Product Description
Don't Stop the Carnival, 1965 1st Edition novel, by Herman Wouk. Hardcover with dust jacket, 395 pages. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

The lighter side of Herman Wouk
I checked this book out from my local library when I was in high school and made it about half way through before being distracted by something else; yet, still, it had an everlasting resonance with me, and now, twelve years later, I was mesmerized, enchanted after reading it all the way through. Don't Stop the Carnival follows the life of a retired forty-nine year old (Jewish) New York press agent Norman Paperman as he deals with the trials and tribulations, often bordering on the absurd, of running a small resort on this small remote island in the Carribean with its cast of eccentric islanders. In it are a combination of goodies which make reading especially interesting: (1) the general essense and culture of the late 1950's, especially the immediate setting, a hotel/resort which seems genuinely authentic and much different than the "Sandals" and Carnvial resort adventures today; (2) a kind of intellectual dialogue among some characters, a carryover from the New York lifestyle of the Paperman family, which is not often found in books of a later generation, and class in the way things are done among all characters, including Carribean politicians, an young eccentric English professor ("the Sending"), a tycoon from New York; and (most importantly of all) (3) a great romanance, abeit adultery, among the main character Paperman and fictional silverscreen starling Iris Tramm, who has made Kinja her home in this mid-life crisis fairy-tale. The book seems so unusual for Herman Wouk which makes it all more interesting, and heightens my admiration and depth of appreciation for both his life and literary talents. I read this one after the Winds of War which just made it all the more interesting. A great read...the ending is a little abrupt, but there are enough scenes and "eye-candy" to paint a great story for a couple days whatever you are doing, especially if you are at the grind.

Look for the old musty edition
A Jimmy Buffett recommendation.Humor and melancholy blend in a book ultimately more tragic than funny.It evokes a place of pleasurable escape that we want to exist in Paradise, but that can only be built out of pain.

Its easy to see why JB loves this book, and why his fans will find it both happy and sad.

Get hold of an old copy like this one, from a library or used book store.It reads better when the pages are a little faded and the binding a little loose, and the evocative scent of musty decay will put you in the place this book describes. ... Read more

Product Description
With this rollicking novel--hailed equally for its satiric bite, its lightly borne scientific savvy, and its tender compassion for foible-prone humanity--one of America’s preeminent storytellers returns to fiction for the first time in a decade.

Guy Carpenter is a regular guy, a family man, an obscure NASA scientist, when he is jolted out of his quiet life and summoned to the corridors of power in Washington, DC. Through a turn of events as unlikely as it is inevitable, Guy finds himself compromised by scandal and romance, hounded by Hollywood, and agonizingly alone at the white-hot center of a firestorm ignited as three potent forces of American culture--politics, big science, and the media--spectacularly collide. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (31)

Delightful
I'm a bit baffled by the negative reviews this has received.No, it doesn't have the epic scale of The Caine Mutiny, but it's a fascinating, fun story nevertheless.The subject matter is genuinely unique; who else has written a realistic novel about the intersection of science, politics, and entertainment?

My only criticism is that even though this is definitely a contemporary novel, much of the dialogue has an old-fashioned quality.The characters frequently use idioms and expressions that aren't heard much anymore, like "hat in hand" and "cat got your tongue," and the bantering between the scientist and the congresswoman sounds like something out of a 1940s movie.

If you're tired of political thrillers with implausible plot twists, you may find this refreshing.It's a quick, fun read.

A Hole in Wouk's Reputation
Sheesh.

This was just awful. Hard to believe that is was written by the genius of The Winds of War.

Bought it fresh from the publisher when it was first released. I was so excited that after about 10 years, Mr. Wouk had graced us with another book. That excitement was premature and undeserved.

The blurb calls it a "rollicking Washington tale". I call it a waste of time. The "mystery" just isn't. The "romance" came across as being written by a hormone-driven teenage male (redundant). The "science" was boring.

In fact, the most accurate part of the blurb is the reference to Wouk's very early Marjorie Morningstar. It does have the same feel. I granted Morningstar some credit as it was produced very early in Mr. Wouk's career and, in fact, did explore very well the reality vs dreams that young women and self-absorbed young men can inflict on each other.

I can't grant A Hole in Texas: A Novel any credit at all. Mr. Wouk is far more experienced now and should have known better than to publish such drivel.

Where on earth were the editors who usually give feedback to an author? They must have been mute with astonishment that such a respected writer would actually perpetrate this fraud of a "book" on the buying public.

I suspect this is Wouk's last book. He is 95 years old. Real shame to end his life and career with this offering.

