Sister Carrie (Barnes & Noble Classics Series)

A character study that is still relevant today.

After having read this book, it's interesting to read it's summary here on bn.com. I found there to be much more depth to the story and the theme more along the lines of "the impact of materialism on one's character" than fate vs. free-will. From my perspective, Carrie went from being innocent, to greedy/self-absorbed and finally to one aware of their own insignificance within the world. This is by no means an uplifting book, but it is definitely relevant today. Many of the attitudes depicted among the characters here are quite prolific in our society today, although with a bit of modernity. The corrosive selfishness and denial present throughout the story are just as damaging in our lives today.

Dreiser, with his simple language and direct story-telling, made it very easy for me to sympathize and subsequently criticize the various characters. Many shades of grey make the characters very real and reminiscent of those we know today. Aside from the emotional draw to the characters, I found their overall presence to be convincing and realistic. Not once did I find myself thinking that these could not have been "real" people either today or "back then."

There were moments where the story did slow down a bit and I was left wondering "what next?" Then the next turn came and I was further engaged. Overall, the story keeps a decent pace and I found this to be an enjoyable read. Dreiser does a nice job of tying up loose ends at the end, although it does feel a bit like an afterthought.

2 out of 2 people found this review helpful.

The 1900 American Mind

This is the story of a young woman plagued by desire for a success she cannot fully understand or enjoy and the rather happenstance way she comes by it. The story is told with keen and absorbing psychological insight, but a psychology characterisitic of the period and Dreiser's ideas on Realism and what that entails. As an added bonus, the reader is given endless insight into the lifestyle, biases, expectations, and social rules of life in 1900's America: a bonus worth reading for. It is essential as well to read to the last sentence of the novel in order to fully appreciate Dreiser's world view and learn the fates of his characters.

2 out of 2 people found this review helpful.

Underrated Author Sparks Interest!!

Fascinating reading for someone unfamiliar with the 'zeitgeist' of America in 1900. This story captures a time when things were growing here and gives a historical window into the timeframe it encompasses. Carrie becomes her own woman, but she is not 'self-made' she is a product of her two lovers assistance and resolve. This was an interesting look into the life of a woman at this time. Not unlike Chopin's Awakening in that it chronicles an woman who asserts her independence!!

1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

American Classic

Dreiser took realism a step further with his socially provocative and politicized writing. "Sister Carrie" shocking in its day is now a deeply satisfying read.

I liked it.

The writing style took me a few pages to get used to. Or perhaps in keeping with that style, I should say, I found the style of writing to be at first encounter a bit more out of fashion than one might have anticipated.

The story was engaging, though a bit melodramatic. Good read, all in all.

Many Errors

Errors in punctuation, verbage, syntax. It's as though it had been transcribed by one unaccustomed to the English language. Try for a better transcription.

this is a terrible edition

This edition has a bunch of typos, misformattings, etc. The worst part is that I e-mailed Barnes and Noble about a refund and to ask to have it removed, but they're pretty terrible in dealing with this kind of thing.

Highly recommended

One of the best books ever written, Sister Carrie is a great study of a timeperiod, but more importantly, of human character. While it is an older book it's very fresh and does not feel antiquated. Drieser is an amazing author. Not to be missed.

Sister Carrie

Although the book was about carrie making her the focus, it often left and went to Hurstwwod. His constant battles with doing the right thing gave the emotional of sorrow.

Beautiful Book

It is obvious that Dreiser understood the motivations of humans, by the mind and heart. My two favorite things about the book are that, one, you truly are on a journey with the characters as their personalities and situations morph with every chapter, and two, it is such a wonderful take on human life and perspective and how, sometimes, no matter what you say or don't say, what you do, or don't do, fate unravels itself in funny, unexpected ways. Simply ingenious, probably my second favorite book ever.

a good read!

Read this my freshman year in high school, and really enjoyed it. Dreiser gives a lot of detail throughout the story and gives you an insight into a woman's life in the late 1980s. This story is a good example that shows fame and wealth isn't everything.

0 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

A reviewer

Sister Carrie is a tragic story by Theodore Dreiser of a girl who learns that materialism is an empty pursuit that only leads to unfulfilled dreams. The reader first meets Carrie as she travels from a small town to the endless ocean of possibilities that is Chicago. The book follows her ascent of the social ladder from poor factory worker in Chicago to respected actress in New York. The prose is filled figurative language and interesting diction and syntax, which make it easy to become absorbed in. The novel focuses on Carrie¿s emotional development rather than on plot development. This can make the plot slow at times, but teaches the reader the value of emotions and morals in a character. To those with loose morals, Sister Carrie may seem hypercritical as Dreiser condemns even the smallest moral infraction. The book does present insights about human nature including that because humans act on emotion they continually repeat their mistakes and compound their misfortunes. The first story of its kind, Sister Carrie ushered in a period of great American writing about the problems of the times, including the plight of the poor, materialism, social obligations, and others. The characters of Sister Carrie can be seen throughout literature in slightly different forms. The girl corrupted by the city, the idiotic wealthy who pay more than things are worth, and the naïve middle class constantly chasing wealth have become fixtures of American literature. Sister Carrie is at times hysterical, and at other times tear jerking, but it is the mixture that teaches valuable lessons and makes it a classic.

Less is more

A lot of what is written in this book is unnecessary. Do we really need to know the make of the clothing the peole wear. The only thing left out was the price. This reads more like a catlog and street guide to Chicago than it does a story. Take out half of the descriptions and there would be a much more effective novel.

0 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

Brilliant

I have just finished reading Sister Carrie, and I must say I thoroughly enjoyed it. This is probably, and I am speaking as a someone from Europe, one of the best American novels ever written. The end is outstanding. A must.

0 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

Great low cost classic.

These paperback 'Thrift Editions' from Dover publications are a great way to collect classic titles at low prices!

Boring

This book is very boring and too dramatic. An example of it being too dramatic is when Carrie looks for work in the beginning. She is just so emotional when she is rejected by employers. It got a little better after that, but it was still boring.

0 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

never mistake richness for happiness

In my opinion, Sister Carrie is a book of a young girl who mistakes richness for succsess and happiness. Carrie learned her lesson in the end when she was left all alone. Worst days for mr. hurstwood who killed himself because he was left broke and all the better days were gone. What Mr. hurstwood once had, dissapeared the day he cheated on his wife with Carrie.

0 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

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