End of Second Quarter Continued

Hi Ms. OB...so here are two reviews on Portnoys Complaint that i thought summed it up pretty good. "PORTNOY'S COMPLAINT has been first published in 1969. Alexander Portnoy is a jewish boy who has lived most of his childhood in the Newark jewish neighborhood of New-Jersey. He was a brilliant student admired by his parents. But Portnoy, from his childhood on, has been obsessed by women and sexuality. The clash between his secret thoughts and the morals of his jewish education is too violent. Soon Guiltiness and Rebellion are fighting a terrible battle in his mind. A masterpiece." Daniel Staebler, Resident Scholar

"This is a story about Alexander Portnoy, a Jewish boy with a big nose and big ego who loves sex. Unfortunately, he was brought up in an extremely strict household with high expectations, and as a result has strongly conflicting feelings regarding the world of sex. Portnoy has a strong sex drive, and though there is nothing more that he wishes for but a normal, loving family with kids, he knows he could never settle down because of his wandering libido. He loves kinky sex but feels guilty doing it, and relates this problem through several anecdotes regarding his early childhood and teenage years, hoping to help the doctor reach a conclusion about his problem." Suzie, Resident Scholar

So, you asked us to comment on the reviews, and i feel that both outline the book perfectly. I really loved this book. I found it to be very relatable. A lot of the stuff that Alex talks about going through, i have gone through, or know that i will go through it in the future. The way it was written was what really got me. It was basically Alex, in the future, sitting in a pshycologists office "complaining" about the things that happened in his rough childhood that led him to where he is today. This was a great book and i look forward to reading more by Philip Roth

Until next time,

Fishster 41