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Book Review of Humboldt's Gift

Humboldt's Gift
Humboldt's Gift
Author: Saul Bellow
Genre: Literature & Fiction
Book Type: Paperback
reviewed on + 64 more book reviews
Helpful Score: 2


Here's what the back cover says: "Never has Saul Bellow's unsurpassed genius for creating full-blooded characters been so penetrating, so charged with exuberant vitality, as in HUMBOLDT'S GIFT. Here Renata, all-woman and then some...Rinaldo, junior-league Mafioso tough...and Charlie, living legend with a frenzied past...live out destinies complicated by the unforgettable Humboldt. And Humboldt--drinker, lover, sometimes bum, and lifetime shadow of Charlie Citrine--plots a dubious revenge for services rendered in the name of friendship."

Here's what I say: I almost never put a book down, but I got as far as pg. 110 out of 471. The characters may be full-blooded in someone's mind, but not mine. They were cartoon caricatures at best. Sorry, Mr. Bellow, this one's not my cup of tea.