Penrod and Sam (Library of Indiana Classics) [Paperback]

Booth Tarkington (Author)

Book Description

Series: Library of Indiana Classics | Publication Date: May 15, 2003

In Penrod and Sam, the imaginative adventures of Tarkington's 10-year-old Penrod Schofield continue. Penrod's sidekick is Samuel Williams, and together they improvise, causing general mischief and disorder wherever they go. In picaresque fashion, a fencing battle takes them all through the neighborhood; they narrowly escape serious injury while making boastful demonstrations with a loaded gun; they indulge in dubious "'nishiation" practices for their secret society; they steal food for the starving horse concealed in the Schofields' empty stable; they attempt to fish a cat out of a cistern using a pair of trousers; and they cause general chaos at Miss Amy Rennsdale's dance. Familiar characters from the earlier Penrod volume—Maurice Levy, Georgie Basset, Roddy Bitts, Herman and Verman, and Marjorie Jones—make their appearance in Penrod and Sam. This is a delightfully nostalgic look at Tarkington's turn-of-the-century Indiana.

Product Details

• Paperback: 384 pages
• Publisher: Indiana University Press (May 15, 2003)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0253215943
• ISBN-13: 978-0253215949
• Product Dimensions: 8.3 x 5.5 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 15.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,367,948 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Good and Funny Book, September 14, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Penrod and Sam (Library Binding)

Another collection of tales about Penrod Schofield and his playmate Sam. Together, the two of them get into more trouble than Dennis the Menace and the Little Rascals combined.

The tales contained weren't as interesting as the original Penrod however I was laughing out loud a time or two. Tarkington has the mannerisms down pat for a twelve year-old boy living around the WW1 area.

This book is listed as a juvenile book, however, I wouldn't recommend it for children unless they weren't afraid of dictionaries and some politically incorrect references to African-Americans. There is also a chilling tale about Penrod and Sam finding an old gun in Sam's father's drawer and what occurred with it. Too real in today's world, however the result of the tale was sobering.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A warm and funny picture of a boy's life in pre-WWI America., November 9, 1997

By A Customer

This review is from: Penrod and Sam (Library Binding)

A warm and very funny picture of small town boy's life in pre-World War One America. It's told in a series of episodes that center around the two twelve year old or so boys of the title. It's not really a boy's book, despite its reputation. Tarkington's very interested in the psychology of Penrod's family as well as in the ways that kids relate to each other -- but it's all played for laughs. Also a clear picture of the mores of small-town America at a time when homes still had carriage houses in the back -- but no carriages or horses.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Charming classical piece of literature from the early 1900s, June 26, 1998

By A Customer

This review is from: Penrod and Sam (Library Binding)

A wonderful classic and a prime example of literature in the early 19th century. Booth Tarkington explores the bumptious rambles of a youth from 1913 named Penrod. Penrod does not bump through life alone however, and he is accompanied by his loyal yet aging dog duke, his best friend Sam Williams, and two African Americans across the alley, Herman and Verman. I found this book to be a charming and hillarious classic and is a must for any serious bookworm.