The Education of Robert Nifkin

My favorite blurb for this book is the one Daniel Pinkwater wrote for himself: "The Education of Robert Nifkin is a true-to-life story of a sensitive and affectionate boy and his heart-warming adventures with his perfectly normal friends in Chicago in the 1950s." That is, if normal includes the high school from hell, complete with anti-Semite teachers, Marxist ROTC leaders, and math taught by copying text into a notebook. Luckily Robert meets some normal friends, who lead him to a progressive school where no one expects students to attend class. Instead, he hangs out at lunch rooms, smokes cigars, and wanders the city. In Pinkwater's world, that is normal.

Robert manages to get a good education, especially during the summer session where show more the cynical teachers actually challenge the kids to learn. As a kid, I'd enjoy the satire of traditional schools and the cool private school where kids have the freedom to actually learn. As an adult, I couldn't enjoy the joke as much -- these kids deserved better! B show less

Like many of Pinkwater's best books -- LIZARD MUSIC immediately comes to mind -- this jolly book is largely wasted on the young. Largely, but not entirely, if the young readers have some sapient adult nearby to assure them that the kinds of weirdos depicted DO indeed exist. Pinkwater has merely changed the names to protect the guilty. Many years ago, in a previous incarnation as a public library worker, I rated this as the Best Book of the Year -- all genres, all reading-constituencies. I see no reason to turn back now.

I read this Daniel Pinkwater novel on the recommendation of Cory Doctorow over at the BoingBoing blog...it follows the titular Nifkin through a year of high school in 1950s Chicago. The child of immigrants, he endures public school (where teachers spend more time ranting about Commies and Faries than imparting wisdom) and then escapes to a chaotic, more beatik private school where he manages to learn a lot without having to attend any boring classes. This is a slight book, but it's amusingly written, and no one has to convince me of the soul-crushing ennui enforced in our public schools...

Robert Nifkin is a teen in 1950’s Chicago writing an essay about his high school experience…and what an interesting one it is. He has Eastern European parents with their immigrant quirks, teachers obsessed with banishing communism, and a group of free-spirited beatnik friends. The novel is character-driven and definitely up there with The Long Game by Ben Rose.

The Education of Robert Nifkin by Daniel Pinkwater takes place when America was busy defending itself against the evils of communism and many of Pinkwater’s jokes are based in this historical context. The beginning of this book is humorous in places but the humor is quickly replaced with continuous descriptions of unlikely characters as they are randomly introduced into Robert’s life. The characters are many and their names are very confusing. The dialogue between the characters is quick, haphazard and hard to follow. The end of the book becomes more of a list of what Robert and his friends are accomplishing, good and bad than a story. I did laugh out loud while I read the descriptions of Robert and his family but as this story show more continued it became laborious to finish. show less

Hilarious and charming, but just not much there, there. Minor rather than major Pinkwater:).

A very witty, quick read! Daniel Pinkwater is very talented chameleon of writing...