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The Republic Of Imagination: America In Three Books (2014)

by Azar Nafisi(Favorite Author)

3.85 of 5 Votes: 1

ISBN

0670026069 (ISBN13: 9780670026067)

languge

English

genre

Memoir & Autobiography

publisher

Viking Adult

review 1: Part memoir, part literary critique, and part imagination, Azar Nafisi’s third book, The Republic of Imagination: America in Three Books is exquisitely written and Nafisi’s comparison between the three main books she has chosen to examine American literature and imagination is masterfully done. The first section references Mark Twain’s Huckleberry Fin; the second part examines Sinclair Lewis’ Babbitt, whereas the third delves into the world of Carson McCullers’ The Heart Is a Lonely Hunter. In each section Nafisi draws parallels and contradictions between the characters and the behaviors of Americans, for better or worse. Nafisi is a passionate writer, I have immensely enjoyed her previous two books and while The Republic of Imagination appears at first to ... moredeviate slightly from her other two books, Nafisi does indeed discuss why she has written this book, the importance of literature, and particularly why she focuses on these three main works of literature. I highly recommend The Republic of Imagination: America in Three Books, especially to book discussion groups.
review 2: What an amazing book. An insightful critique into the state of reading and learning in America today as well as a call to reclaim literature as a key element in (lifelong) learning. Making her argument so compelling is the incorporation of memoir into the argument. As an immigrant who valued literature from before the time she came to the US (laid out so well in "Reading Lolita in Tehran"), she has shown how she has learned (and continues to learn) about herself, her (adopted) country and others through the prism of American literature. I was also gratified (as a teacher) that she addressed the value of teaching and learning throughout. This is not a policy statement but a personal appeal to all of us to reclaim the value of a life that values intellect and ideas along with the practicality that justifiably characterizes our American culture. We cannot continue to be a great culture if we continue down the path that increasingly speaks of evaluating education as a "return on investment" rather than evaluating education as a return on an individual's increasing humanity. Maybe I am biased because I am a teacher but she speaks from the perspective of a teacher who loves what she does and what she studies. Her words are profound and personal -- and I have been touched. [NOTE: I listened to an unabridged audio version of this book. The narrator was very good but the audio edition includes Azar Nafisi reading the introduction to the book which makes the audio version even better.] less

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