"Keillor's "heavily autobiographical" 2001 novel of a 14-year-old boy's summer in Lake Wobegon, Minnesota concerns: the clash between the conservative religious values of his family and town, and the fascinating porn magazine "High School Orgy" lent to him by a friend; his adoration of his older cousin Kate; his unpleasant and self-righteous older sister's unrelenting torment of him; his discovery of his calling as a writer; and all the eccentric and hilarious types that populate a typical Midwestern town. The book contains much of the laughs one expects from Keillor, but with more of a bittersweet edge and characters the reader truly comes to care about."
David Loftus, Resident Scholar
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Review Analysis of Lake Wobegon Summer 1956
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Ratings are on a 1-10 scale (Low to High)
Plot
Tone of book?
- upbeat
Time/era of story
- 1930's-1950's
Kids growing up/acting up?
Yes
Kids:
- religious influences
Inside culture (main char)
- Christian
Is this an adult or child's book?
- Adult or Young Adult Book
Outside culture (society)
- American Midwest
If story of urban/rural...
- Small town life
Ethnic/regional/gender life
Yes
Age group of kid(s) in story:
- high school
Parents/lack of parents problem?
- rebelling against parent's expectations
Main Character
Gender
- Male
Profession/status:
- student
Age:
- a teen
Ethnicity/Nationality
- White (American)
How sensitive is this character?
- sensitive to others' feelings
Sense of humor
- Cynical sense of humor
Intelligence
- Smarter than most other characters
Physique
- average physique
Setting
How much descriptions of surroundings?
- 4 (a fair amount)
United States
Yes
The US:
- Midwest
Farm/Ranch?
Yes
Farm/Ranch:
- farm
Small town?
Yes
Small town people:
- nice, like Andy/Opie/Aunt Bee
- dumb Rednecks, like Gomer Pyle
Style
Person
- mostly 1st
Accounts of torture and death?
- no torture/death
Sex in book?
Yes
What kind of sex:
- descript of kissing
- actual description of hetero sex
- descript. of female anat. (the big B's)
Amount of dialog
- significantly more descript than dialog
