities, and the relationship between fathers and children.

Overall, "American Pastoral" is a powerful and thought-provoking novel that grapples with some of the most important issues of American life. It is a work of fiction that is both entertaining and deeply moving, and it showcases Roth's talent as a writer. Whether you like the characters or not, this is a book that is well worth reading.

In life, it's not so important to understand people.

Life means deceiving oneself about them, deceiving oneself again and again, and then, after thinking well, deceiving oneself once more.

This is how we realize that we are alive: when we deceive ourselves.

Perhaps it would be best to give up the idea that we can be right or deceive ourselves about people and simply let ourselves be carried by the wave.

But if you manage to do such a thing... well, you are a lucky person.

We often spend a great deal of time and energy trying to figure out others, but in reality, this may not lead to a more fulfilling life.

Sometimes, it's better to just go with the flow and accept that we may not always understand or be right about those around us.

By doing so, we can free ourselves from the stress and frustration of constantly trying to analyze and judge others.

And who knows, maybe we'll find that life is actually more enjoyable when we let go and embrace the uncertainties.

So, the next time you find yourself纠结于 understanding someone, remember this: it's okay not to know.

Just let life take its course and see where it leads.

Roth is an outstanding author who presents literature in its purest form. The narration in this work is intense and engaging. It's not just a story to be read once; it demands to be reread and experienced. The flow of words and their placement in the prose are distinct, with each sentence crucial in revealing a devastating vision of society.

The book explores various themes related to the history of the United States, especially during the tumultuous times of the Vietnam War, the civil rights movement, the sexual revolution, the Newark riots of 1967, and the Watergate scandal. The Levov family finds themselves at the center of history due to the actions of their daughter, Merry, who commits a terrorist attack and then disappears.

The three parts of the book, "Paradise Remembered," "The Fall," and "Paradise Lost," each offer a unique perspective. The first part is entertaining and rich in character presentation, while the second part is a bit flatter. However, the third part, with its long dinner scene at the Levovs' house and numerous flashbacks, is extremely powerful. Roth's exploration of the contradictions within American society, and perhaps beyond, in the second half of the 20th century is remarkable. Only a few writers have been able to capture these contradictions so effectively.

"Rimane il fatto che, in ogni modo, capire bene la gente non è vivere. Vivere è capirla male, capirla male e male e poi male e, dopo un attento riesame, ancora male. Ecco come sappiamo di essere vivi: sbagliando. Forse la cosa migliore sarebbe dimenticare di aver ragione o torto sulla gente e godersi semplicemente la vita. Ma se ci riuscite... Beh, siete fortunati."

Eccellente. Letteratura nella sua forma più pura. La narrazione è dura, ma intensa. Devi rileggerlo, viverlo.
Si riesce a distinguere come scorrono le parole, come occupano il proprio posto nella prosa. Ogni frase è necessaria per scoprire la visione devastante di una società.



Roth è uno dei miei autori preferiti e un riferimento immediato alla letteratura statunitense, esplora molti temi della storia del suo paese e mantiene uno stile rivoluzionario.



In questo libro è Zuckerman (su alter ego) il personaggio che ascolta e narra dettagliatamente con alcuni dati certi ma in gran parte ricreando passaggi immaginati la storia di Seymour Levov, lo Svedese, soprattutto inserendo nel racconto il costumbrismo tipico dell'autore dall'umile mondo che conosce, il mondo della comunità ebraica della sua amata Newark del New Jersey, negli Stati Uniti. Nonostante ciò, i loro eroi sono contraddizioni di questa comunità (i tratti fisici dello svedese e gli atteggiamenti di Nathan Zuckerman) che a volte cercano di abbandonare persino la religione.



Il libro affronta la crisi sociale e politica negli Stati Uniti con la guerra del Vietnam e in seguito la lotta per i diritti civili, la rivoluzione sessuale, la rivolta di Newark del 1967 e lo scandalo Watergate. Uno di questi avvenimenti storici mette anche la famiglia Levov nel centro della Storia, dato dall'attacco terroristico commesso dalla figlia dello svedese, "quel mostro di Merry", che poi scompare.



La prima parte, chiamata "Paradiso ricordato" e molto divertente e ricca nella presentazione dei personaggi, la seconda parte "La caduta" è più piatta e stancante, per finire, la terza e ultima parte "Paradiso perduto" è una lunga cena a casa dei Levov con tanti flashback, molto potente.



Pochi scrittori sono riusciti a cogliere le contraddizioni della società americana*, e non solo americana*, nella seconda metà del ventesimo secolo.



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*: dove dice "americano" vuol dire Nordamericano o statunitense, oddio usare l'aggettivo "americano" per far riferimento a un nativo degli Stati Uniti, come si fa comunemente qui in Italia, giacché anch'io sono AMERICANO, ma ben lontano di essere degli Stati Uniti, comunque, si capisce, è solo un mio sfogo ricorrente al sentirmi escluso di una comunità che mi appartiene (quella di tutti gli americani, parafrasando George Orwell possiamo concludere che "Tutti gli Americani sono uguali, ma alcuni sono più uguali di altri" ;).

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FINALLY, I'm finished with "American Pastoral"! I managed to read 9 chapters in 9 days, and I couldn't have achieved this without the support of the group I was budding reading it with. Sadly, this book just wasn't for me. The repetition in it was truly the worst aspect. It became tiresome and made the reading experience rather dull. Additionally, the female characters were poorly written. They seemed one-dimensional and lacked depth. What's more, the author's inability to write about black people without using a slur or referring to them as thieves and thugs was highly concerning and inappropriate. American pastoral? I don't think so. The author bit off far more than he could chew. The construction of the story was deplorable. By Chapter 3, I was already disinterested. Not to mention that the Swede, the main character, was as boring as AF! Will I read anymore Roth? Well, yes. I think I'll give "The Human Stain" a try at some point. But do I recommend "American Pastoral"? NO! However, I do highly recommend "The Plot Against America". It's an excellent read that I believe many will enjoy.

