Natural [Hardcover]

 

 

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I read this book on the strength of the Robert Redford movie and not only because I was looking for a happy ending, either. It's usually the case where the movie adaptation of a book strips down the characters and pursues fewer plot lines than the book. But in this sad, bump-along novel, it's just the opposite.

The "Natural" doesn't stand the test of time. Maybe way back in the day you could have invented a Roy Hobbs and the anti-hero story would be received as edgy and avant garde. But it's hokey now and too simplistic: the would-be hero who can't prevail because he chases what's bad for him and ensures his own destruction in spite of tremendous "natural" talent. We're not surprised by the ending at all. We expect it. We get it. We saw it play out in the last presidential administration. We're sick of it.

It's one thing for a novel to be dark, it's another for that darkness to get in the way of the narrative, character development, and so on. Which is exactly what I loved so much about the movie. Remember those great scenes with Wilfred Brimley and the assistant coach? Remember when they were whistling to each other, playing "name that tune?" Those two characters have absolutely no depth at all in this book. The manager's reduced to a grouchy head of steam full of resentment and doubt for everyone. The assistant coach is just a box of fortune cookies come alive, kicking out hayseed credos and cutting the tension here and there. People we thought we KNEW by the end of the movie barely have any narrative power ripple over them in this book.

Some of the pitiful contrivances are out-of-this world corny, implausible, or irrelevant: Roy's chance meeting with Memo, his gargantuan appetite, his magic tricks. Pages which should have been devoted to developing Roy's internal crisis and his unpreparedness for the world around him are wasted with vaudevillian-style hijinks where one character "gets over" on another.

Hat's off to the writers of this movie. I didn't know they had to stretch this far to make such a great film. I've no problem with sad endings and disappointments, just don't play me "When the Saints Go Marching In" for 250 pages and call it "Ave Maria."

Why would a well-rounded baseball player bring down his team's chances of winning a championship game? Roy Robbs, the main character of the novel, seems to have reasons for creating this downfall. He experienced numerous, tragic flaws led to his downfall. Roy brings his team down, makes regretful decisions, ignores the coach, and chose to be around the wrong characters in the novel.
Being on a team does not mean one person does all the work. A team needs everyone to contribute and if one person lets up, it could bring the rest of the team down. In this book, Roy brings the team down in a couple of different ways. He started letting the team down after he replaced the best player on the team who had recently passed away. He did not care about being a team player as he said to Harriet, a lady he met on the bus, "I bet some day I will break every record for throwing and hitting"(pg.30). These dreams of wealth and power set him up for failure. Also, shortly after the team started winning, Roy had fallen into a major league slump and the whole team fell apart. This left them wandering if they would ever recover from their losing streak.
His decision making about women was less then desirable. Some of the decisions he made didn't make sense. First, he fell for a women named Memo Paris shortly after he noticed her for the first time. He didn't even know her and he was determined to meet her. After her boyfriend died, she hung out with him and blamed him for Bump's death. Throughout the book, she had been setting him up for disaster. All she wanted was his money and fame. He didn't even realize she was using him. Later in the book, he meets another lady named Iris, who helped him break out of his slump. She was very understanding and kind to him. But he insisted on dating Memo even though Iris was pregnant with his child.
Anther reason I think this book has a negative effect on readers is by the way he handled himself around his coach. His coach, Pop Fisher, gave him a significant amount of playing time. During the team's slump, the coach decided to hire a hypnotist to make the players focus better. Roy opposed the coach and said, "I might be on the team, but no medicine man is going to hypnotize me"(pg.75). So, the coach benched him and Roy became angry. They also had a disagreement when Roy refused to try a different bat during his slump. The coach said, "When will you get rid of that danged Wonderboy and try some other stick?" Roy replies, "Never"(pg.150). If anyone tried that in today's game of baseball, they would be assessed a harsh punishment. I disapproved when Roy thought he was above everyone else and thought he did not have to listen or answer to anyone. This showed that the coach had no control and he was taken avantage of by Roy.
I also disagree with the characters that were portrayed throughout the story along with the ending itself. When Harriet Bird, the women Roy met on the train, heard that Roy had a chance to be the best in the league, she decided to try and kill him by firing a bullet into his stomach. This had no relevance to the story and it seemed unusual.
I also didn't like the way the owner of Roy's major league team ran the organization. Judge Goodwill Barns, the owner of the Knights, tried to find an easy way to make money and loose the pennant. Roy said, "Twenty-five thousand dollars for dropping a game is not enough" and the Judge replied, "Thirty and no more"(pg.228). Roy did squeeze the money out of the Judge and he was satisfied. I think that was quite selfish of the owner to do this to his team by buying off a player.
At the end of the game, the little boy turned to Roy and asked, "Say it ain't true, Roy"(pg.262). He was unable to respond and felt guilty and realized he had lost everything again. The conclusion of the story had a negative impact when the Judge paid him to lose the game and when the boy approached Roy.
This book has negativity because of Roy's bad decisions, Roy inability to listen to his coach, unable to fit in and worked toward being a team player and chose to be around shady characters. Roy was unable to stay focussed throughout the season and he chose women and money over his morals. If had chosen a different major league team, he might not have experienced his downfall and loneliness.

