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Oil! (Paperback)

by Upton Sinclair (Author) "The road ran, smooth and flawless, precisely fourteen feet wide, the edges trimmed as if by shears, a ribbon of grey concrete, rolled out over..." (more)
Key Phrases: third revelation, junior tract, oil prince, Angel City, Aunt Emma, Vernon Roscoe (more...)

4.1 out of 5 stars See all reviews (43 customer reviews)

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Editorial Reviews

From Library Journal
Sinclair's 1927 novel did for California's oil industry what The Jungle did for Chicago's meat-packing factories. The plot follows the clash between an oil developer and his son. Typical of Sinclair, there are undertones here of socialism and sympathy for the common working stiff. Though the book is not out of print, this is the only paperback currently available.
Copyright 1997 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Review
"He does his little bit of muck-raking. . . but the glorious story of the oil man and his son rushes on. It is a marvelous panorama of Southern California life. It is storytelling with an edge on it." -- The New Republic

"Oil! remains the most ambitious Southern California novel of the 1920s. . . . Chosen by the Literary Guild, Oil! made the best-seller list. Its sales were helped along when Sinclair, hoping to get arrested, personally hawked copies of the book on the streets of Boston, after it was banned there for its outspoken advocacy of birth control." -- Kevin Starr, Endangered Dreams --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

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Product Details

Paperback: 560 pages
Publisher: Penguin (Non-Classics) (December 18, 2007)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0143112260
ISBN-13: 978-0143112266
Product Dimensions: 7.9 x 5 x 1 inches
Shipping Weight: 13.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)

Average Customer Review: 4.1 out of 5 stars See all reviews (43 customer reviews)

Amazon.com Sales Rank: #52,338 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)
Popular in this category: (What's this?)
#8 in Books > Literature & Fiction > Authors, A-Z > ( S ) > Sinclair, Upton

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Front Cover | Table of Contents | First Pages | Back Cover | Surprise Me!

Inside This Book (learn more)

First Sentence:
The road ran, smooth and flawless, precisely fourteen feet wide, the edges trimmed as if by shears, a ribbon of grey concrete, rolled out over the valley by a giant hand. Read the first page

Key Phrases - Statistically Improbable Phrases (SIPs): (learn more)
third revelation, junior tract, oil prince, magic ribbon, medium lots, boss carpenter, oil game, labor college

Key Phrases - Capitalized Phrases (CAPs): (learn more)
Angel City, Aunt Emma, Vernon Roscoe, Arnold Ross, Beach City, Vee Tracy, San Elido, Ross Consolidated, Holy Spirit, New York, Paul Watkins, Lobos River, United States, Southern Pacific, Excelsior Pete, Prospect Hill, Dan Irving, Ben Skutt, Harry Seager, Southern California, Rachel Menzies, Eli Watkins, True Word, Wall Street, Tom Axton

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Front Cover | Table of Contents | First Pages | Back Cover | Surprise Me!

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	85% buy the item featured on this page: Oil! 4.1 out of 5 stars (43) $10.20
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	3% buy There Will Be Blood 3.5 out of 5 stars (415) $15.49
	3% buy The Jungle : The Uncensored Original Edition 3.8 out of 5 stars (58) $7.95

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Customer Reviews

43 Reviews

5 star:		(20)
4 star:		(16)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(5)
1 star:		(1)

Average Customer Review

4.1 out of 5 stars (43 customer reviews)

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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

111 of 125 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Generally entertaining, October 16, 2002

By	Edward Bosnar (Zagreb, Croatia) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Oil! (California Fiction) (Paperback)

Unlike Sinclair's best-known novel, "The Jungle," with its bleak story and gloomy characters, "Oil!" is a fast-paced, lively and colorful story. Although Sinclair uses it to preach his political views, it is nevertheless a good piece of literature and an interesting historical testimony to the era in which it was written. Another striking thing is how Sinclair's descriptions of corporate manipulations tend to mirror very recent events. Interesting also is that Sinclair uses one of the oldest cliches in American literature, the coming-of-age story, as the vehicle for this epic; at the same time, there are indications that Sinclair seems to mock this manner of story-telling - from the main character's rather silly nick-name, "Bunny" to his perennial inability to make up his mind about where he wants to go with his life, i.e. he never really 'comes of age.' Other reviewers have noted Sinclair's apparently naive promotion of socialism/communism/the Bolsheviks, which is a valid criticism, although to me it seemed more a case of the author throwing out ideas to provoke readers into thinking rather than an attempt to persuade them. In this sense, his use of the family of a wealthy California oil baron as the main protagonists is quite telling: although Sinclair does take the opportunity to highlight the hypocrisy and greed of the moneyed classes, he also makes a genuine attempt to portray them as real people rather than just grotesque caricatures. I also noticed that many of his characterizations of the working class/poor are often less than flattering. Regardless, this is a really entertaining novel, probably Sinclair's best.

