I enjoyed this book. Took place in the prairie just outside of Chicago. A farming novel from the 1920’s. Reminded me of a Willa Cather novel with a strong female main character. The title was a bit wired. Didn’t have much to do with the general vibe of the book as it pertains to a childhood name for her son. ( )

Not a bad novel. Kind of epic. ( )

The title refers to a little boy named Dirk, and long known as "Sobig", after the ubiquitous game played with babies, but mostly this is the story of his mother, Selena Peake DeJong, whose life as a midwestern farmer's wife is not at all what she envisioned as a gay young thing. Selena had a rather bohemian upbringing with a gambling father who was always either flush or flat broke. Her outlook on life was persistently optimistic even when things were uncertain to the point of panic; her eye for beauty was keener than those that found it only in accepted presentations. While her unimaginative husband struggled to sustain a livelihood from their marginal farm, Selena envisioned improvements, innovations and expansions that would ease the future for their beloved son. Her positivity never wavered, even as "Sobig", failing to find a passion for any pursuit, settled into a successful but uninspiring career and an attachment to a married woman. I assume we are meant to see how a challenging life is more fulfilling than one in which all the seams are smoothed and gears well-oiled, but Dirk DeJong is so much less engaging than his mother that I nearly lost interest in the story when he became the center of it. Luckily, that did not happen until approximately the last third, and it's a relatively short novel. Definitely a worthwhile read, and deserving of its Pulitzer, but one that did not quite live up to its early promise, for me. ( )

I mean, she was a competent-enough author, but trying to get past the sexism, racism, speciesism, making fun of special needs, is near impossible. I was constantly infuriated. I liked the protagonist, Selina, for her genuine values that she tried to pass on to her son Dirk, but her story only lasted through the first half of the book, then it passed on to Dirk's story. The ending was rather satisfying, when he realized what a fuckup he was.
It was painful to read about Selina marrying a poor farmer, just because her hormones dictated it. My mother came from the farm, and I had to see how my grandma was broken by being a poor sharecropper's wife. ( )

they made the right decision giving this the pulitzer in 1925 ( )

My decision to attempt to read all the Pulitzer Prize winners for fiction has netted me one wonderful, delightful, amazing discovery--this novel, So Big, by Edna Ferber. I cannot imagine I would have ever come upon it otherwise for two very sketchy reasons: one being the name which just has no compelling power for me, and the other being that I have seen the movie adaptation of Giant several times and absolutely hated it. That being my only encounter with Miss Ferber, I drew the absolutely untenable conclusion that I would not like her work.

Well, I did not like her work, I loved it. I find Edna Ferber kept making me think of her contemporary, Edith Wharton. They are nothing alike, in fact, since they have very different styles, come from completely disparate backgrounds, and write about two very different parts of the country; however, they are very alike in that they are a strong voice for women, they understand the classes they write about, and they cut to the quick the hypocrisy that they see all around them in the society they live in. Both of them seem to be saying, happiness can be had, but not if you are looking in the wrong place to ever find it.

Selina Peake DeJong is a character I am not likely to ever forget. She is a free-spirit but a hard worker. She is a person who expects a lot from life, but expects to get back only what she puts in. She is a person who experiences the beauty in everything that is simple and genuine and unique. There is no cookie-cutter that could produce a Selina. She is as individual as a piece of artwork, and a piece of artwork is what she is, in the end.

Very early in the novel we are introduced to Selina’s father, a gambler who lives sometimes at one end and sometimes at the other end of prosperity, giving her some advice about life:

“I want you to see all kinds,” he would say to her. “I want you to realize that this whole thing is just a grand adventure. A fine show. The trick is to play in it and look at it at the same time.”
“What whole thing?”
“Living. All mixed up. The more kinds of people you see, and the more things you do, and the more things that happen to you, the richer you are. Even if they’re not pleasant things. That’s living.”

The crux of this book is about exactly that. About living. About what it is to get into the muck of life and squeeze the marrow out of the bone. And it is about the things that make a life both worthwhile and valuable...and I believe Edna Ferber would have told you, with complete sincerity, that money would not rank highly on that list.

The novel is built on contrasts. The contrast between the working man and the toff. The contrast between the wealthy and the poor. The contrast between the artist and the financier. The contrast between Selina, who lives close to the earth, and her son, Dirk, who strives not to.

