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characters in it can t happen here: It Can't Happen Here Sinclair Lewis, 2017-01-20 'An eerily prescient foreshadowing of current affairs' Guardian 'Not only Lewis's most important book but one of the most important books ever produced in the United States' New Yorker A vain, outlandish, anti-immigrant, fearmongering demagogue runs for President of the United States - and wins. Sinclair Lewis's chilling 1935 bestseller is the story of Buzz Windrip, 'Professional Common Man', who promises poor, angry voters that he will make America proud and prosperous once more, but takes the country down a far darker path. As the new regime slides into authoritarianism, newspaper editor Doremus Jessup can't believe it will last - but is he right? This cautionary tale of liberal complacency in the face of populist tyranny shows it really can happen here. |
characters in it can t happen here: It Happened Here Richard Dresser, 2020-10-06 A family falls apart as America is overtaken by totalitarian rule in this near-future dystopian novel echoing Sinclair Lewis’s It Can’t Happen Here. In 2035, fourteen-year-old Louise is interviewing her family members to find out what went wrong—for the family and the nation. It seems both started falling apart around 2019. Then the 2020 elections were canceled, and the president remained in power for sixteen years. This is the story of one family divided by ideology, and of undying hope in the direst of circumstances. In 1935, Sinclair Lewis challenged readers to imagine an America hijacked by a totalitarian president whose message was fueled by fear, division, and “patriotism.” Richard Dresser’s It Happened Here delivers a modern vision of just such an America. Told through the interwoven voices of eight different characters, it reveals how the Weeks family navigates the slow death of democracy in the country they all love. |
characters in it can t happen here: The Plot Against America Philip Roth, 2005-09-27 NATIONAL BESTSELLER • The chilling bestselling alternate history novel of what happens to one family when America elects a charismatic, isolationist president whose government embraces anti-Semitism—from the Pulitzer Prize–winning author of American Pastoral. “A terrific political novel.... Sinister, vivid, dreamlike...You turn the pages, astonished and frightened.” —The New York Times Book Review One of the New York Times’s 100 Best Books of the 21st Century In an extraordinary feat of narrative invention, Philip Roth imagines an alternate history where Franklin D. Roosevelt loses the 1940 presidential election to heroic aviator and rabid isolationist Charles A. Lindbergh. Shortly thereafter, Lindbergh negotiates a cordial understanding with Adolf Hitler, while the new government embarks on a program of folksy anti-Semitism. |
characters in it can t happen here: Main Street Sinclair Lewis, 2022-08-01 Carol Milford dreams of living in a small, rural town. But Gopher Prairie, Minnesota, isn't the paradise she'd imagined. First published in 1920, this unabridged edition of the Sinclair Lewis novel is an American classic, considered by many to be his most noteworthy and lasting work. As a work of social satire, this complex and compelling look at small-town America in the early 20th century has earned its place among the classics. |
characters in it can t happen here: Cass Timberlane Sinclair Lewis, 2022-08-01 Sinclair Lewis's 'Cass Timberlane' is a novel that delves into the intimate dynamics of marriage, the ebbs and flows of social standing, and the tenacity of personal convictions in the face of society's expectations. Written in Lewis's characteristic realist style, the book provides an incisive commentary on mid-20th-century American life, capturing the zeitgeist with its piercing examination of the judiciary, social stratification, and gender roles. Presented here by DigiCat Publishing, this edition is not just a mere reproduction of words but a resurrection of the enduring human narratives that echo Lewis's keen observations and subtle wit in a modern format, fostering continued engagement with a timeless piece of literature. In the literary context, Lewis was renowned for his critical portrayal of American society, and 'Cass Timberlane' followed suit after his Pulitzer Prize-winning 'Arrowsmith' and 'Babbitt', two works that cemented his reputation as a formidable satirist and social commentator. This particular novel emerged from a mature phase in Lewis's career, reflecting both his deepened insight into human nature and his committed critique of the status quo, informed by his experiences and personal contemplations on the changing American landscape. It stands as a testament to his growth as a writer and his unyielding quest to encapsulate the essence of American life and its institutions. This edition of 'Cass Timberlane' is recommended for readers who appreciate the depth of character development and the intricacy of societal dissection present in early 20th-century literature. It offers a compelling exploration of the intricacies of law, love, and legacy, appealing to both aficionados of historical fiction and those who seek a profound understanding of the period's cultural undercurrents. The modern republishing by DigiCat invigorates Lewis's profound work, ensuring that its relevance endures and its lessons continue to resonate with contemporary readers. Engage with this classic, and allow Sinclair Lewis to guide you through a rich and complex tapestry of American life, as pertinent today as it was in its original era. |
