In the hopeful 1950s, Frank and April Wheeler appear to be a model couple: bright, beautiful, talented, with two young children and a starter home in the suburbs. Perhaps they married too young and started a family too early. Maybe Frank’s job is dull. And April never saw herself as a housewife. Yet they have always lived on the assumption that greatness is only just around the corner. But now … But now that certainty is about to crumble.With heartbreaking compassion and remorseless clarity, Richard Yates shows how Frank and April mortgage their spiritual birthright, betraying not only each other, but their best selves.
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Revolutionary Road is the first great novel of marriage I ever read. Yates’s novel presents a bleak and devastating view. Frank works long hours to achieve the trappings of success; April yearns for a life of more passion and meaning. Over time their disappointments, as well as their infidelities, become poisonous. (After Yates died, the book was …
All characters in this book were very dysfunctional. Not a feel good story.
On the surface it sometimes appeared to be almost simplistic or mundane; although very well written. Beneath the surface however, there were many deep grooves. These flawed characters were very multi-layered. It was not a book to rush through to see how things ended. It was rather a book to savor and think about and of course, talk about. Great …
Released in 1961, and out of print for much of its history, Revolutionary Road is now considered a classic. The New York Times called it, “beautifully crafted…a deeply troubling book.”
Right on both counts. The story of April and Frank Wheeler, living on Revolutionary Road in suburban Connecticut in the late 1950’s, is disturbing. This is the …
Though set in the fifties, the dynamics that tore at this family are timeless.
Overall, this book is disturbing…but certainly makes one think about the pitfalls of modern society. Yates’ writing is engaging, and his descriptions draw the reader into the story, even as it spirals down to tragedy. I loved his writing, but the story was difficult to swallow, perhaps showing its relatability and realism.
Very depresssing & way too long.
This is my all time favorite book. It’s so realistic and a true reflection of the time. The story of this couple who tried so hard to fit into a box, then decided to give up the box, but the “American Dream” gets in the way. It’s haunting and tragic