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Title: The Thanatos Syndrome : A Novel by Walker Percy ISBN: 0-312-24332-4 Publisher: Picador USA Pub. Date: 04 September, 1999 Format: Paperback Volumes: 1 List Price(USD): $15.00 |
Average Customer Rating: 4.23 (13 reviews)
Rating: 5
Summary: Percy's parting shot
Comment: Walker Percy, M.D. struck his final blow at utopian social engineers with "The Thanatos Syndrome". He skillfully draws the connection between the population control groups of today and the cultured Germans of the Weimar Republic and their joint enthusiasm for eugenics and abortion solutions. With that theme playing itself out in the background, he pursues the exciting plot that asks the question: If you could put something in the water that would destroy freewill, but provide perfect order to society, should you? Launch yourself into this rare combination of thriller and deep cultural examination for a great read!
Rating: 5
Summary: Does the end justify the means?
Comment: The novel The Thanatos Syndrome by Walker Percy is a captivating story about the incredible powers of the human mind, and the destruction that is possible when one manipulates this precious system. Dr. More, fresh from incarceration for illegal drug distribution, challenges a group of his medical collegues who have created a project to alter the mental capabilities of the citizens of the town of Feliciana by adding sodium to the town's drinking water supply. This altering of the mind creates a deep moral conflict. The citizens are unaware of the experiment being perfomed on them, and therefore their rights are being violated. The sodium also causes both positive and negative effects in society, so the ethical benefits must be weighed agains the negative side effects. The twisted finale to the book leaves the reader questioning his or her own beliefs and moral views.
Rating: 4
Summary: A Brave New World
Comment: This is my first book by Walker Percy, but it won't be my last.*
The asterisk? I give this story only a luke-warm review, a B minus. Yes, the plot does have a thought-provoking dystopian element to it, and it does include the kind of important and bold examination of good and evil that I have heard Mr. Percy is known for. But it can be blunt at times, and also I wonder if some of the sex-related discourse and the protagonist's navel gazing were necessary parts of the story.
What saved the day here was the talented Mr. Percy's crisp and compelling writing style. By the time I was finished with The Thanatos Syndrome, I had the impression that Mr. Percy could make a computer instruction manual seem gripping. His turns of phrase, characterizations, efficient dialogue, and ability to move the narrative forward with apparent effortlessness are rare qualities indeed.
What makes the writing work so well is its subtlety -- it all seems to mesh so naturally. And that is something that in some ways works against a story line that is at least on some level obvious and predictable.
But that doesn't dissuade me from wanting to seek out another of Mr. Percy's books. I think that his enjoyable writing style combined with a more balanced story could yield stunning results. I can hardly wait.
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Title: Love in the Ruins by Walker Percy ISBN: 0312243111 Publisher: Picador USA Pub. Date: 01 September, 1999 List Price(USD): $15.00 |
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Title: The Second Coming : A Novel by Walker Percy ISBN: 0312243243 Publisher: Picador USA Pub. Date: 13 September, 1999 List Price(USD): $15.00 |
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Title: Lost in the Cosmos : The Last Self-Help Book by Walker Percy ISBN: 0312253990 Publisher: Picador USA Pub. Date: 01 April, 2000 List Price(USD): $14.00 |
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Title: Lancelot : A Novel by Walker Percy ISBN: 0312243073 Publisher: Picador USA Pub. Date: 04 September, 1999 List Price(USD): $14.00 |
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Title: The Last Gentleman : A Novel by Walker Percy ISBN: 0312243081 Publisher: Picador USA Pub. Date: 04 September, 1999 List Price(USD): $15.00 |
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