Tag Archives: Ragtime

I really did enjoy this novel more than I thought I would, once I got over the itchy effect that historical fiction seems to have on me.  E. L. Doctorow may not have a particularly eloquent poetical writing style, but … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Little in Ragtime has caused me surprise or delight as far as imagery or eloquence, although I would say that Doctorow employs a staccato burst of information sometimes that sets an unmistakable tone of what he wishes to impart.  Often, … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Doctorow slowly brings in historical characters as the story builds, and as I found with Harry Houdini and Evelyn Nesbitt, establishes their presence and then often brings them back around in some proximity to the lives of the fictional family … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Doctorow’s emphasis of story appears to be on inequities in society at the beginning of the twentieth century, and he does so subtly by following unrelated characters of different social status as their paths cross. In this manner, we become … Continue reading → Continue reading →

This may in fact be another example of narrator reliability, in the mix of fact and fiction: The motor idled.  Only Jung noticed the little girl in the pinafore standing slightly behind the young woman and holding her hand.  The … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Doctorow gives us an America that is extremely class conscious, putting it subtly and yet powerfully in the images he draws: One evening after the performance Houdini’s manager told him of being called by Mrs. Stuyvesant Fish of 78th Street, … Continue reading → Continue reading →

I’m not sure how I feel about this "novel" by E. L. Doctorow. The main thing that bothers me is the inclusion of real characters such as Stanford White, Evelyn Nesbitt, Harry K. Thaw, and Harry Houdini.  While I understand … Continue reading → Continue reading →

I realize that this is not really first person but third; the reference to Mother and Father, etc. are an unusual way for the narrator to refer to his characters, yet it is reminiscent of the recently read works of … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Just got through the first short chapter and I do like the writing style.  Doctorow has grounded the novel in a setting of New Rochelle, NY in the early 1900’s, his narrator a young boy living in a typical neighborhood … Continue reading → Continue reading →