characters in it can t happen here: Crosshairs Catherine Hernandez, 2020-09-01 A NOW Magazine Best Book of the Year A CBC Books Best Canadian Fiction of the Year A Maclean's 20 Books You Need to Read This Winter The author of the acclaimed novel Scarborough weaves an unforgettable and timely dystopian account of a near-future when a queer Black performer and his allies join forces against an oppressive regime that is rounding up those deemed “Other” in concentration camps. In a terrifyingly familiar near-future, with massive floods that lead to rampant homelessness and devastation, a government-sanctioned regime called the Boots seizes the opportunity to force communities of colour, the disabled and the LGBTQ2S into labour camps in the city of Toronto. In the shadows, a new hero emerges. After his livelihood and the love of his life are taken away, Kay joins the resistance alongside Bahadur, a transmasculine refugee, and Firuzeh, a headstrong social worker. Guiding them in the use of weapons and close-quarters combat is Beck, a rogue army officer who helps them plan an uprising at a major internationally televised event. With her signature prose, described by Booklist as “raw yet beautiful, disturbing yet hopeful,” Catherine Hernandez creates a vision of the future that is all the more terrifying because it is very possible. A cautionary tale filled with fierce and vibrant characters, Crosshairs explores the universal desire to thrive, to love and to be loved as your true self. |
characters in it can t happen here: Kingsblood Royal Sinclair Lewis, 2023-11-23 Neil Kingsblood is a white middle-class man who discovers, while researching his family background, that he is directly descended from an African adventurer on the American frontier. Through various machinations, Kingsblood loses his banking job and takes a lesser one. He begins to be treated differently by former acquaintances, despite the lack of visible black African ancestry. He is forced to choose between continuing what he has come to see as a hollow existence in the white community and taking on the oppressed minority status of the black community. After Kingsblood tells several white friends about his newfound ancestry, the news quickly spreads, and he finds that acquaintances change their behavior toward him. He engages in a quixotic struggle against the racism newly apparent but widespread in his community. |
characters in it can t happen here: Utopia 58 Daniel Arenson, 2021-05-13 From one-million copy bestselling author Daniel Arenson comes Utopia 58, a dystopian novel as chilling as The Handmaid's Tale and Black Mirror. Imagine a perfect society. A world with no racism, sexism, or ageism. A utopia. In Utopia 58, everyone is equal. Everyone must be equal. Too beautiful? A mask will hide that pretty face. Too tall? We'll saw your legs down to size. Too male or female? The surgeon's knife will fix that. Too smart? A buzzer in your skull will drown out all that pesky thinking. You will be equal. Like it or not. Utopia 58, built atop the ruins of North America, created perfect harmony. A society with no race, gender, or age. Pure equality. KB209 was born into this utopia. He has no true name. No past. No future. He is one among millions. The same. One day, at a propaganda rally, KB209 glimpses an act of startling defiance. A citizen with painted toenails. A woman in a genderless society. Color in a black and white world. When KB209 confronts her, he is drawn into an underground rebellion. A movement that dares to dream. That dares to say: We are unique. We are individuals. We will be free! |
characters in it can t happen here: Our Mr. Wrenn; The Romantic Adventures of a Gentle Man Sinclair Lewis, 2023-01-26 Reproduction of the original. |
characters in it can t happen here: Sinclair Lewis: Main Street and Babbitt (LOA #59) Sinclair Lewis, 1992-09-01 In Main Street and Babbitt, Sinclair Lewis drew on his boyhood memories of Sauk Centre, Minnesota, to reveal as no writer had done before the complacency and conformity of middle-class life in America. The remarkable novels presented here in this Library of America volume combine brilliant satire with a lingering affection for the men and women, who, as Lewis wrote of Babbitt, “want “to seize something more than motor cars and a house before it’s too late.” Main Street (1920), Lewis's first triumph, was a phenomenal event in American publishing and cultural history. Lewis's idealistic, imaginative heroine, Carol Kennicott, longs to get [her] hands on one of those prairie towns and make it beautiful,” but when her doctor husband brings her to Gopher Prairie, she finds that the romance of the American frontier has dwindled to the drab reality of the American Middle West. The great romantic satire of its decade, Main Street is a wry, sad, funny account of a woman who attempts to challenge the hypocrisy and narrow-mindedness of her community. In the character of George F. Babbitt, the boisterous, vulgar, worried, gadget-loving real estate man from Zenith, Lewis fashioned a new and enduring figure in American literature—the total conformist. Babbitt is a “joiner,” who thinks and feels with the crowd. Lewis surrounds him with a gallery of familiar American types—small businessman, Rotarians, Elks, boosters, supporters of evangelical Christianity. In biting satirical scenes of club lunches, after-dinner speeches, trade association conventions, fishing trips and Sunday School committees, Lewis reproduces the noisy restlessness of American commercial culture. In 1930 Sinclair Lewis was the first American to be awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature, largely for his achievement in Babbitt. These early novels not only define a crucial period in American history—from America’’s “coming of age” just before World War I to the dizzying boom of the twenties—they also continue to astonish us with essential truths about the country we live in today. LIBRARY OF AMERICA is an independent nonprofit cultural organization founded in 1979 to preserve our nation’s literary heritage by publishing, and keeping permanently in print, America’s best and most significant writing. The Library of America series includes more than 300 volumes to date, authoritative editions that average 1,000 pages in length, feature cloth covers, sewn bindings, and ribbon markers, and are printed on premium acid-free paper that will last for centuries. |
