The Man in the Gray Flannel Suit

by Sloan Wilson, Jonathan Franzen (Introduction)

Overview

Universally acclaimed when first published in 1955, The Man in the Gray Flannel Suit captured the mood of a generation. Its title — like Catch-22 and Fahrenheit 451 — has become a part of America's cultural vocabulary. Tom Rath doesn't want anything extraordinary out of life: just a decent home, enough money to support his family, and a career that won't crush his spirit. After returning from World War II, he takes a PR job at a television network. It is inane, dehumanizing work. But when a series of personal crises force him to reexamine his priorities — and take responsibility for his past — he is finally moved to carve out an identity for himself. This is Sloan Wilson's searing indictment of a society that had just begun to lose touch with its citizens. The Man in the Gray Flannel Suit is a classic of American literature and the basis of the award-winning film starring Gregory Peck. "A consequential novel." — Saturday Review

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781568582467
Publisher:	Hachette Books
Publication date:	10/23/2002
Edition description:	4th ed.
Pages:	288
Sales rank:	292,898
Product dimensions:	5.50(w) x 8.25(h) x (d)

About the Author

Sloan Wilson was born in Norwalk, Connecticut, in 1920. He is the author of more than a dozen books, including A Summer Place. He lives in Virginia.

What People are Saying About This

From the Publisher

"Lawlor's narration is well-paced, steady, and captures both the blunted emotion and plodding pace of bourgeois life in 1950s Southport, Connecticut." —-Publishers Weekly Audio Review

Editorial Reviews

Though it's cited in nearly every book and article about the culture of the 1950s, few readers under 65 know Sloan Wilson's The Man in the Gray Flannel Suit firsthand. The 1955 bestseller is being reissued with a new introduction by Jonathan Franzen-and, indeed, the story of disappointed Westport, Conn., strivers Tom and Betsy Rath anticipates the novels of suburban anomie by Franzen and his contemporaries. Dreaming of a bigger house for his wife and three kids, WWII veteran Tom leaves his job with an arts foundation to be a well-paid public relations executive at the United Broadcasting Corporation. But corporate ladder climbing and consumer rewards leave him miserable. Though his sentimental conclusion now seems dated, Wilson's portrait of the martini-soaked malcontents is sharp, memorable and still resonant today.

Publishers Weekly

"Lawlor's narration is well-paced, steady, and captures both the blunted emotion and plodding pace of bourgeois life in 1950s Southport, Connecticut." ---Publishers Weekly Audio Review

From the Publisher

A promising new job brings troubling challenges for the rising public relations man in Sloan Wilson's 1950s classic. Patrick Lawlor delivers the novel, which reads like a morality play, with a blend of nostalgia, innocence, and satirical wit. His narration can be broad at times, but it’s effective. Lawlor's voices fit the characters well. The production opens with Jonathan Franzen's analysis, which would have been better left to the end to give listeners a chance to discover the work for themselves. The production ends with Wilson's comments, recorded in 1983, in which he makes a case for the book’s continued relevance. The story of one man's inner conflicts may be even more relevant in today's economic turbulence. J.A.S. © AudioFile 2010, Portland, Maine

SEPTEMBER 2010 - AudioFile