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Rabbit At Rest
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Plot Summary of Rabbit At Rest
"John Updike is considered a "literary" writer as opposed to a writer of "mainstream" fiction, but he comes dangerously close to the latter in his four-book saga about the life of Harry "Rabbit" Angstrom of which "Rabbit At Rest" is the final installment. "Rabbit" is getting old now, pestered by heart disease and a growing alienation from everything he once held dear. An unfortunate dalliance with his son's wife only deepens the sizeable rift between "Rabbit" and his own wife so he flees to their vacation home in Florida, hoping to get his act together and find some reason to continue living. But the odds are against him and mounting all the time. "Rabbit At Rest" is a thought provoking, somewhat depressing and altogether fitting conclusion to the "Rabbit" series of books."
Bill Brumlow, Resident Scholar

"Henry "Rabbit" Angstrom is being put out to pasture, turning over the family car business (technically owned by his wife) to their cocaine-addicted son. As a middle-aged has-been sports hero, he struggles to establish or renew healthy and satisfying relationships with someone - anyone, while trying to deal with his own loss of health and vigor. A series of bad choices isolate him from those who might be willing to overlook his bitter, condescending, sarcastic nature, in the end leaving him alone to deal with his mortality. "
Charles B. Owen, Resident Scholar



Review Analysis of Rabbit At Rest
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Ratings are on a 1-10 scale (Low to High)
Plot
Tone of book? - depressed
Time/era of story - 1980's-1999
Romance/Romance Problems Yes
Kind of romance: - playing footsy while inconveniently married
Family, struggle with Yes
Struggle with: - Son - Wife
Internal struggle/realization? Yes
Struggle over - midlife crisis
Is this an adult or child's book? - Adult or Young Adult Book
Taboo sex story? Yes

Main Character
Gender - Male
Profession/status: - small businessman
Age: - 40's-50's - 60's-90's
Is this an ordinary person caught up in events? Yes
Ethnicity/Nationality - White (American)
How sensitive is this character? - sensitive to others' feelings - mean, arrogant
Sense of humor - Cynical sense of humor
Intelligence - Average intelligence
Physique - physically sick

Main Adversary
Identity: - natural phenomena - Male
Age: - 20's-30's
Profession/status: - small businessman
How much of work is main antagonist actually present in: - a little/some - a substantial amount
How sensitive is this character? - sensitive to others' feelings
Sense of humor - Mostly serious with occasional humor
Intelligence - Average intelligence
Physique - average physique

Setting
How much descriptions of surroundings? - 8 ()
United States Yes
The US: - Southeast - Northeast
City? Yes
Misc setting - resort/hotel

Style
Person - mostly 1st - mostly 3rd
Accounts of torture and death? - moderately detailed references to deaths - explicit references to deaths
Sex in book? Yes
What kind of sex: - vague references - descript. of female anat. (the big B's)
Unusual Style: - a lot of stream of consciousness
Amount of dialog - significantly more descript than dialog
Most similar books to Rabbit At Rest
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Music for Torching by A.M. Homes


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John Updike Resident Scholar Profiles

TOP SCHOLAR:
  
Nathaniel Ford  

SCHOLARS:
Charles B. Owen  


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