characters in it can t happen here: Arrowsmith Sinclair Lewis, 2021-03-23 Arrowsmith has been inspirational for several generations of med students. Martin Arrowsmith agonizes over his career and life decisions never sure if he’s making the correct descisions. While the book details Arrowsmith's pursuit of the noble ideals of medical research for the benefit of mankind and of selfless devotion to the care of patients, Lewis throws many less noble temptations and self deceptions in Arrowsmith’s path. The attractions of financial security, recognition, even wealth and power distract Arrowsmith from his original plan to follow in the footsteps of his first mentor, Max Gottlieb, a brilliant but abrasive bacteriologist. A powerful novel that asks more questions than it answers. Winner of the Pulitzer Prize. |
characters in it can t happen here: The Goose-step: A Study of American Education Upton Sinclair, 2023-11-20 The Goose-step: A Study of American Education is an investigation into the consequences of plutocratic capitalist control of American colleges and universities. This engaging novel was published in 1923 by the American novelist and muckraking journalist Upton Sinclair. |
characters in it can t happen here: Our Missing Hearts Celeste Ng, 2022-10-04 An instant national bestseller • A Reese's Book Club Pick • An instant New York Times bestseller • A New York Times Notable Book of 2022 • A Globe and Mail Best Book of 2022 • Named a Best Book of 2022 by People, TIME Magazine, The Washington Post, USA Today, NPR, Los Angeles Times, and Oprah Daily, and more Longlisted for the 2024 Dublin Literary Award From the #1 bestselling author of Little Fires Everywhere, comes the inspiring new novel about a mother’s unshakeable love. “It’s impossible not to be moved.” —Stephen King, The New York Times Book Review “Riveting, tender, and timely.” —People, Book of the Week “Thought-provoking, heart-wrenching…I was so invested in the future of this mother and son, and I can’t wait to hear what you think of this deeply suspenseful story!” —Reese Witherspoon (Reese’s Book Club Pick) Twelve-year-old Bird Gardner lives a quiet existence with his loving father, a former linguist who now shelves books in a university library. His mother Margaret, a Chinese American poet, left without a trace when he was nine years old. He doesn’t know what happened to her—only that her books have been banned—and he resents that she cared more about her work than about him. Then one day, Bird receives a mysterious letter containing only a cryptic drawing, and soon he is pulled into a quest to find her. His journey will take him back to the many folktales she poured into his head as a child, through the ranks of an underground network of heroic librarians, and finally to New York City, where he will finally learn the truth about what happened to his mother, and what the future holds for them both. Our Missing Hearts is an old story made new, of the ways supposedly civilized communities can ignore the most searing injustice. It’s about the lessons and legacies we pass on to our children, and the power of art to create change. |
characters in it can t happen here: The Silent Patient Alex Michaelides, 2019-02-05 **THE INSTANT #1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER** An unforgettable—and Hollywood-bound—new thriller... A mix of Hitchcockian suspense, Agatha Christie plotting, and Greek tragedy. —Entertainment Weekly The Silent Patient is a shocking psychological thriller of a woman’s act of violence against her husband—and of the therapist obsessed with uncovering her motive. Alicia Berenson’s life is seemingly perfect. A famous painter married to an in-demand fashion photographer, she lives in a grand house with big windows overlooking a park in one of London’s most desirable areas. One evening her husband Gabriel returns home late from a fashion shoot, and Alicia shoots him five times in the face, and then never speaks another word. Alicia’s refusal to talk, or give any kind of explanation, turns a domestic tragedy into something far grander, a mystery that captures the public imagination and casts Alicia into notoriety. The price of her art skyrockets, and she, the silent patient, is hidden away from the tabloids and spotlight at the Grove, a secure forensic unit in North London. Theo Faber is a criminal psychotherapist who has waited a long time for the opportunity to work with Alicia. His determination to get her to talk and unravel the mystery of why she shot her husband takes him down a twisting path into his own motivations—a search for the truth that threatens to consume him.... |