I loved all these fine characters, celebrated and wept with them. I think the Pulitzer Prize committee got this one right. This is a book that is relevant today more than ever, for when has there ever been such a rush to measure life by the dollar value you can attach to it? I am ashamed for having thought of Edna Ferber as irrelevant and I am rushing out to get her other books and see if she weaves this magic more than once. Hey, I might even read [b:Giant|149150|Giant|Edna Ferber|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1348574463s/149150.jpg|143951] and find out that, aside from all that simpering and strutting that Liz Taylor and Rock Hudson and James Dean brought to the screen, there was a novel with a story and a lesson I can appreciate.
( )

What a beautiful book! I had not heard of this author before and am delighted to have found her. Her portrayal of women in particular, of farming, of hard life and poverty in contrast to what we often see of this time in the US is amazing. ( )

I had thought this book took place in the twenties when I grabbed it off my shelf--but really it's earlier, the late 1800s. Selina, the heroine, has a change in fortune when her father dies, and must leave the rich life for a job teaching in High Prairie (present day Roseland, outside Chicago and next to Pullman) teaching Dutch truck farmer's kids. The story follows her life for the next 30 years or so, as she optimistically perseveres in her new lot in life. Against a backdrop of booming Chicago, and with Selena navigating between her life with the farmers and the rich upper crust city dwellers, the book felt surprisingly current. ( )

A book that has stayed with me through several years. ( )

BOOKCLUB
APRIL 2020
EXCELLENT WRITING. ( )

I'm trying to read more classics by authors I haven't read. I was not disappointed. So Big was just a great book. A good plot with descriptions that depicted how hard farming was but also made it seem fulfilling. The descriptions of Chicago were right on. The book won the Pulitzer Prize in 1925 and it holds up today. ( )

One of the few female writers of her time, Edna Ferber brings a fresh perspective of farm life in America during the early 1900s. "So Big" defines the American dream at the time: owning a home, having a happy relationship with family and friends, feeling useful, and- above all- being successful with a solid feeling of self-pride and a sense of accomplishment in life’s journey.

With merely a dozen relevant characters, Edna follows the life story of Selina Peake-DeJong from childhood to her golden years. Selina is a romantic, an idealist, and an optimist. She has a passion for life that often leaves her disappointed because it’s not easy living on her remote country farm in the middle of Illinois with a husband who is not open to change, or to “book reading”, or suggestions on how to improve the output of their 40 acres of sub-prime swampy land.

Selina lives by her father’s insistence that life is one grand adventure. He tells her, “The more kinds of people you see and the more things you do, and the more things that happen to you, the richer you are. Even if there are unpleasant things. That’s living.” Thus, the optimism. She soon realizes that an abundant eagerness to experience life can also lead to impetuous decisions that have life-long consequences.

Her father also professes, “There are only 2 kinds of people who really matter in the world. One kind is wheat and the other is emeralds”. They are both his descriptive metaphors for people; one symbolizing earthly substance, modesty, self-sacrifice and stability. The other shines on peace, balance, and beauty. Selina is wheat- or maybe a combination of both. But her father says nothing to prepare her for dealing with a child who fits either category. Her son is spoiled, has superficial values, and of all the professions available to him at the time... becomes a bond salesman.

One element of the plot that dates the book is the fact that being a “bond salesman” in the early 1920s was considered a lowly profession- almost as bad as being a drug dealer by today’s standards. Of course a lot of the urban population was in a frenzy to accumulate a new kind of wealth that would lead to ostentatious materialism. And they certainly didn’t frown on that particular profession. Conservative hard working American’s, however, deemed bonds a phony kind of wealth, and rightly so... in the very near future the entire country would inevitably be faced with the horrific devastation of the stock market crash.

But there is more depth to "So Big" than just a simple plot. The character development is superior. "So Big" could make a wonderful book club selection for analyzing the psychology of child rearing- nature versus nurture- and the virtues of acquiring a good work ethic.

Winner of the Pulitzer Prize in 1925 So Big is a timeless classic. Special thanks to my good friend and avid reader Marie Rosato for the fine recommendation. ( )

An ok book, but i really didn’t understand why Mayor Emmanuel picked it as a One-Chicago-Book. This was the only thing i have ever read by Edna Ferber. ( )

Full life of a girl in 1930s America - wealthy when young, father dies and leaves her nothing, she becomes a teacher in a poor farming community, turns her husband's failing farm into an asparagus supplier for hotels in Chicago, raises a son who becomes a prosperous architect. Statement of values in a real life ( )

This was such fun. Chicago, farming, aesthetics, and a kick-ass heroine. A great rags to riches story as well as being critical of materialism. And I loved the way the story revved up and concluded in such an open ended way. First rate! ( )

Winner of the Pulitzer prize, this book was a surprise to me. Written in 1924, the themes are timeless and the wisdom and insight as appropriate now as they were then. It is beautifully written and I found myself highlighting many passages.

