Elect Mr. Robinson for a Better World: A Novel

Great

When I started reading this book selected by my book club I just thought it was strange, but I dutifully finished it. After reflection and our club discussion I found myself deciding I really liked it. Some of the black humor is hilarious, especially the part about using library books to try to detonate hidden land mines. But the book is definitely not for everyone. A warped sense of humor helps.

This book is horrifying. It is about a man who has extreme delusions, living within a society which has equal delusions. As a whole, it shows how societies can teach and change their children, and how much humans can adapt to and accept. The tone of the book is so matter of fact that it tempts the reader to also accept as normal the brutal goings on at the same time that it shocks with such acceptance.The adults in the book still live in two worlds: able to perpetrate and become horrified by violence, but by the end it is clear that they are not preserving for their children an environment where non-acceptance of violence is acceptable. The scariest part is that it is clear that, an un-named few years previous, the adults would never have accepted any of their now everyday savagery. Projected into the future, this swift change will continue until there is nothing which is not accepted. It is a chilling portrayal of the darkest potentials humanity holds. The writing is pleasantly crafted and varied on the sentence level, but I couldn't see past the icky-ness of the subject matter to appreciate it on literary merit. This book did a wonderful job of creating an appalling, nauseating, unforgettable world, and the entire reading experience was sickening. The book was very well done, but nothing I could enjoy. I rate it 6/10.

I finished this book only because it was the book club book of the month. I know it's a satire, but with all that is going on in politics today--build a wall, deport all illegals, etc., etc.--it seems way too close to what could happen if Donald Trump becomes the president.

on time as advertised

Book reviews likely say more about the reviewer than the book. This is a masterfully written piece of innovative fiction. I just disliked it. Something about Mr Antrim's imagination while unique, is too dark and twisted for me. Not to say I don't enjoy a good dark read - Celine, the Patrick Melrose novels. Just not this one. I also found the stylistic choice of a single continuous narrative without chapter breaks, while very effective at creating a propulsive force, to be on balance a detriment to my becoming immersed in the novel as I did not have the luxury of reading it in one sitting.5 stars for excellent fiction writing, 1 star for my dislike, hence the compromise 3 stars.

Read this about 10 years ago. FUN read. Just wanted a copy for the collection.

The world of the story is interesting and thoughtfully provoking, a truly mundane post-apocalyptic easily recognized possibility. But it never developed past that central unease. The ending was as promised, deeply gruesome, but it just left me feeling more sickened than enlightened. So maybe I was just plain looking for too much. Anyhow, it was an okay book I was glad I finished.