You don't have to be a scientist to enjoy this novel
Technology has been part of our daily life for a while now, and yet there is still too much work to be done. A novel like "A hole in Texas" helps average people to engage in interesting subjects even whitout knowing it. On top of that, it is a fun book to read. Highly recommended.... of course, this is just me talking, ok?

A Fun Light Read
When I started this book, I wasn't sure that I would be interested enough to complete it.But it turned out to be a well-written, entertaining fast-paced page turner that maintained my interest.

The story involves a physicist who used to work with the Superconducting Supercollider (SSC) in Texas, a mammoth project until governmental funding was abruptly canceled.Now the Chinese claim to have discovered the Higgs Boson particle, which the SSC would have found if it had been continued.This starts a political and media firestorm that carries the physicist in its wake, jetting back and forth across the country dealing with politicians, Hollywood celebrities, and fellow scientists (including one who is an old flame).

The story is light-hearted and a bit tongue in cheek.It's not epic literature or profound drama, but I found it very enjoyable as entertainment, and as a fantasy of what it is like to move within the circles of the powerful and influential in America.(Plus you learn a little bit about the SSC and Higgs Boson.)

high stake sub-atomic physics
I was intrigued by the idea that Herman Wouk was still writing books, and being a native Texan, was attracted to the title.The story involves an astrophysicist who was formerly involved in the now defunct Superconducting Supercollider.Now he gets involved in the national uproar over the Chinese discovery of the Higgs Boson (which the former SSC was supposed to find) and the potential superbomb it might enable.Our hero gets connected with a romantic congresswoman, his former Chinese love, a zealous reporter, many lawyers, and former academic colleagues.And to top it all off, he must save his marriage while keeping America safe.This light hearted romp is interesting. ... Read more

Product Description
World-famous Pulitzer Prize Novel of the U.S. Navy in World War II ... Read more

Product Description
FOR USE IN SCHOOLS AND LIBRARIES ONLY. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (3)

Please note:This is *not* the book
Not a review as much as simply a warning.If you're looking for "The Caine Mutiny" audiobook, this is *not* it.This is the unabridged play...with actors reading their parts.If this is what you're looking for, then jump right in.If you're looking for an auiobook of the actual 560 page text...this is not it.

IT'S NOT BOGIE AND FERRER....BUT IT'S GOOD
To do it justice it was excellent! But if you've already seen Humphrey Bogart and Jose' Ferrer in the Cain Mutiny movie then you've already seen the best that can be done. This audio book has some more and some different information but it's really close. The actors did fine jobs but better than Bogart and Ferrer, no. I enjoyed it as a comparison read and if you can suspend your memory, don't criticize and just absorb, you will enjoy it.

I found the book to be an excellent depiction of the war.
The Caine Mutiny was an excellent novel. It gave a great insite on a sailor's life during the war. I found it to go into great discription at times. THis was often confusing and boring. Besides these detailed parts Ifound it to be intriguing. ... Read more

Product Description
Starts on Chapter 50, page 565 through page 1128. Book club edition. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

disappointed
The book came in in good shape.The problem is this book is in two parts and when I orignally ordered my intention was to order both.Received two copies of Vol 2, from different suppliers.

Price was only $4 ea, so don't want to return one where postage is just about that much.

I'm in the process of re reading this book.It's an absolutely great book re WW2.

Tom Thomas

Awesome conclusion to Wouk"s war epic
I ordered this for my WWII buff boyfriend. I had read this years ago, and knew he would love it. He consumed the whole series with gusto. As well as being a novel about a family before and during the war, the books are historically accurate, and fascinating. Definately a worthwhile read, and a great way to learn about the era. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Punchier than the book or the movie
As an ardent fan of books, theatre and movies it never ceases to amaze me how the exact same story can play out so differently in each of these media.

Take Phantom of the Opera for example.As a book, a play and a movie, there's something about the Phantom story that powerfully endures (albeit in different ways) in each of the media.

Yet there are some stories uniquely known for their appearance in book form, as a stage play or alternatively as a movie.

Though Caine Mutiny rightly won Wouk a Pulitzer, history nonetheless still seems to record the movie (starring a more mature and gutsy Humphrey Bogart in the title role) as the definitive telling of this story.

For those who've had the pleasure of either the Pulitzer prize winning book or the equally estimable movie, I would heartily recommend this play...also written by Wouk.

As stage plays necessarily must, it reduces the story to its dramatic bare bones and I think in so doing elevates the theatrical version of this story over its cinematic and novelistic brethren.

If nothing else the play is an interesting precis on just what Wouk considered to be indispensible in this story.

I highly recommend it, in fact even over both the book and movie, which in this case is really saying something. ... Read more