characters in it can t happen here: Bunny Mona Awad, 2019-06-11 “The Secret History meets Jennifer’s Body. This brilliant, sharp, weird book skewers the heightened rhetoric of obsessive female friendship in a way I don’t think I've ever seen before. I loved it and I couldn’t put it down.” - Kristen Roupenian, author of You Know You Want This: Cat Person and Other Stories The Vegetarian meets Heathers in this darkly funny, seductively strange novel about a lonely graduate student drawn into a clique of rich girls who seem to move and speak as one. We were just these innocent girls in the night trying to make something beautiful. We nearly died. We very nearly did, didn't we? Samantha Heather Mackey couldn't be more different from the other members of her master's program at New England's elite Warren University. A self-conscious scholarship student who prefers the company of her imagination to that of most people, she is utterly repelled by the rest of her fiction writing cohort--a clique of unbearably twee rich girls who call each other Bunny, and are often found entangled in a group hug so tight it seems their bodies might become permanently fused. But everything changes when Samantha receives an invitation to the Bunnies' exclusive monthly Smut Salon, and finds herself drawn as if by magic to their front door--ditching her only friend, Ava, an audacious art school dropout, in the process. As Samantha plunges deeper and deeper into Bunny world, and starts to take part in the off-campus Workshop where they devise their monstrous creations, the edges of reality begin to blur, and her friendships with Ava and the Bunnies are brought into deadly collision. A spellbinding, down-the-rabbit-hole tale about loneliness and belonging, creativity and agency, and female friendship and desire, Bunny is the dazzlingly original second book from an author with tremendous insight into the often-baffling complexities of being a woman (The Atlantic). |
characters in it can t happen here: You've Reached Sam Dustin Thao, 2021-11-09 An Instant New York Times Bestseller! If I Stay meets Your Name in Dustin Thao's You've Reached Sam, a heartfelt novel about love and loss and what it means to say goodbye. Seventeen-year-old Julie Clarke has her future all planned out—move out of her small town with her boyfriend Sam, attend college in the city; spend a summer in Japan. But then Sam dies. And everything changes. Heartbroken, Julie skips his funeral, throws out his belongings, and tries everything to forget him. But a message Sam left behind in her yearbook forces memories to return. Desperate to hear him one more time, Julie calls Sam's cell phone just to listen to his voice mail recording. And Sam picks up the phone. The connection is temporary. But hearing Sam's voice makes Julie fall for him all over again and with each call, it becomes harder to let him go. What would you do if you had a second chance at goodbye? A 2021 Kids' Indie Next List Selection A Cosmo.com Best YA Book Of 2021 A Buzzfeed Best Book Of November A Goodreads Most Anticipated Book |
characters in it can t happen here: The Handmaid's Tale Margaret Atwood, 2011-09-06 An instant classic and eerily prescient cultural phenomenon, from “the patron saint of feminist dystopian fiction” (New York Times). Now an award-winning Hulu series starring Elizabeth Moss. In this multi-award-winning, bestselling novel, Margaret Atwood has created a stunning Orwellian vision of the near future. This is the story of Offred, one of the unfortunate “Handmaids” under the new social order who have only one purpose: to breed. In Gilead, where women are prohibited from holding jobs, reading, and forming friendships, Offred’s persistent memories of life in the “time before” and her will to survive are acts of rebellion. Provocative, startling, prophetic, and with Margaret Atwood’s devastating irony, wit, and acute perceptive powers in full force, The Handmaid’s Tale is at once a mordant satire and a dire warning. |
characters in it can t happen here: The New Southern Gentleman Jim Booth, 2002 Daniel Randolph Deal is a Southern aristocrat, having the required bloodline, but little of the nobility. A man resistant to the folly of ethics, he prefers a selective, self-indulgent morality. He is a confessed hedonist, albeit responsibly so.--Back cover |
characters in it can t happen here: Dreaming in Cuban Cristina García, 2011-06-08 “Impressive . . . [Cristina García’s] story is about three generations of Cuban women and their separate responses to the revolution. Her special feat is to tell it in a style as warm and gentle as the ‘sustaining aromas of vanilla and almond,’ as rhythmic as the music of Beny Moré.”—Time Cristina García’s acclaimed book is the haunting, bittersweet story of a family experiencing a country’s revolution and the revelations that follow. The lives of Celia del Pino and her husband, daughters, and grandchildren mirror the magical realism of Cuba itself, a landscape of beauty and poverty, idealism and corruption. Dreaming in Cuban is “a work that possesses both the intimacy of a Chekov story and the hallucinatory magic of a novel by Gabriel García Márquez” (The New York Times). In celebration of the twenty-fifth anniversary of the novel’s original publication, this edition features a new introduction by the author. Praise for Dreaming in Cuban “Remarkable . . . an intricate weaving of dramatic events with the supernatural and the cosmic . . . evocative and lush.”—San Francisco Chronicle “Captures the pain, the distance, the frustrations and the dreams of these family dramas with a vivid, poetic prose.”—The Washington Post “Brilliant . . . With tremendous skill, passion and humor, García just may have written the definitive story of Cuban exiles and some of those they left behind.”—The Denver Post |