The rating isn't exactly a clean 5, more like a 4.5. (When will this reviewer put in those half stars?????)

I'm leaning towards a 5 because my first encounter with Roth was quite震撼ing. On the other hand, I'm also leaning towards a 4 because the story left some gaps in my mind. Surely, at some point, I will seek out other books by him as well.

#Readathon 2017 2/13 A book that will be made into a movie within 2017.

This book has its pros and cons. The initial impact it had on me was remarkable, which makes me inclined to give it a higher rating. However, the presence of those gaps in the story makes me a bit hesitant. Nevertheless, I'm still interested in exploring more of Roth's works in the future.

The fact that it's going to be made into a movie in 2017 adds an extra layer of excitement. I'm curious to see how the filmmakers will bring the story to life on the big screen.

Overall, it's a book that has left a lasting impression on me, despite its flaws. I'm looking forward to seeing what else Roth has in store for us.

Seymour Levov is tall, blonde, and athletic. In high school, they call him "the Swede". He is a prosperous and integrated Jew, and what seems to await him in the 1950s is a life of professional success and family joys.

Until the contradictions of the Vietnam conflict, which exploded in the United States, also involve him, and in the most devastating way: through his beloved daughter Merry, determined to "bring the war home". Literally.

The title is a clear reference to religion, and in this way, a man with an angelic appearance is described, who is destroyed by his own paradise (the family). The novel contains the account of Levov's life, told by his high school friend, now a writer, Nathan Zuckerman. He receives the inspiration to write this novel when, at a high school reunion in 1995, he learns that the "mythical" Levov has died of cancer a few days before. Telling his story, he discovers how Levov has hidden from him precisely the most dramatic thing in his life: in 1968, his daughter Merry (="happy") planted a bomb in the post office, killing an innocent person, in the name of political ideals against President Johnson and against the Vietnam War.

The book is first and foremost a criticism of the American industry, which seems to have forgotten how, as entrepreneurs and workers, they worked together to improve the quality of the product. With the deindustrialization of work, the quality of the product has also declined. It is also a criticism of the Vietnam War, the Watergate political class, and the sympathizers of the Ku Klux Klan. A magnificent style that makes this book a masterpiece of American literature. Page after page, Roth describes what is happening, with precise dialogues, but at the same time, he tells us what the character is thinking.

I could write for hours and days about this book: so read it!

I also recommend the audiobook version on @audible_it read by @massimopopolizio for @emonsedizioni (a beautiful listen!).

Critique contra legem. A phrase that characterizes this novel; very bad for nothing.

The Roth - if we exclude his partner Portnoy - continues to... burden my hours and take away my precious time with the boring personalities of his works, without yet having managed to convince me that he has something more impressive to offer than the daily routine of real people with whom I share my patience! I am explaining to avoid misunderstandings.

Taking a photograph, a snapshot, a scene of American society between the sixties and the early seventies, Roth creates an incredibly detailed and amazingly penetrating centipede of characters in his attempt to touch (ouch!) the wound that lies behind the American post-war dream. And he does it quite well, filling five hundred pages with thoughts, character analyses, distorted dreams, helpless moments and crumbled lies of people who chased the American miracle to finally live the Greek tragedy, through a society, a family and a life that collapsed, without a sound!!!

Or perhaps this is how we are led to believe deeply, so that our own little life seems a little brighter in the face of what is STILL called the great American dream today?

Because this dream still exists, and I admit that it retains the same excitement - millions of Latin Americans willingly confirm it at the borders with Mexico... The American dream was, is and will always be present, despite the Vietnam War, the anti-war movement and the... hippie student movement; American society has left this era behind and after 1980 has put the circle of history back on the right track. Proof that the US remains today the largest economy in the world, the country that generates money and ideas that the rest of us consume lavishly and copy maniacally!

(This app is American, thank you...)

If you read it to confirm your anti-Americanism, you will be out! No, it is not an anti-American novel. It is, simply, a zoom into an era. You can instead watch movies by Woody Allen; you will like them even more...

So why all this? Perhaps it is not unfair to characterize this work as a masterpiece. A serious, mature, honest commentary on an era; but a commentary!

Because basically it is nothing more than an isolated piece about the troubled political years of the sixties and seventies and the collapse of the hopes (of whom, though?) of the baby boomer generation; essentially a dream that collapses in the third generation of self-made European immigrants of the 1920s, through the Vietnam War and the anti-war crisis at the universities in the same era.

With this in mind, it is as characteristic of American society as any commentary on the economic crisis in Greece and the collapse of social values in isolation in this decade. Yet just as Greece and its society in 2010 - 2019 is NOT ONLY this image of the country - so the image of the Libov family is NOT ONLY THIS image of post-war America.

With this in mind, the book loses any interest beyond the telling of a story, a story that follows the classic American paths of describing its people, people who struggle to avoid Lethe in a country that struggles to hold on to Memory in something that - 250 years after its founding - has not yet managed to define, as people continue to gather in large migratory waves, each seeking their own slice of life, their own personal history and looking for common ground with the Other Stranger - work, place of origin, common childhood in the industrial cities, Thanksgiving Dinner. Everyone wants to become Americans! The central figure in the work is Lou Libov, the American patron who demands his right to the America that HE TOO built! His own America!

You learn a lot about America in this work. But it is not enough to form a true image of it. It is like wanting to know a person from a moment of his! But that's as far as it goes.