Customer Reviews

The architecture of the Arkansas Ozarks: A novel

5 star:		(18)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

The Architecture of the Arkansas Ozarks is a sprawling epic. It spans at least five generations and it all takes place in the Arkansas Ozarks in a town called Stay More (the residents of which are called "Stay Morons.") It begins when Jacob Ingledew and his brother Noah arrive and are greeted by the only remaining Native American: Fanshaw (who lives with his wife in a bigeminal hut that resemble large and pointy breasts). This is where the story begins and it doesn't stop...never losing momentum...the plot always moving forward...and as the plot moves forward so does the setting, and this book is as much a history lesson as it is a character study. We experience, through these marvelous characters, The Civil War, World War I, the Depression, World War II and all the PROG RESS that comes in between.

It is also important here to point out the book's greatest virtue: it's humor. This book is absolutely hysterical. I found myself laughing out loud all throughout. There isn't a page where you won't smile either externally or internally. The humor is the best sort of humor you can find in a novel---the type of humor where it won't be funny unless it's in the context of the book. Harington creates a world and the humor he finds in it are all "inside" jokes that you, the intrigued reader, get to be a part of. And the narrator himself is a fascinating presence--omniscient, but a real part of the story. The last few chapters will absolutely blow your mind.

As an Arkansas native and as one who has spent decades living and working in the Ozarks I felt qualified to add a few comments. The area he describes as "Stay More" is an area I have covered on foot doing research and recreation. Some of my best friends are from that region, Murray, Swain, Edwards Junction, and Deer, so it really "hits home".
When Harrington writes about ,"Stay More" he is inspired but when he strays from this less than idylic community the inspiration thins. Regardless, I would reccommend this book to anyone and am proud that an Arkansas author has picked up the torch that was once carried by Vance Randolph. Oustanding!

I was drawn to this book because I am an architectural historian and avid reader of historical novels. I was unprepared for the book's incredible creativity and humor. The author's genuine love and compassion for the simplest of his characters is heartwarming. And best of all, this is a shaggy-dog story to end all shaggy-dog stories. PS I learned a lot about architecture along the way!

I first read this book ten years ago as a freshman at the University of Arkansas in Fayetteville. Many of my friends were taking Mr. Harington's art appreciation class at the time, and had mentioned that they thought he was an author. When I ran across a used copy of "Architecture..." in the campus bookstore, I thought I would look through it. After two pages, I bought it and read it immediately. Other than some of the atrocious language and trashy sexaul descriptions, the book was one of the best I've ever read. Without those things, the book would have been just as good, if not better. I went on to read all of Harington's books, many of which are even worse in those areas, but are good works of fiction, nonetheless. I have read "Architecture..." several times, and I laugh even harder each time.

If you are a fan of Isabel Allende or even Gabriel Garcia Marquez and have been looking for a talented American Southern writer to enjoy, then look no futher. This book was recommended to me by the author as good place to dive into the wonderful "world" of Stay More. It provides a history of Stay More, Arkansas centered on the Ingledew family. This book is written with a friendly love of the characters and conveys the author's joy in sharing this love with the reader. Please read this and help spread the word about the talent of Donald Harrington.

When I first read this book in the early seventies, I was in my late teens. I have since re-read it a number of times, and each time it reveals more of the nuance of character inherent to the individual hill-williams Mr. Harrington profiles in this classic novel. Having lived in Arkansas since the age of 11 I felt as if I'd grown up with many of the characters he portrays. If you enjoy ludicrous situations and quirky characters read this book NOW! It should be listed on the Norman Cousins health plan...

There is no family like the Ingledews and no place like Stay More. I thoroughly enjoyed this book, especially the time that Noah spends living in a tree and how he gets recruited into the Civil War. I wrote to Don Harington and he readily admiteed he got his idea from 100 years of Solitude- but his book is definitely funnier. No one write about Arkansas better than Harington- he knows his subject initmately and loves it.

I picked this book up randomly at the library, because the title was a bit odd for a novel- and boy am I ever glad of my penchant for quirky titles right about now! It led me to what is sure to be one of my favourite authors... that is, if this book is any gauge of Donald Harington's talents.

With colourful characters, humour from bawdy to book-learned, and an understanding of humanity and history I've rarely seen in a modern author, Harington's 'The Architecture of the Arkansas Ozarks' definitely is a masterpiece. In this book he traces the saga of the Stay Morons, focusing on the Ingledew family in particular. He uses architecture as a conceit to show how 'the great world spins forever round the ringing grooves of change' (paraphrasing Tennyson).

Just remember "the base is heavier, the upper part lighter, and... the roof is pitched."

This book has remained in my personal top ten list for 30 years.

It's impossible to describe because it truly is an original. The characters are real and wonderful and the plot moves at a swift and unpredictable pace.
It's a must read.

I've only written two fan letters in life and one was to Donald Harington in appreciation for this book. ( He wrote back a very kind letter that I cherish.)

He managed to accurately trace Arkansas from its early development on up to the present. I may be biased since my tribe has been here in the Ozarks since 1819 or so, but he did a fine job with our own special speech patterns and ways. My father, a retired English Professor, enjoyed the "far" out of it too. I am now in the Delta, but I still think like a "hill william," and enjoy reading about us. Thanks Donald for being "fairly" charitable to us hill folks. I would of given you a 10, but hill people don't want to "brag on folks" too much; don't want you to "put on no airs."