characters in it can t happen here: American Dirt (Oprah's Book Club) Jeanine Cummins, 2022-02 También de este lado hay sueños. On this side, too, there are dreams. Lydia Quixano Perez lives in the Mexican city of Acapulco. She runs a bookstore. She has a son, Luca, the love of her life, and a wonderful husband who is a journalist. And while there are cracks beginning to show in Acapulco because of the drug cartels, her life is, by and large, fairly comfortable. Even though she knows they'll never sell, Lydia stocks some of her all-time favorite books in her store. And then one day a man enters the shop to browse and comes up to the register with four books he would like to buy--two of them her favorites. Javier is erudite. He is charming. And, unbeknownst to Lydia, he is the jefe of the newest drug cartel that has gruesomely taken over the city. When Lydia's husband's tell-all profile of Javier is published, none of their lives will ever be the same. Forced to flee, Lydia and eight-year-old Luca soon find themselves miles and worlds away from their comfortable middle-class existence. Instantly transformed into migrants, Lydia and Luca ride la bestia--trains that make their way north toward the United States, which is the only place Javier's reach doesn't extend. As they join the countless people trying to reach el norte, Lydia soon sees that everyone is running from something. But what exactly are they running to? American Dirt will leave readers utterly changed when they finish reading it. A page-turner filled with poignancy, drama, and humanity on every page, it is a literary achievement.-- |
characters in it can t happen here: It Could Never Happen Here Eithne Shortall, 2022-02-03 'Brings twist after delicious twist. I love this book.' Jo Spain ______________________________ Small town. Huge scandal. Beverley Franklin will do whatever it takes to protect her local school's reputation. So when a scandal involving her own daughter threatens to derail the annual school musical's appearance on national television, Beverley goes into overdrive. But in her efforts to protect her daughter and keep the musical on track, she misses what's really going, both in her own house and in the insular Glass Lake community - with dramatic consequences. Glass Lake primary school's reputation is about to be shattered... 'Eithne Shortall mixes humour and tragedy with a deftness reminiscent of Marian Keyes' Irish Times |
characters in it can t happen here: Nothing Ever Happens Here Sarah Hagger-Holt, 2021-05-04 Warm and hopeful, this is a touching and honest depiction of a family changing together-and staying together. I wonder what people would think if they could take the front off our house like a doll's house and watch us. All in the same house, but everyone separate. No one talking, but everyone thinking the same thing. Will we ever be a normal family again? Izzy's family is under the spotlight when her dad comes out as Danielle, a trans woman. Izzy is terrified her family will be torn apart. Will she lose her dad? Will her parents break up? And what will people at school say? Now all eyes are on Izzy. Can she face her fears, find her voice, and stand up for her family and what's right? |
characters in it can t happen here: Never Let Me Go Kazuo Ishiguro, 2009-03-19 NOBEL PRIZE WINNER • 20TH ANNIVERSARY EDITION • The moving, suspenseful, beautifully atmospheric modern classic from the acclaimed author of The Remains of the Day and Klara and the Sun—“a Gothic tour de force (The New York Times) with an extraordinary twist. With a new introduction by the author. As children, Kathy, Ruth, and Tommy were students at Hailsham, an exclusive boarding school secluded in the English countryside. It was a place of mercurial cliques and mysterious rules where teachers were constantly reminding their charges of how special they were. Now, years later, Kathy is a young woman. Ruth and Tommy have reentered her life. And for the first time she is beginning to look back at their shared past and understand just what it is that makes them special—and how that gift will shape the rest of their time together. |
characters in it can t happen here: Save the Cat! Writes a Novel Jessica Brody, 2018-10-09 The first novel-writing guide from the best-selling Save the Cat! story-structure series, which reveals the 15 essential plot points needed to make any novel a success. Novelist Jessica Brody presents a comprehensive story-structure guide for novelists that applies the famed Save the Cat! screenwriting methodology to the world of novel writing. Revealing the 15 beats (plot points) that comprise a successful story--from the opening image to the finale--this book lays out the Ten Story Genres (Monster in the House; Whydunit; Dude with a Problem) alongside quirky, original insights (Save the Cat; Shard of Glass) to help novelists craft a plot that will captivate--and a novel that will sell. |
characters in it can t happen here: The Lincoln Highway Amor Towles, 2023-03-21 #1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER More than ONE MILLION copies sold A TODAY Show Read with Jenna Book Club Pick A New York Times Notable Book, a New York Times Readers’ Choice Best Book of the Century, and Chosen by Oprah Daily, Time, NPR, The Washington Post, Bill Gates and Barack Obama as a Best Book of the Year “Wise and wildly entertaining . . . permeated with light, wit, youth.” —The New York Times Book Review “A classic that we will read for years to come.” —Jenna Bush Hager, Read with Jenna book club “Fantastic. Set in 1954, Towles uses the story of two brothers to show that our personal journeys are never as linear or predictable as we might hope.” —Bill Gates “A real joyride . . . elegantly constructed and compulsively readable.” —NPR The bestselling author of A Gentleman in Moscow and Rules of Civility and master of absorbing, sophisticated fiction returns with a stylish and propulsive novel set in 1950s America In June, 1954, eighteen-year-old Emmett Watson is driven home to Nebraska by the warden of the juvenile work farm where he has just served fifteen months for involuntary manslaughter. His mother long gone, his father recently deceased, and the family farm foreclosed upon by the bank, Emmett's intention is to pick up his eight-year-old brother, Billy, and head to California where they can start their lives anew. But when the warden drives away, Emmett discovers that two friends from the work farm have