Customer Reviews

Overload

5 star:		(1)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

I'd like to give it 5 stars but it wasn't quite there. So few books are-- even the ones I see given 5 stars.

In this case my reason was the first half of the book. It had trouble picking up steam. The first couple pages were slow. And then it took off! From there, the story varied--up and down in excitement, in energy level, until, in the second half Hailey maintained his emotional intensity through to the end.

The book was predictive of things that had not yet happened and seemed unlikely but since publication have happened--like rolling blackouts. And things that probably will, like issuance of a gold-backed "New Dollar."

The hotel scene was very exciting. I found the parapalegic thing interesting and different. The main character far outdoes James Bond in the women department--without really trying.

The book's greatest drawback is this: Hailey does not always "deliver" as well as I would like. By "delivery" I mean the technical writing aspect of having something really blow up--showing it from three camera angles; having the villain get his or her just rewards in a way that is emotionally satisfying--after asking the reader to work through a long build up. It's the payoff for all the suspense. And though Overload delivers here in places, they aren't sustained as long as I would like. I want more emotional satisfaction. I want the AHHHHHHH!

Morally overall, Overload is very good, though it contains an unfortunate smidge of altruism and mysticism. I'm guessing Hailey is Jewish. Leaving those aspects out would have improved the book.

In total Overload was excellent. It should still be in print. There are so few of its kind: books about business with strong technical aspects--though here too he could have used a bit more extension and detail--though not all the way to say, Clancy.

I liked it. I would read another Hailey.

This book is now 20 years old. For anyone living in California, it seems ironic that this book can touch on so many of the problems facing California now. It almost seems as if it were written yesterday. I find it strange that the author could have gotten this much information at a time when none of us gave a thought to where our power was coming from. Does this mean that the power shortages, gas shortages, etc. were know then but never brought to the attention fo the public? This a work of fiction and is still a good read.

I think "Overload" by Arthur Hailey shows the main difficulties in providing a big state reliable with electricity.
The story which not only reports the technical aspects of this awkward topic plays in California.
The responsible persons who have to organize the running off in the power station are not only stressed of their demanding job.Familiar problems make their work more difficult than ever before.
The storys about citizens who are suffering from their fate, not getting the needed energy to survive, complete the dramatical tellings of Arthur Hailey.
The only point I want to criticize is the often conspicuous constructed action in the story which remembers in some ways on cheap novels you get in supermarkets.

Amongst the thousands books that I have read, Overload would rank as one amongst the top. The character of Nim Goldman if potrayed as a man of character and intergrity but with very human weaknesses.

If you can put yourself in Nim Goldman's shoes, you will come across complex situations and drama that will be a test your very being and assumptions.

There is a deep plot, and many sub plots that will keep one spellbound. One amongst the most memorable scenes in the book is the encounter of Nim Goldman making love to a quadraplegic.

This makes one think, of the moral and ethical dilemma that Nim has to face. The question you should ask your self is what would you do in such a situation.? (Why should making love to a quadraplegic be wrong.? Or should it be considered odd.?)

This and other situations in the book make you to confront your own sense of morality.

It is a dramatic and a touching book, only fault is the building of the plot is a bit slow, but worth it.

When Arthur Hailey passed away I had read most of his novels due to my love of the film Airport. I fully expected on his passing to have his many bestsellers reissued. The publishers blew it. The man combines a remarkable ability to show expertise in each field (this one being electricity supply) that remains relevant in 2007 with a humanistic, socially progressive eye on the people who work and interact with the world of the novel. Look at his use of a quadrapeligic who tragically depends on the power grid in this book or look at the black people in New Orlean's "HOTEL" who still, in the wake of Katrina struggle for equality. Arthur Hailey is not dated but visionary!

I recently read this novel and was moved from the heart. I actually began to feel that I was a part of the plot. Hailey's knowledge of the subject even though is incredible, he never bores the readers with technical jagron.

Hailey succesfully mixes personal life with professional life in this novel. Perhaps the discription of the final fate of Karen is the most moving. Ruth emerges as the strongest person in the novel and Nim even though seems a good human at times he looks villanous( perhaps that depends on individual perception ).

Perhaps the only drawback is some cheap scenes which look like to have been added to draw in more men.

At the end of the novel I felt as if ending should have been different, that Ruth should have been mentioned.

Anyway all in all a wonderful read.

The title is meant to relate to something electrical, since that's supposed to be what this book is about, electricity. But let's be honest: overload pertains more to the very active sex life of the main character, Nimrod Goldman.

Nimrod must have some secret superpower he uses to befuddle womens' minds and make them want to sleep with him, because otherwise he has really nothing else going for him. He's not written as someone funny, or charming, or suave and dangerous. He's just your average Joe who works for the power company. Yet mysteriously, just about every woman he meets seems to fall at his feet.

But then, let's look at how the other, lesser, male characters are treated within this book. They either have ED, are "shooting blanks" and are unable to father children, or have Little Elvis burned off in a horrible accident. There's even a scene where cattle are being castrated! This leaves Nimrod Stud By Default because he's the only one with working equipment. I would love to know what Freud would think of this thread.

I've read Hailey before and he's never been this flat out bad before. I have to wonder what was going on with him when he wrote this novel. Was he living vicariously through his protagonist because in real life Arthur Hailey was one of the lesser male characters in his story? Did his editor pressure him to throw in more sex in order to stay afloat in the ever-competative book market? Or did he just realize that no matter which way you come at it, you just can't make an exciting novel about providing and stealing electricity so he wrote all these bland, uninspiring sex scenes to pad out the book.

Perhaps if Hailey had had Nimrod admit he had a sex addiction, showed him struggling with his problem, seeking out help and finding the strength to overcome his addiction and working to rebuild his relationship with his family, as well as all that boring power supply stuff, perhaps then the book would have been more interesting. Instead, it's just bad. However, it's a silly kind of bad, so if you enjoy that sort of thing I guess I could recommend Overload to you.

Otherwise, I don't.

The main protagonist, a middle-aged Electric Utility Executive, beds everyone from a feminist reporter, a recent widower, to a disabled woman. All the while his wife is suffering from cancer. Talk about misogynistic melodrama. The few snippets here and there of the fascinating world of electric power generation/consumption, politics and the environment is all lost in a hazy summer smog. The antagonists, a motley crew of demented terrorist, only lend further to the cheesy, soap-opera quality of the book's narrative.

Overall, a disappointing read.

Although this is a topic with incredible potential, Mr Hailey lets it drag on like the worst soap opera in recent history. Nim Goldman, the affable main character, stumbles from stupid situation to stupid situation, and even ends up having sex with a quadroplegic - I'm serious. The author lets an amazing amount of possible scenarios slip and ends up producing the most boring, most predictable book i've read this year. How exciting can the apprehension of electrical thieves be? I mean, really...