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| Plot Summary of Gain |
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"In his sixth novel, Powers's antagonists are a 42-year-old real estate broker and a corporation. Divorcee Laura Bodey lives with her 17-year-old daughter and 12-year-old son in Lacewood, Illinois. The story of her relations with her kids, her work, her ex, a married boyfriend, and contraction of ovarian cancer is told in tandem with the history of Clare Soap and Chemical, whose roots go back to Boston in 1830 and progress through wars, labor struggles, economic downturns, and growth into a multinational conglomerate. With his usual vast knowledge and research, Powers touches on railroads, expositions, ad campaigns; takes passing swipes at telemarketers and brand naming. The text is more sober than in his earlier books -- there's less wordplay. For all the intellection, the relations between Laura and her kids are well drawn and deeply felt."
David Loftus, Resident Scholar
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| Review Analysis of Gain |
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Our unique search engine provides a wealth of detail about books by breaking them down into many different literary elements, all of which are searchable (click here).
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Ratings are on a 1-10 scale (Low to High)
Plot
Tone of book?
- thoughtful
Kids growing up/acting up?
Yes
Political/social activism
Yes
Plotlet:
- general liberal/left wing activism
- union leaders fighting for labor rights
Is this an adult or child's book?
- Adult or Young Adult Book
Main Character
Gender
- Female
Profession/status:
- small businessman
Age:
- 40's-50's
Ethnicity/Nationality
- White (American)
How sensitive is this character?
- sensitive to others' feelings
Sense of humor
- Mostly serious with occasional humor
Intelligence
- Average intelligence
Physique
- physically sick
Main Adversary
Identity:
- an organization
How much of work is main antagonist actually present in:
- a lot
Setting
How much descriptions of surroundings?
- 4 (a fair amount)
United States
Yes
The US:
- Northeast
- Midwest
City?
Yes
City:
- Boston
Misc setting
- scientific labs
Style
Person
- mostly 3rd
Accounts of torture and death?
- generic/vague references to death/punishment
Unusual Style:
- No single main character?
Amount of dialog
- roughly even amounts of descript and dialog
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Note: the views expressed here are only those of the reviewer(s). | |
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