hidden themselves in the trunk of the warden's car. Together, they have hatched an altogether different plan for Emmett's future, one that will take them all on a fateful journey in the opposite direction—to the City of New York. Spanning just ten days and told from multiple points of view, Towles's third novel will satisfy fans of his multi-layered literary styling while providing them an array of new and richly imagined settings, characters, and themes. “Once again, I was wowed by Towles’s writing—especially because The Lincoln Highway is so different from A Gentleman in Moscow in terms of setting, plot, and themes. Towles is not a one-trick pony. Like all the best storytellers, he has range. He takes inspiration from famous hero’s journeys, including The Iliad, The Odyssey, Hamlet, Huckleberry Finn, and Of Mice and Men. He seems to be saying that our personal journeys are never as linear or predictable as an interstate highway. But, he suggests, when something (or someone) tries to steer us off course, it is possible to take the wheel.” – Bill Gates |
characters in it can t happen here: The Darkness Outside Us Eliot Schrefer, 2022-04-26 They Both Die at the End meets The Loneliest Girl in the Universe in this mind-bending sci-fi mystery and tender love story about two boys aboard a spaceship sent on a rescue mission, from two-time National Book Award finalist Eliot Schrefer. Two boys, alone in space. Sworn enemies sent on the same rescue mission. Ambrose wakes up on the Coordinated Endeavor with no memory of a launch. There's more that doesn't add up: evidence indicates strangers have been on board, the ship's operating system is voiced by his mother, and his handsome, brooding shipmate has barricaded himself away. But nothing will stop Ambrose from making his mission succeed--not when he's rescuing his own sister. In order to survive the ship's secrets, Ambrose and Kodiak will need to work together and learn to trust each other . . . especially once they discover what they are truly up against. Love might be the only way to survive. |
characters in it can t happen here: Where the Forest Meets the Stars Glendy Vanderah, 2019 After the loss of her mother and her own battle with breast cancer, Joanna Teale returns to her graduate research on nesting birds in rural Illinois, determined to prove that her recent hardships have not broken her. When a mysterious child shows up at her cabin, barefoot and covered in bruises, Joanna enlists the help of her reclusive neighbor, Gabriel Nash, to solve the mystery of the charming child. But the more time they spend together, the more questions they have. |
characters in it can t happen here: Rising Fascism in America Anthony Dimaggio, Taylor & Francis Group, 2022-01-31 DiMaggio explores how rising fascism has infiltrated US politics, spotlighting the development of rightwing polarization of the media, Trump's political ascendance, and the prominence of extremist activists. This book offers tactics to combat fascism, exploring social movements such as Antifa and Black Lives Matter in mobilizing the public. |
characters in it can t happen here: Elmer Gantry Sinclair Lewis, 1962 |
characters in it can t happen here: Tropic of Cancer (Harper Perennial Modern Classics) Henry Miller, 2012-01-30 Miller’s groundbreaking first novel, banned in Britain for almost thirty years. |
characters in it can t happen here: Summary and Analysis of It Can't Happen Here Worth Books, 2017-04-11 So much to read, so little time? This brief overview of It Can’t Happen Here tells you what you need to know—before or after you read Sinclair Lewis’s book. Crafted and edited with care, Worth Books set the standard for quality and give you the tools you need to be a well-informed reader. This short summary and analysis of It Can’t Happen Here includes: Historical context Chapter-by-chapter overviews Profiles of the main characters Detailed timeline of key events Themes and symbols Important quotes and analysis Fascinating trivia Glossary of terms Supporting material to enhance your understanding of the original work About It Can’t Happen Here by Sinclair Lewis: Sinclair Lewis’s satirical novel It Can’t Happen Here documents the rise of a fascist government in the United States. It follows a small town newspaper editor, Doremus Jessup, as he watches his country come out of economic depression only to embrace a smoke-and-mirrors presidential candidate who wraps himself in patriotic zeal. This charismatic demagogue and his cronies amass power and wealth as the rest of the population watches its rights and freedoms disappear. There is censorship, the random violence of an unchecked paramilitary force, and the emergence of concentration camps. Jews, foreigners, and intellectuals are singled out for especially brutal treatment. Universities are taken over and books are burned. As he watches the devastating toll exacted from his friends and family, the once easygoing Jessup is swept into an underground resistance movement in which he must ignore his moral compass. A revolution is launched, but the outcome is uncertain. Lewis’s dystopian work asks: could it happen here and, if it does, how would it be stopped? The summary and analysis in this ebook are intended to complement your reading experience and bring you closer to a great work of fiction. |
characters in it can t happen here: World So Wide Sinclair Lewis, 2018-09-27 The story of a young, recently widowed ex-Army major and architect, Hayden Chart. He strives mightily to find personal meaning in Florence. Beautiful fellow American Dr Olivia Lomond is a budding scholar who tempts him to make his mind grow in appreciation of art and history. But earthy, honest Roxanna Eldritch,home town girl and reporter sent to Europe to cover the 1950 Holy Year in Rome, improbably wins Chart's heart in the end |
