Arrowsmith: Amazon.ca: Sinclair Lewis: Books

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Product Description

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As the son and grandson of physicians, Sinclair Lewis had a store of experiences and imparted knowledge to draw upon for Arrowsmith.Published in 1925, after three years of anticipation, the book follows the life of Martin Arrowsmith, a rather ordinary fellow who gets his first taste of medicine at 14 as an assistant to the drunken physician in his home town. It is Leora Tozer who makes Martin's life extraordinary. With vitality and love, she urges him beyond the confines of the mundane to risk answering his true calling as a scientist and researcher. Not even her tragic death can extinguish her spirit or her impact on Martin's life. --This text refers to an alternate Hardcover edition.

From Library Journal

Published from 1925 through 1929, these represent some of Lewis's most noted works. His novels can be deceiving, as the simplicity of the style belies the seriousness of his subject.
Copyright 2002 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an alternate Hardcover edition.

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First Sentence
THE DRIVER of the wagon swaying through forest and swamp of the Ohio wilderness was a ragged girl of four. Read the first page

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Front Cover | Copyright | Table of Contents | Excerpt | Back Cover

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4.2 out of 5 stars (20 customer reviews)

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4.0 out of 5 stars Heroism as Self-Honesty, Feb 23 2004

By	Lloyd Sakazaki (Bellevue, WA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This review is from: Signet Classics Arrowsmith (Paperback)

Martin Arrowsmith is a man with a mission, a scientific truth-seeker, an idealist who perpetually returns to his pure research interests despite the material influences and social pressures of the world around him.

Lewis's biographical novel portrays Arrowsmith, accompanied by his sympathetic wife, Leora, in a roundabout career from medical student to small-town doctor to public health administrator to bacteriology researcher. From boyhood to middle age, Arrowsmith walks a lonesome road, placing verifiable scientific knowledge and sincere craftsmanship above money, publicity, political power and social status (this is Lewis's affront to American "commercialism"). Ultimately, Arrowsmith is heroic in his remarkable perseverance and quest for truth, although some might label him a cold-hearted escapist for deserting his wealthy second wife, young child and promising New York City career in favor of a rustic laboratory and rugged backwoods existence on a fellow rebel researcher's Vermont farm.

Modern readers will find Arrowsmith's devotion to his early 20th century "science as truth" dogma somewhat tiring, narrow and dated. Yet, in a broader sense, what is most important is that Arrowsmith consistently remains true to his core personal belief (which in his case just so happens to be scientific truth). His unwavering self-honesty is what makes Arrowsmith an eternally heroic figure.

However powerful its message, the novel unfortunately reads like a patchwork of stages in our hero's career, somewhat artificially connected with the support of unconvincing reappearances of Arrowsmith's medical school classmates later in their careers (e.g., the sudden reappearance of the crazed, doctor-turned-missionary Reverend Ira Hinkley on Arrowsmith's trip to fight the plague in the West Indies, where incidentally Leora tragically dies). I conjecture that in reaching beyond the familiarity of his family's medical practice and venturing into the more rarified realm of scientific research, Lewis has stretched--as a chronicler commonly does but, I would say, a novelist should not--too far outside his own life experiences. The result is that this classic novel falls short of becoming a more emotionally engaging literary work with a truly believable flow of realistic life events.

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5.0 out of 5 stars Three of Sinclair Lewis' classic novels, Oct 5 2002

By	Midwest Book Review (Oregon, WI USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Arrowsmith Elmer Gantry Dodsworth (Hardcover)

Three of Sinclair Lewis' classic novels and true works of enduring American literature (Arrowsmith, Elmer Gantry, Dodsworth) are combined under one cover in this scholarly Library of America edition. "Arrowsmith" is the story of an idealistic physician who finds greed and corruption at every turn; "Elmer Gantry" is a historically controversial account of a cynical and selfish preacher using his trade to amass wealth and power; and "Dodsworth" is the story of a decaying marriage between an American industrialist and his wife as they travel through Europe. Complementing the great works of 1920's literature are a thoughtful chronology, and a brief yet insightful selection of informative notes on the texts. Published with acid free paper, this volume of Sinclair Lewis' classic fiction is a welcome and very strongly recommended addition to academic and community library collections.

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3.0 out of 5 stars A Partially Disappointing Classic, Sep 11 2002

By	Bill Corporandy (Yuba City, CA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Arrowsmith Elmer Gantry Dodsworth (Hardcover)

I loved the constant satirical wit and subtle depictions of character in Babbitt and Main Street (something of a forerunner of Friedan's The Feminine Mystique). Arrowsmith retains some of Lewis' virtues but it is a bit disappointing. Unlike the afforementioned novels, it is not primarily a satire but rather a medical bildungsroman. Martin Arrowsmith's character is subtly explored and his shortcomings and strengths closely examined. Lewis has some cogent criticisms to make of the commercialization of the medical establishment and here his habitual satirical bent seems appropriate but it does not always work when he takes occasional potshots at his main character, Martin Arrowsmith. George Babbit was an essentially satirical character that deserved Lewis' constant satirical attacks but the portrayal of Martin Arrowsmith seems at times out of focus, as if Lewis was not always sure if he wanted to stick with satire or just do a straight portrayal. Another criticism I have of the book is that the medical details occasionally seemed superfluous and plot details at times repetitive and monotonous. I think he could have trimmed about a hundred pages off this book. Arrowsmith is still worth reading and Martin Arrowsmith is an endearing character whose life story unfolds with much subtlety and insight on the nature of love, friendship, work, the struggle to maintain integrity in a commercial world, and the desire to do something meaningful in life.

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Most recent customer reviews

5.0 out of 5 stars A Masterpiece of Medical Literature - Idealism at Risk
Author Sinclair Lewis had some exposure to the medical profession early in his life through his father, who was a country doctor. Read more

Published on Aug 29 2002 by Juliana LHeureux

5.0 out of 5 stars Remember: Write the Review
...hard by having read the book. Sinclair Lewis is a master craftsman of cumulative narratives. It becomes a matter of collating details and making a composite. Read more

Published on April 28 2002 by calico30

4.0 out of 5 stars Another Sinclair subculture tour, lighter on satire
Sinclair Lewis's novels typically look at a facet of American life, circa 1920, via an "biography" of a fictional character. Read more

Published on Jan 24 2002 by Stefan Jones