Slouching Towards Kalamazoo
by Peter De Vries
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Description
It is 1963 in an unnamed town in North Dakota, and Anthony Thrasher is languishing for a second year in eighth grade. Prematurely sophisticated, young Anthony spends too much time reading Joyce, Eliot, and Dylan Thomas but not enough time studying the War of 1812 or obtuse triangles. A tutor is hired, and this "modern Hester Prynne" offers Anthony lessons that ultimately free him from eighth grade and situate her on the cusp of the American sexual revolution. Anthony's restless adolescent show more voice is perfectly suited to De Vries's blend of erudite wit and silliness-not to mention his fascination with both language and female anatomy-and it propels Slouching Towards Kalamazoo through theological debates and quandaries both dermatological and ethical, while soaring on the De Vriesian hallmark of scrambling conventional wisdom for comic effect. show lessTags
Recommendations
Member Reviews
This unconventional coming of age story is occasionally amusing rather than really funny, but it holds your interest as its protagonist, who starts in 8th grade by getting his teacher pregnant, proceeds through the next few years of his life. The other characters tend to be a bit one-dimensional, but in interesting ways. The pleasure of the book comes from the protagonist's use of odd words and from the various quotes, allusions, and philosophy obviously but skillfully entwined in the narrative. Overall, a pleasurable world to spend a few hours in.
Sophisticated and funny, this book flatters the reader with its vocabulary and tone of snarky hipness. Very satisfying.
Not finished - it was only 100 pages.. but I loved it! earthy sexual exploration by pleasant young man with lots of snow too. I want more... will finish later. try this book!
One of the very best of DeVries's comic novels. He returns to his best theme, religion and sex, and . . . what a romp he has!
Comic novel about a boy genuis
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Author Information
Awards and Honors
Notable Lists
Common Knowledge
- Original publication date
- 1983
- People/Characters
- Anthony Thrasher; Miss Maggie Dubloon; Kim 'Bubbles' Breedlove; Rev. Matthew Thrasher (father)
- Important places
- North Dakota, USA
- First words
- My old eighth-grade teacher, Miss Maggie Doubloon, said she was half Spanish, half French, and half Irish, a plethora of halves not entirely unnoticed by some of the brighter pupils.
- Last words
- (Click to show. Warning: May contain spoilers.)"Would you pass me your plate, my dear?"
Classifications
Statistics
- Members
- 265
- Popularity
- 122,431
- Reviews
- 5
- Rating
- (3.69)
- Languages
- English
- Media
- Paper, Ebook
- ISBNs
- 5
- ASINs
- 4