characters in it can t happen here: The Thursday Murder Club Richard Osman, 2021-08-03 Soon to be a Major Motion Picture The first installment in the beloved and New York Times bestselling series from Richard Osman, also author of We Solve Murders Four septuagenarians with a few tricks up their sleeves A female cop with her first big case A brutal murder Welcome to... THE THURSDAY MURDER CLUB In a peaceful retirement village, four unlikely friends meet weekly in the Jigsaw Room to discuss unsolved crimes; together they call themselves the Thursday Murder Club. When a local developer is found dead with a mysterious photograph left next to the body, the Thursday Murder Club suddenly find themselves in the middle of their first live case. As the bodies begin to pile up, can our unorthodox but brilliant gang catch the killer, before it's too late? “Witty, endearing and greatly entertaining.” —Wall Street Journal |
characters in it can t happen here: A Place Called Here Cecelia Ahern, 2006 A woman who searches for missing people disappears herself and ends up in a place where all of the missing people go. |
characters in it can t happen here: It’s Always the Husband Michele Campbell, 2018-01-11 It’s Always the Husband... unless it’s the best friend. The Top 10 Sunday Times bestseller ‘A page-turning whodunnit that will speak to anyone who's ever had a frenemy’ Ruth Ware ‘A gripping, tangled web of a novel — it pulls you in and doesn’t let you go. I loved it!’ Shari Lapena |
characters in it can t happen here: Desperate Characters Paula Fox, 2015-07-17 One of the New York Times' 25 Most Significant New York City Novels From the Last 100 Years A towering landmark of postwar Realism…A sustained work of prose so lucid and fine it seems less written than carved. —David Foster Wallace Otto and Sophie Bentwood live in a changing neighborhood in Brooklyn. Their stainless-steel kitchen is newly installed, and their Mercedes is parked curbside. After Sophie is bitten on the hand while trying to feed a stray, perhaps rabies-infected cat, a series of small and ominous disasters begin to plague the Bentwoods' lives, revealing the fault lines and fractures in a marriage—and a society—wrenching itself apart. First published in 1970 to wide acclaim, Desperate Characters stands as one of the most dazzling and rigorous examples of the storyteller's craft in postwar American literature — a novel that, according to Irving Howe, ranks with Billy Budd, The Great Gatsby, Miss Lonelyhearts, and Seize the Day. |
characters in it can t happen here: It Can’t Happen Here Sinclair Lewis, 2025-01-18 It Can't Happen Here, written by Sinclair Lewis, is a gripping and chilling dystopian novel that explores the dangers of political extremism and the erosion of democracy. Published in 1935, the book presents a scenario in which a populist dictator rises to power in the United States, ultimately dismantling the country's democratic institutions and replacing them with authoritarian rule. The story follows Doremus Jessup, a small-town newspaper editor, as he watches the gradual and terrifying shift towards totalitarianism unfold. Through its compelling narrative and thought-provoking themes, Lewis critiques the fragility of democracy and the ease with which a nation can slide into tyranny. The novel is a powerful warning about the dangers of complacency, political apathy, and the unchecked rise of demagogues. It highlights how fear, manipulation, and propaganda can erode freedoms and lead to the loss of personal liberties, while ordinary citizens stand by, unsure of how to respond. It Can't Happen Here is an enduring exploration of the threats faced by democratic societies and the vigilance required to protect them. Lewis’ incisive commentary on politics, power, and human nature resonates as strongly today as it did when the book was first published, making it an essential read for anyone concerned about the preservation of freedom and the potential for authoritarianism in modern societies. Readers are drawn to It Can't Happen Here for its prescient examination of the rise of fascism and the dangers of political extremism. The novel remains relevant in contemporary times, offering a sobering reflection on the importance of safeguarding democratic values and the potential consequences of failing to do so. Owning a copy of this work is a powerful reminder of the fragility of freedom and a call to action for all who cherish democracy, making it a must-have addition to any collection of political literature or dystopian fiction. |
characters in it can t happen here: The Moral of the Story Henry T. Edmondson, 2000-01-01 The contributors to The Moral of the Story, all preeminent political theorists, are unified by their concern with the instructive power of great literature. This thought-provoking combination of essays explores the polyvalent moral and political impact of classic world literatures on public ethics through the study of some of its major figures-including Shakespeare, Dante, Cervantes, Jane Austen, Henry James, Joseph Conrad, Robert Penn Warren, and Dostoevsky. Positing the uniqueness of literature's ability to promote dialogue on salient moral and intellectual virtues, editor Henry T. Edmonson III has culled together a wide-ranging exploration of such fundamental concerns as the abuse of authority, the nature of good leadership, the significance of 'middle class virtues' and the needs of adolescents. This collection reinvigorates the study of classic literature as an endeavor that is not only personally intellectually satisfying, but also an inimitable and unique way to enrich public discourse. |
