Mordecai Richler: The apprenticeship of Duddy Kravitz (1959, A. Deutsch)
319 pages
English language
Published Jan. 24, 1959 by A. Deutsch.
The younger son of a working-class Jewish family in Montreal, Duddy Kravitz yearns to make a name for himself in society. This film chronicles his short and dubious rise to power, as well as his changing relationships with family and friends. Along the way the film explores the themes of anti-semitism and the responsibilities which come with adulthood.
The Apprenticeship of Duddy Kravitz is the story of a young Jewish man from Montreal who learns lessons in life from a series of people who serve as his mentors. As their apprentice, he is given the opportunity to observe their lives and learn from them, and as he does, he carves a course for a life he believes will bring him power and money.
This book is considered a modern classic and a friend of mine warmly suggested reading this. I do like Richler's writing style overall. However, this book lacks coherent plot and the main character (Duddy Kravitz) is not only very unlikable and rude, I also had a hard time really following along. Overall this book was a good read but a somewhat mediocre story.
I was more disappointed in this book than I expected. It followed an ambitious Jewish boy from high school through adulthood, and it went through disappointments and dreams.
My own problems with this book: I found few redeeming qualities in the main character; the only character with whom I felt I could relate was not covered well enough for me to actually relate with her; I wasn't sure what the overall goal of the book was. I liked the girlfriend, but it wasn't a book about her, it was a book about Duddy. I realize that a lot of the things that I disliked about him early on were sort of excusable by his being a teenager. Actually, he was a teenager all the way through, albeit 19 in the end – JUST still a teenager. Consequently, the character couldn't be expected to act totally as a mature, completely mentally …
I was more disappointed in this book than I expected. It followed an ambitious Jewish boy from high school through adulthood, and it went through disappointments and dreams.
My own problems with this book: I found few redeeming qualities in the main character; the only character with whom I felt I could relate was not covered well enough for me to actually relate with her; I wasn't sure what the overall goal of the book was. I liked the girlfriend, but it wasn't a book about her, it was a book about Duddy. I realize that a lot of the things that I disliked about him early on were sort of excusable by his being a teenager. Actually, he was a teenager all the way through, albeit 19 in the end – JUST still a teenager. Consequently, the character couldn't be expected to act totally as a mature, completely mentally developed adult. But in that respect, the book kind of left us hanging! I know there was a movie be from it, and I intended to watch said movie (and contribute in a book club discussion), but for various logistic reasons, that was not to be, and I'm sorry that I missed out on others' viewpoints and reactions; I suppose they could have convinced me that overall, it was a worthwhile trip, but currently, I remain unconvinced.