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51 of 56 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A rotten business, August 17, 2005

By	Bomojaz (South Central PA, USA) - See all my reviews (TOP 500 REVIEWER)

This review is from: Oil! (California Fiction) (Paperback)

When Warren G. Harding died suddenly in California in 1923, he was one of the most beloved President's ever. It wasn't long, however, before that opinion changed, so that today he is considered among the worst. The revelation after his death of the Teapot Dome scandal that occurred during his administration was paramount in destroying his reputation. And it involved oil (the naval oil reserves in Wyoming were being sold off by corrupt politicians close to Harding). Sinclair based this novel on Teapot Dome. It basically shows how a decent man and his son Bunny Ross are up against insurmountable odds in the oil business, what with corruption all around. Sinclair's solution was dramatic: for him socialism was the answer; capitalism was too corrupt. A big, brawling novel, not particularly memorable for its style; but its muscular approach and willingness to tackle important issues make it worth reading.

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51 of 58 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Oil!....a timely tale, August 23, 2003

By	Jean Huyser "Jean Huyser" (Fallbrook, CA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Oil! (California Fiction) (Paperback)

Anyone who wants a vivid, first-hand account of Southern California life in the 1920's will love this novel. It captures the go-go energy of the times, peppered with jazz-era slang, which perhaps was so fresh at the time this novel was written that Sinclair chose to put these terms in quotations. (Modern readers will be surprised that most of this slang is in common use today). Of course, one can't ignore the larger political, social and cultural themes that explode upon these pages. The oil boom that grips everyone in Southern California is just the tip of the iceberg. The weirder aspect is how little has changed in the past 75 years, We are still grappling with the same issues of political corruption, wage inequality, excesses of capitalism, cult of celebrity, and lest we forget, the youth and car culture. Even more disturbing are the passing references to American oil interests in the middle east. There's some laugh out loud passages; one of the most memorable concerns an Oklahoma oil man who lays on the down-home drawl to intimadate European diplomats. Hmmmm, now that sounds familiar....

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Most Recent Customer Reviews

5.0 out of 5 stars Powerful prose and great literature (the moviemakers knew more than the academics)
After seeing what is certainly the most thought-provoking film of the present millennium, "There Will Be Blood," and receiving a recommendation from a friend, I decided to give... Read more

Published 11 days ago by Samuel Chell

2.0 out of 5 stars The Problem with Socialism...
I'll admit, I only read this book after having seen the movie. I've seen the movie numerous times and absolutely love it. Read more

Published 3 months ago by Alex Camacho

4.0 out of 5 stars The book that inspired "There Will Be Blood"
Upton Sinclair was perhaps the first muckraker, and certainly one of the most reknowned authors of the early 20th century. Read more

Published 3 months ago by Robert

5.0 out of 5 stars intellectual treat
The handling of social issues was much more diverse than the movie "There Will Be Blood." The oil man is not nearly as bad in the book, but the industry is a pathetic mess.

Published 7 months ago by Bruce P. Barten

2.0 out of 5 stars Great Story, but a long listen
I purchased the audiobook version of 'Oil', because I remembered enjoying reading 'The Jungle' in High School. Read more

Published 7 months ago by K. Maly

4.0 out of 5 stars From Oil in the 1920s to Washington and Wall Street Today
Though set in the California oil fields of the 1920s, the great Upton Sinclair's classic "Oil!" is as relevant and meaningful(aka "alarming" and "frightening")today as it was when... Read more

Published 8 months ago by Big D

5.0 out of 5 stars Dad Liked It
I bought this for my Dad and he said he really liked it and highly reccomended it to me to borrow from him.

Published 10 months ago by Crystal Crockett

4.0 out of 5 stars Very different from the loosely adapted film
I am sure that many people have compared _Oil_ with "There Will Be Blood," the film loosely based on the novel. Each is excellent in its own way. Read more

Published 11 months ago by IRA Ross

4.0 out of 5 stars I enjoyed this book. But....
I really did enjoy this book. But, I really enjoy more true to life historical books, and I think this book if done as historic rather then fiction based on history would have... Read more

Published 11 months ago by GroundStar

5.0 out of 5 stars Highly Entertaining!
I bought "Oil" because I really enjoyed "The Jungle." I didn't expect the book to be like the movie (which I personally thought was boring and pointless, but that's beside the... Read more

Published 12 months ago by DJ

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