1876 : A Novel (American Chronicle)

Rating:
Summary: Vidal does care!
Review: It is a great pleasure to read something by this disillusioned man that can surprise me: I have read most of the novels in his American Cycle and (with the exception of his "Lincoln") was growing tired of his cynicism. Well, I picked up this one - its theme is the corruption of the Gilded Age and its plot revolves around the stolen election of 1876 - and was delighted to learn that Gore Vidal genuinely cares about how the US democracy works/worked. Moreover, this is a wonderful accomplishment by a novelist at the height of his powers, one of the best of the series.

The protagonists in the story are Charlie Schuyler, from "Burr", and his incomparable daughter as they wend their way into the New York and Washington "City" of the Gilded Age. While blatant corruption is corroding the foundations of the Republic, Charlie is wined and dined by the politically indifferent rich as a celebrated political writer (on Europe) while he seeks to find a suitable mate for his recently widowed and now penniless daughter. As a courtiers at the court of Napoleon III, they fit in brilliantly as Charlie attempts to find any writing work he can; the subtleties of the behavior of the ruling classes come across as both comic and sinister, but also realistic. It is a brutal indictment of decadence at the Centennial of America that gets worse and worse as the machinations of stealing a presidential election are revealed. Though it is from an observers eyes, which is consistent with the style of most of Vidal's series, political events take much more of the center stage and as such, there is a great deal of history to learn (of which I for one was largely ignorent).

As a novel, this is also great fun. It is written in the form of a candid diary by Charlie, who is making notes for future books he is imagining as he observes unfolding events in real time. The characters he comes in contact with are fabulously well drawn. First, there is Samuel Tilden, one of the few truly decent men to appear in any of Vidal's work (and a loser, I note). Then there is the apparently corrupt President Grant and his cronies who are indisputably corrupt along with all of the top politicians in DC. And of course, there are the journalists (including a brilliant, hilarious, and yet sad cameo portrait of Mark Twain), some of whom are idealists and most of whom are simple opportunists. Finally, there is the birth of the fictional Sanford clan that re-appears in Vidal's later novels. An unexpected twist in the plot also reveals the weaknesses of Charlie as an observer, which adds a whole new dimension to the novel that shocks the reader into reassessing everything (s)he has read. It is a brilliant device.

Warmly recommended. THis is a true masterpiece of historical fiction.

Rating:
Summary: Vidal does care!
Review: It is a great pleasure to read something by this disillusioned man that can surprise me: I have read most of the novels in his American Cycle and (with the exception of his "Lincoln") was growing tired of his cynicism. Well, I picked up this one - its theme is the corruption of the Gilded Age and its plot revolves around the stolen election of 1876 - and was delighted to learn that Gore Vidal genuinely cares about how the US democracy works/worked. Moreover, this is a wonderful accomplishment by a novelist at the height of his powers, one of the best of the series.

The protagonists in the story are Charlie Schuyler, from "Burr", and his incomparable daughter as they wend their way into the New York and Washington "City" of the Gilded Age. While blatant corruption is corroding the foundations of the Republic, Charlie is wined and dined by the politically indifferent rich as a celebrated political writer (on Europe) while he seeks to find a suitable mate for his recently widowed and now penniless daughter. As a courtiers at the court of Napoleon III, they fit in brilliantly as Charlie attempts to find any writing work he can; the subtleties of the behavior of the ruling classes come across as both comic and sinister, but also realistic. It is a brutal indictment of decadence at the Centennial of America that gets worse and worse as the machinations of stealing a presidential election are revealed. Though it is from an observers eyes, which is consistent with the style of most of Vidal's series, political events take much more of the center stage and as such, there is a great deal of history to learn (of which I for one was largely ignorent).

As a novel, this is also great fun. It is written in the form of a candid diary by Charlie, who is making notes for future books he is imagining as he observes unfolding events in real time. The characters he comes in contact with are fabulously well drawn. First, there is Samuel Tilden, one of the few truly decent men to appear in any of Vidal's work (and a loser, I note). Then there is the apparently corrupt President Grant and his cronies who are indisputably corrupt along with all of the top politicians in DC. And of course, there are the journalists (including a brilliant, hilarious, and yet sad cameo portrait of Mark Twain), some of whom are idealists and most of whom are simple opportunists. Finally, there is the birth of the fictional Sanford clan that re-appears in Vidal's later novels. An unexpected twist in the plot also reveals the weaknesses of Charlie as an observer, which adds a whole new dimension to the novel that shocks the reader into reassessing everything (s)he has read. It is a brilliant device.

Warmly recommended. THis is a true masterpiece of historical fiction.