characters in it can t happen here: It Can'T Happen Here, A Novel Lewis, Sinclair, 2021-01-01 It Can't Happen Here by Sinclair Lewis: In this thought-provoking novel, Sinclair Lewis paints a chilling picture of a fictional America on the brink of dictatorship. Set during the Great Depression, the story follows the rise of a charismatic and authoritarian politician who manipulates fear and promises radical change. As the country succumbs to tyranny, ordinary citizens are forced to confront their own complacency and the dangerous consequences of unchecked power. Key Aspects of the Book It Can't Happen Here: Social and Political Commentary: Lewis uses the novel as a platform to offer incisive commentary on the dangers of demagoguery, the erosion of democratic values, and the vulnerability of society to authoritarian rule. Character Development: Through a cast of diverse characters, the book explores the complexities of human nature and how individuals respond to the challenges posed by a changing political landscape. Relevance and Warning: Despite being a work of fiction, It Can't Happen Here serves as a cautionary tale with enduring relevance, reminding readers of the importance of vigilance and safeguarding democratic institutions. Sinclair Lewis (1885-1951) was an American novelist and playwright known for his satirical and critical portrayal of American society. He was the first American to be awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature (1930). Lewis was a prolific writer, and his works often tackled social, political, and cultural issues of his time. It Can't Happen Here exemplifies his keen insights into the human condition and his ability to use fiction to address pressing societal concerns. |
characters in it can t happen here: IT CAN'T HAPPEN HERE (Political Dystopia) Sinclair Lewis, 2024-01-15 Sinclair Lewis's 'It Can't Happen Here' is a political dystopian novel that serves as a cautionary tale about the dangers of fascism and the erosion of democracy. Set in a fictional America, the story follows the rise of a demagogue who manipulates fear and propaganda to seize power and establish an oppressive regime. Lewis's writing style is straightforward and gripping, filled with sharp social commentary and insightful political satire. The novel's chilling portrayal of a society turning towards authoritarianism remains relevant in today's political climate. 'It Can't Happen Here' is a thought-provoking and intense exploration of the fragility of freedom and the importance of remaining vigilant against tyranny. It is a must-read for anyone interested in politics, history, and the consequences of unchecked power. |
CHARACTER Definition & Meaning - Merriam-Webster
disposition, temperament, temper, character, personality mean the dominant quality or qualities distinguishing a person or group. disposition implies customary moods and attitude toward the …
Character: Definitions and Examples | LiteraryTerms.net
Characters can be based on real people and events, or be totally unrealistic, such as space aliens. People become attached to characters as if they are real, may develop favorites, and …
CHARACTER | English meaning - Cambridge Dictionary
There were one or two strange-looking characters hanging around the bar. C1 [ C ] informal someone whose behaviour is different from most people's, especially in a way that is …
Character - Examples and Definition of Character - Literary Devices
There are different types of characters, and each serves its unique function in a story or a piece of literature.
Character - Definition, Meaning & Synonyms - Vocabulary.com
one of the large alphabetic characters used as the first letter in writing or printing proper names and sometimes for emphasis
Character Definition & Meaning | Britannica Dictionary
If something is in character with something else, it has the same qualities or characteristics as something else. This room is not really in character with the rest of the house. Their house has …
What Is a Character? Definition & 180+ Examples - Enlightio
Nov 6, 2023 · Characters are the central elements of a narrative, and their development, personalities, and experiences contribute to the themes and messages the author aims to …
34 Types of Characters in Literature (with Examples)
Jun 9, 2025 · Characters are what make stories come alive, and we’ve compiled a comprehensive list of types of characters in literature. The list includes 7 basic character types, 5 types of …
CHARACTER definition and meaning | Collins English Dictionary
The character of a person or place consists of all the qualities they have that make them distinct from other people or places. Perhaps there is a negative side to his character that you haven't …
character - Oxford Learner's Dictionaries
Definition of character noun from the Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary. [countable] a person or an animal in a book, play or film. Who plays the main character? He loves to draw and …
CHARACTER Definition & Meaning - Merriam-Webster
disposition, temperament, temper, character, personality mean the dominant quality or qualities distinguishing a person or group. …
Character: Definitions and Examples | LiteraryTerms.net
Characters can be based on real people and events, or be totally unrealistic, such as space aliens. People become attached to characters as if they are …
CHARACTER | English meaning - Cambridge Dictionary
There were one or two strange-looking characters hanging around the bar. C1 [ C ] informal someone whose …
Character - Examples and Definition of Character - Liter…
There are different types of characters, and each serves its unique function in a story or a piece of literature.
Character - Definition, Meaning & Synonyms - Vocab…
one of the large alphabetic characters used as the first letter in writing or printing proper names and sometimes for emphasis