Highly recommended! ( )

Not what I was expecting (not sure what I was expecting). Quite good. Will probably read more Ferber. ( )

This is very readable especially considering it was published over 90 years ago. There is a Portrait of a Lady aspect to it that is timelessly eloquent and it also parallels The Great Gatsby in showing the bitterness of the post-WWI Lost Generation. When this was a Kindle Daily Deal a while back I had no idea it had won the Pulitzer (1925) or that the author had also written Show Boat and Cimarron ]. I'm glad I took a chance on it. ( )

Fantastic book taking you back to ghe 1890's and an unforgettable character named Selina. Pulitzer prize winner of 1924. Against all odds and much fortuitous intervention Selina triumphs over adversity in her simple quest to find beauty in all life's adventures. Strongly recommended. Themes transcend time. ( )

Very good story about a mother and her son. Easy read. ( )

280. So Big, by Edna Ferber (read 2 Sept 1946) (Pulitzer Fiction prize for 1925) On Sept. 2, 1946 I said: "Finished 'So Big'. Very dumb book." ( )

Orphaned at age 19 in the late 1800′s, Selina accepts a job as a school teacher in the community of New Holland. Even though New Holland is only a few hours drive by wagon to her former life in Chicago, Selina is not prepared for the shock of living in the tiny, conservative truck-farming community. The grinding work and poverty take a toll on even the hardiest of souls. Determined to continue finding beauty in life and learning, Selina throws herself into her teaching, and later into her family farm. When her son, Dirk, “SoBig” DeJong is born, Selina promises herself that he will not be bound to the farm, and that he will have every opportunity that she herself lost. This is a rich novel, with much to discuss and analyze. I was most struck by how Selina lost every privilege, and yet didn’t lose hope, either for herself or her child. Dirk’s response at being given every opportunity would also be worthy of discussing. ( )

The story follows Selina DeJong whose father was a gambler and killed by mistake.

Selina was only nineteen at the time and surprised her friends by not moving to Vermont to live with her aunts. Instead, she shows her independence and determination to succeed on her own. She gets a job as a teacher in the Dutch school in High Plains, ten miles outside of Chicago.

At her first social event, she prepares a basket and places it in a box, tied by a ribbon.

Most of the Dutch women make harty meals and the idea is the men bid on the item and get to eat it with the woman who prepared the food.

The auctioneer ridicules Selina's small item but the men start bidding and one farmer wins with an exorbitant price. Pervus DeJong tells her that he felt badly when the others began laughing. He also admits that he has no schooling. Selina offers to teach him.

During these lessons, Purvis receives book learning and Selina learns about the farm life. They develop feelings toward each other and these very different people marry the next May.

The author details the hardships of farming before the turn of the century when there were no tractors or automobiles to get farm goods to markets or no telephones in emergencies.

When Selina's son, Dirk, is born, she wants to make sure he will grow up in a world of books and literature and have more from his life.

The author also describes the progress and improvements as the new century comes in. Dirk grows older and maintains a loving relationship with Selina and fits into the soceity in Chicago.

This is a well written novel in the realistic literary style and deserving of the Pulitzer Prize it won in 1924. ( )

1924 Pulitzer winner. Amazing book about prairie life in west and allowing beauty/happiness into life. Ironic given 1929 crash. Wonderful book.

This book tells the story of Selina Peake DeJong who was orphaned at age 19 when her father (a professional gambler) died in Chicago in 1888. He had taught her that all of life's experiences, even the bad ones, are part of a grand adventure, so she bravely faced her future by first heading off to become a teacher in a rural Illinois school, and was enchanted by the beauty she saw in the place. She became disillusioned by the adventure when, years later, she was still there, married to a Dutch truck farmer and living on a poor and unproductive farm. Her husband had refused to take any suggestions for improvements from her, so after he died she began implementing some of her ideas. She managed to support herself and her son, Dirk. The farm flourished and she was even able to send Dirk to college in Chicago and then to Cornell to study architecture - pleased that he seemed to be developing an appreciation for things of beauty. Construction projects dried up after WWI and Dirk got a job at an investment firm selling bonds, where he thrived and began to become modestly wealthy. Selina, however, wanted him to return to architecture - a profession with a soul. In the way of all young adults, Dirk believed that his mother didn't understand what was important in the modern world and ignored her. Not until later, when he met and fell in love with an artist, did he begin to reconsider his opinion on the subject. But was he too late?

This book won the Pulitzer Prize when it was published in 1924. It deserves it. I read most of it in a singe day because I was unable to keep myself from picking it up just to read a few more lines. This would be a great book club book. ( )