It seems that most of the books I've read recently have been made into motion pictures at some point, and this one is no exception, although I actually much prefer the novel to the movie, which was excessively farcical for my taste, seeming to center on the scatological. The novel, on the other hand, is much more realistic, having painted a more-than-adequate portrait of the health craze which gripped the early 20th century, the heady days of rampant quackery, with its newfangled gadgets emerging in ever greater numbers in the wake of the Industrial Revolution. The story weaves a seamless narrative of interwoven plots involving a diverse cast of characters, primarily a hyper-ill couple, the Lightbodies, an ambitious, yet feckless entrepreneur with more optimism than brains, the Great Man himself, one John Harvey Kellogg, the brother of the more well-known W.K. Kellogg, the breakfast food magnate, and his disturbed, ne'er-do-well adopted son, George, whom he considers his greatest failure. Kellogg holds some curiosity for me, as I was affiliated with the Arabian Horse Center which bears his name at the Cal State Polytechnic University at Pomona, where I spent time as an undergraduate.
The primary setting is the Battle Creek Sanitarium, a veritable Temple of Health, at least in the mind of its fanatic (though not as fanatic as some of his guests!) founder, who is obsessed the notion of biological living. In truth, the whole operation reeks of something like a medical experiment ward, what with patients being subjected to near-constant enemas to cure their "autointoxication," brought on by the sin of meat-eating and coffee-drinking, some of whom are electrocuted in an electric water bath or slowly poisoned to death by the new "miracle" radium cure, involving exposure to a newly discovered stone which emits miraculous "healing rays," (!!) only recently discovered by the Curies. The novel is also an admirable depiction of the excess of the Edwardian age, and the stark contrasts between rich and poor. Boyle's rather dry sense of humor may rub some readers the wrong way, however, as he seemingly sets up his poor characters for success, yet snatches it from them at the most inopportune moment, but the effect on the whole is hilarious, if a little warped. The length, at more than 450 pages, is slightly straining; the prose is rather effusive, bordering on verbose, but it's generally quite engaging, reading very much like a novel of the period, in fact. Overall, I would recommend it, but it does take some time and effort and something of a commitment to get through.
The primary setting is the Battle Creek Sanitarium, a veritable Temple of Health, at least in the mind of its fanatic (though not as fanatic as some of his guests!) founder, who is obsessed the notion of biological living. In truth, the whole operation reeks of something like a medical experiment ward, what with patients being subjected to near-constant enemas to cure their "autointoxication," brought on by the sin of meat-eating and coffee-drinking, some of whom are electrocuted in an electric water bath or slowly poisoned to death by the new "miracle" radium cure, involving exposure to a newly discovered stone which emits miraculous "healing rays," (!!) only recently discovered by the Curies. The novel is also an admirable depiction of the excess of the Edwardian age, and the stark contrasts between rich and poor. Boyle's rather dry sense of humor may rub some readers the wrong way, however, as he seemingly sets up his poor characters for success, yet snatches it from them at the most inopportune moment, but the effect on the whole is hilarious, if a little warped. The length, at more than 450 pages, is slightly straining; the prose is rather effusive, bordering on verbose, but it's generally quite engaging, reading very much like a novel of the period, in fact. Overall, I would recommend it, but it does take some time and effort and something of a commitment to get through.
Back to all reviews by this member
Back to all reviews of this book
Back to Book Reviews
Back to Book Details
Back to all reviews of this book
Back to Book Reviews
Back to Book Details
