Oil! by Upton Sinclair
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Book Reviews of Oil!
Book Review: A engaging story explore class, American History and human condition
Summary: 4 Stars
I bought this book after watching P.T. Anderson's "There will be blood"
The movie is totally different from the book as expected. "There will be blood" is a story focusing on the main character. Yet the book takes us into the oil history through the fictional setup between a millionaire oil man and his son. We are carried through the story in H.W. perspective
Let the cover said, it's story about greed in very large scale. I found the structure is beautifully intervened with the modern American history.
A recommended read if you have the patience to appreciate what the writer tried to present.
Book Review: I enjoyed this book. But....
Summary: 4 Stars
I really did enjoy this book. But, I really enjoy more true to life historical books, and I think this book if done as historic rather then fiction based on history would have done just as good. Having grown up in the cities of Long Beach and Signal Hill, some of the locations used in this book with altered names, to me it would have been more interesting. And I am sure the real life adventures of oil exploration and drilling would have made this book still the page turner that it was. I have not seen the movie, and may not, this book holds it's own.Book Review: Sweeping story with social overtones
Summary: 4 Stars
Great book! I enjoyed it! I really did! Seriously, reviewers noted that Sinclair tends to overuse exclamation points (it seemed silly after a while) and hammer his points home. That said, the book is a wonderful story about a basically decent self-made oil producer who lets his ambition impair his honor, and his son, who loves his father but doubts his ethics and is drawn to socialism. It is a wonderful picture of the times in which the story occurs. In fact, I think some of the annoyances of Sinclair's style were credible when the book was written.Book Review: On every list, at every school
Summary: 4 Stars
The film "There will be blood" is a shameless travesty of the book, which analyses the corruption in the oil industry and the intimidation of the unions. Anyone who admires the works of Ayn Rand should get a dose of this by way of a cure. Even the well-intentioned main characters get sucked into the maelstrom of big business. Unfortunately after 300 pages it becomes a bit boring, as the author tries to put in too much, but by then 99% of the readers will have learned a valuable lesson.Book Review: Somewhat puzzling
Summary: 3 Stars
Yes, I am one of those that read the book after seeing the movie. And overall,
I didn't think it was that bad. In particular, the first quarter (on which the movie
is based) is a well-told story with memorable characters and events. The problem
with the remainder of the book is that it becomes progressively more like a
recruiting pamphlet for the Socialist Party. Sinclair makes many good points,
but does so in a heavy-handed manner. As the book progresses, the world
becomes increasingly more black and white. The second half is an unequivocal
indictment of capitalism, and near glorification of the Russian Revolution. We
all know how that turned out...