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    Going All the Way: A Novel
    Going All the Way: A Novel
    Going All the Way: A Novel
    Ebook354 pages6 hours

    Going All the Way: A Novel

    By Dan Wakefield and Kurt Vonnegut

    3.5/5

    ()

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    About this ebook

    Two friends return home from the Korean War to find their world—and themselves—irrevocably altered in this novel hailed by Kurt Vonnegut as “gruesomely accurate and enchanting” and “wildly sexy”

    Willard “Sonny” Burns and Tom “Gunner” Casselman, Korean War vets and former classmates, reunite on the train ride home to Indianapolis. Despite their shared history, the two young men could not be more different: Sonny had been an introverted, bookish student, whereas Gunner had been the consummate Casanova and athlete—and a popular source of macho pride throughout the high school. Reunited by the pains of war, they go in search of finding love, rebuilding their lives, and shedding the repressive expectations of their families.
     
    As Sonny and Gunner seek their true passions, the stage is set for a wounded, gripping account of disillusionment and self-discovery as seen through the lens of the conservative Midwest in the summer of 1954. Rendered in honest prose, national bestseller Going All the Way expertly and astutely captures the joys and struggles of working-class Middle America, and the risks of challenging the status quo. Author Dan Wakefield crafts this enduring coming-of-age tale with fluidity, grace, and deep humanity.
     
     
    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherOpen Road Media
    Release dateFeb 9, 2016
    ISBN9781504026208
    Going All the Way: A Novel
    Author

    Dan Wakefield

    Dan Wakefield (b. 1932) is the author of the bestselling novels Going All the Way and Starting Over, which were both adapted into feature films. His memoirs include New York in the Fifties, which was made into a documentary film of the same name, and Returning: A Spiritual Journey, praised by Bill Moyers as “one of the most important memoirs of the spirit I have ever read.” Wakefield created the NBC prime time series James at 15, and wrote the screenplay for Going All the Way, starring Ben Affleck. He edited and wrote the introduction for Kurt Vonnegut Letters as well as If This Isn’t Nice, What Is?: Vonnegut’s Advice to the Young. Visit Wakefield online at www.danwakefield.com and www.vonnegutsoldestlivingfriend.com.  

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    Reviews for Going All the Way

    3.5/5

    23 ratings4 reviews

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    • 3/5
      I really want to quip about this book being a 300-page discussion of sexual dysfunction. The main character, Sonny Burns, is a soldier returned from the Korean War (although he never left the US during his service) to his hometown of Indianapolis, Indiana. As a resident of Indiana, I really enjoyed the local references throughout this book and the historical period it evoked. I could sympathize with Sonny to a degree, but one of his problems in his failed relationships is a focus on women as bedroom partners and not people, which I suspect contributed to his dysfunctions throughout the book.
    • 5/5
      Two former soldiers who served during the Korean War meet each other on the train going back home to Indiana. Willard 'Sonny' Burns - the photographer for the school newspaper when he was in high school - was a quiet, shy and rather introverted student, whose high school years were wholly unremarkable. Sonny has grown into a quiet, shy and rather introverted adult - preoccupied with thoughts of sex and women. Tom 'Gunner' Casselman - the typical 'Big Man on Campus' when he was in high school - was incredibly popular, with the type of reputation that inspired awe in his peers. For good or ill, Sonny and Gunner search for love and fulfillment throughout their travels in middle America. They form an unlikely friendship after that first meeting on the train. In fact, it comes as a huge surprise to Sonny.to discover that Gunner truly respected him in high school. Sonny's unpretentious and inconspicuous demeanor was the quality that Gunner most admired. What follows is a coming-of-age novel about growing up in a time before free love, Vietnam and AIDS. I must say that I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book; quite a bit more than I was actually expecting I would. It was a very funny story, although in my opinion, Sonny and Gunner's friendship was probably not the most advantageous relationship for either of them. This book was a best-seller in 1970, and is considered to be Dan Wakefield's most famous novel. I give this book an A+! Going All the Way was made into a movie in 1997 and won an award at the Sundance Film Festival. It starred Jeremy Davies as Sonny and Ben Affleck as Gunner.
    • 5/5
      The quintessential coming of age novel, Dan Wakefield shows that he knows youth, at least youth of a different era. The two main characters, Sonny and Gunner are caricatures of the ‘50s teens searching for themselves. Both have finished college and stints in the military and come home only to decide a person really can’t do that. They vow to strike out for the Big Apple to realize all of their dreams. Sonny’s epiphany at the very end of the novel shows his growth as a character and leaves the reader with a feeling of relief for what will become of him even though we never see the results of that epiphany. Dan Wakefield places his story in 1950s Indianapolis, his home town. The novel shows Wakefield never forgot where he came from, and aside from Kurt Vonnegut, Indianapolis never claimed a more talented writer.
    • 5/5
      The quintessential coming of age novel, Dan Wakefield shows that he knows youth, at least youth of a different era. The two main characters, Sonny and Gunner are caricatures of the ‘50s teens searching for themselves. Both have finished college and stints in the military and come home only to decide a person really can’t do that. They vow to strike out for the Big Apple to realize all of their dreams. Sonny’s epiphany at the very end of the novel shows his growth as a character and leaves the reader with a feeling of relief for what will become of him even though we never see the results of that epiphany. Dan Wakefield places his story in 1950s Indianapolis, his home town. The novel shows Wakefield never forgot where he came from, and aside from Kurt Vonnegut, Indianapolis never claimed a more talented writer.

    Book preview

    Going All the Way - Dan Wakefield

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