The TurmoilA familiar midwestern novel in the tradition of Sherwood Anderson and Sinclair Lewis, The Turmoil was the best-selling novel of 1915. It is set in a small, quiet city--never named but closely resembling the author's hometown of Indianapolis--that is quickly being transformed into a bustling, money-making nest of competitors more or less overrun by "the worshippers of Bigness." "There is a midland city in the heart of fair, open country, a dirty and wonderful city nesting dingily in the fog of its own smoke," begins The Turmoil, the first volume of Pulitzer Prize-winner Booth Tarkington's "Growth" trilogy. A narrative of loss and change, a love story, and a warning about the potential evils of materialism, the book chronicles two midwestern families trying to cope with the onset of industrialization. Tarkington believed that culture could flourish even as the country was increasingly fueled by material progress. The Turmoil, the first great success of his career, tells the intertwined stories of two families: the Sheridans, whose integrity wanes as their wealth increases, and the Vertrees, who remain noble but impoverished. Linked by the romance between a Sheridan son and a Vertrees daughter, the story of the two families provides a dramatic view of what America was like on the verge of a new order. An introduction by Lawrence R. Rodgers places the novel squarely in the social and cultural context of the Progressive Era. The book also features illustrations by C. E. Chambers. |
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LibraryThing Review
User Review - jeffome - LibraryThingAn enjoyable easy read - A good early 20th century family drama.....wealthy driven family shuns the black sheep dreamer in the family since that 'drive and greed' gene seems to have been missed ... Read full review
Contents
CHAPTER I | 1 |
CHAPTER II | 6 |
CHAPTER III | 13 |
CHAPTER IV | 24 |
CHAPTER V | 36 |
CHAPTER VI | 46 |
CHAPTER VII | 59 |
CHAPTER VIII | 69 |
CHAPTER XVIII | 188 |
CHAPTER XIX | 197 |
CHAPTER XX | 206 |
CHAPTER XXI | 214 |
CHAPTER XXII | 230 |
CHAPTER XXIII | 238 |
CHAPTER XXIV | 250 |
CHAPTER XXV | 261 |
CHAPTER IX | 81 |
CHAPTER X | 96 |
CHAPTER XI | 112 |
CHAPTER XII | 123 |
CHAPTER XIII | 135 |
CHAPTER XIV | 145 |
CHAPTER XV | 157 |
CHAPTER XVI | 165 |
CHAPTER XVII | 171 |
CHAPTER XXVI | 268 |
CHAPTER XXVII | 277 |
CHAPTER XXVIII | 288 |
CHAPTER XXIX | 300 |
CHAPTER XXX | 310 |
CHAPTER XXXI | 320 |
CHAPTER XXXII | 330 |
CHAPTER XXXIII | 339 |
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Common terms and phrases
afternoon ain't asked began begin believe better Bibbs bring build called chair closed coming course cried didn't door Edith expect eyes face father feel gave George girl give glance goin gone guess Gurney hall hand happened head hear heard hurt it's keep kind knew Lamhorn laughed listen live look mamma marry Mary matter mean meant mind minute Miss morning mother moved never night once papa play pretty returned Roscoe seemed Sheridan Sibyl sick smoke sometimes sound speak spoke stand stood stopped street suppose talk tell that's there's thing thought told took town trouble turned understand Vertrees voice waiting walk What's wife window wouldn't write young
Bibliographic information
| Title | The Turmoil |
| Author | Booth Tarkington |
| Edition | illustrated, reprint |
| Publisher | University of Illinois Press, 2003 |
| ISBN | 0252071131, 9780252071133 |
| Length | 348 pages |
| Subjects | › Fiction / Literary |
| Export Citation | BiBTeX EndNote RefMan |