In the beggining of the story, Roy Hobbs is traveling to Chicago where he will try out for the cubs. His destiny is altered when a woman named Harriet Bird shoots Roy in the stomach leaving him unable to play the game of baseball for years to follow.
Fifteen years later, Roy gets his start on a professional baseball team called the Knights. During this time, the story reveals Roy's character flaws. Although he is seen by all to be one of the best baseball players that ever lived, his big ego, sexual tendencies, and large appetite set him behind in the game. In the end of the story, Roy loses it for the team on account of these flaws.
Important characters in this story are Memo,Pop,Max Mercy and The Judge.

Id have to say i thoroughly enjoyed this novel. Malamud's writing style is fast paced and an easy read. He uses metaphors quite often resulting in an in depth perspective. I wasnt too keen about the idea of reading a novel about baseball, but Malamud makes this story so much more than just that.

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5.0 out of 5 stars The Natural a great american baseball story
This book is a very good book. It is especially favored by people who like baseball. The book is about Roy Hobs and him trying to become the best in the MLB, but he gets shot and... Read more

Published on Feb 13 2004 by Fry

4.0 out of 5 stars A graceful parable.
"The Natural" is a quiet, contemplative novel that uses the mythology of baseball to frame a poetic parable of fate... Read more

Published on May 26 2003 by M J Heilbron Jr.

1.0 out of 5 stars say it ain't true
Do not come to this book wanting to read it if you are a big fan of the movie. My brother told me to quit reading when I was halfway through and I should have taken his advice... Read more

Published on May 3 2002 by Brian A. Hotrum

1.0 out of 5 stars All he ever wanted
All he ever wanted was to be the best at baseball. Roy wanted to be the best, but Bump thought
he was the best. before one game they got into a fight. Read more

Published on April 16 2002 by Logan

5.0 out of 5 stars Say it ain't so Roy
The Natural is as fine a piece of baseball fiction as I have ever read. Roy Hobbs, a player with unlimited ability, makes a mistake and pays for it the rest of his life. Read more

Published on April 4 2002 by Mark Davis

3.0 out of 5 stars A fantastic novel and a fantastic flick
...There seem to be two divergent opinions on this book and its relationship with the movie. Some say that the movie is another example of Hollywood creating simply another... Read more

Published on Jan 17 2002 by LukeR

5.0 out of 5 stars The SUPER-Natural
This book ought to be titled "The Super-Natural," rather than "The Natural," since there are so many mythic and magical elements to it, in both style and content. Read more

Published on Dec 30 2001 by A reader

5.0 out of 5 stars Like A Barry Bonds Home Run...
don't watch the movie, the book is so much better...unless you are the type that lives life through rose colored glasses, you'll be able to deal with the cynicism abd... Read more

Published on Dec 25 2001 by Erren Geraud Kelly

4.0 out of 5 stars The Natural
If I were to give this book a rating on its plot, characters, interest, and storyline then I would have to give this 5 stars. Bernard Malamud wrote this book brilliantly. Read more

Published on Dec 6 2001

5.0 out of 5 stars must read
By far the greatest Baseball novel ever written. Different from the movie, may shock some people but without a doubt an American classic, if only all books were this captivating.

Published on Dec 6 2001 by Stanley

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