Tom Wedderburn's Life is the story of a simple man born into an isolated community where he is filled with the values and mores of the nineteenth century. It is Tom's misfortune that the century he must live in is the chaotic twentieth. He lives to see the end of his isolated world. He falls in love with a modern woman he does not understand. As a young man, he endures the hell of World War II.. Left disillusioned and alone in his old age, Tom holds on to his peculiar sense of dignity and even finds a measure of happiness.
Book Description
Product Details
Would you like to update product info or give feedback on images?
|
Customer Reviews
|
Share your thoughts with other customers:
|
||||||||||||||||||||||
|
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
A Good Book,
By A Customer
This review is from: Tom Wedderburn's Life (Paperback)
Tom Wedderburn has every opportunity to have a full life. Although he is born into a poor family and grows up in the early 20th-century Wyoming wilderness, his early ambitions take him to other parts of the world. He fights in World War II as a Marine Raider on Guadalcanal, leads men during the invasion of Iwo Jima, captures the heart of a beautiful nurse, and becomes a wealthy man in his later years. Yet Tom Wedderburn dies an unmarried, childless, and nearly penniless man.Why? Because Tom Wedderburn is a pessimistic man. He contends that early in his life, he "over emphasized the power of thinking positive thoughts." He believed that "to admit a single moment of doubt and to see an alternative future in which the worst occurred was to bring the full catastrophe." During the war, he refuses to show any measure of friendship toward the men who serve with him after witnessing the deaths of several members of his first troop. He does not want to suffer any grief just in case any of them are killed in action. While in the hospital recovering from injuries he suffers in the war, he becomes attracted to a young nurse who eventually lets him know she has feelings for him. But just when the relationship turns serious, he runs away for no other reason than fear. The nurse offers him everything he wants in life, yet his doubts make him believe the worst will somehow come of it. Tom's other lifetime problem is a girl named Julia. He falls in love with her when they are just children. But just like Forrest Gump's Jenny, Julia doesn't even consider spending her adult life with a small-town boy. Still, Julia also returns to Tom as a down-and-out adult, but where Jenny gave Forrest a son, Julia only gives Tom more reasons to remain a doubtful man. Author Theodore Judson creates a character who is unfortunately believable. Unfortunate because, like so many of us, Tom lives a life of missed opportunities and bad decisions. Tom's story is told in his own voice, a wise decision on Judson's part since simply relaying the highlights of such an unproductive life without offering up personal reflections would border on the humdrum. Much like Tom's life, the book Tom Wedderburn's Life is a so-so story that leaves the reader shaking his head, quite sure that given the opportunity he would do things differently. But perhaps that's the whole point author Judson is trying to make. We make the decisions in our lives based on our own beliefs and situations. We also judge others accordingly. So who are we to say that Tom Wedderburn did not live a full life? If a full life means having a family and money in the end, than Tom's life doesn't measure up to one. But, if like Tom, we live a life honest to our nature, then we can go to our graves with some measure of satisfaction. by April Galt for Curl up with a Good Book, 2002
4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
A man's experience and also of the pursuit of happiness,
By Midwest Book Review (Oregon, WI USA) - See all my reviews
This review is from: Tom Wedderburn's Life (Paperback)
Adroitly written by Theodore Judson, Tom Wedderburn's Life is the story of a rural man who grew up with traditional nineteenth-century values, only to find himself thrust into a continually conflicting twentieth century world. From lost love with a woman he cannot understand, to enduring the hell and horror that was the World War II battlefield, to facing the ravages of old age alone with little more than his dignity, Tom Wedderburn's Life is the memorable and highly recommended saga of a man's experience and also of the pursuit of happiness, a chase that is not necessarily futile.
5 of 6 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
one of my favorite books of the year,
This review is from: Tom Wedderburn's Life (Paperback)
For a little known writer from a little known publisher to write such a delightful and polished book seems little short of a miracle. I LOVED this book from the first page to the end. The narrator, the eponymous Tom Wedderburn, stands with other great narrators like Jake Barnes. The first part of the book was my favorite recounting the narrator's childhood in Wyoming. Parts were so lyrical they could have been written by Twain or Faulkner. The summer spent in Julie's shadow was for me the best part of the book. Then comes the coming of age as the narrator heads off to the marines and eventually to Iwa Jima. This was a great war account, reminscent of The Things they Carried. Except for a few small typos, the book is incredibly rich and powerful. I admit I was sad when I turned the last page. Let's hope this writer is "discovered" so he can gain more exposure for his excellent writing.
Share your thoughts with other customers: Create your own review
|
|
What Other Items Do Customers Buy After Viewing This Item?
Tags Customers Associate with This Product(What's this?)Click on a tag to find related items, discussions, and people.
|
Sell a Digital Version of This Book in the Kindle Store
If you are a publisher or author and hold the digital rights to a book, you can sell a digital version of it in our Kindle Store.
Learn more
