In this episode of Between The Covers, Jay and Stacey dive into the world of Babbitt by Sinclair Lewis, a sharp, witty satire of American middle-class life. Set in the 1920s, Babbitt follows George F. Babbitt, a real estate agent stuck in a life of conformity, who begins to question everything around him. Is the American Dream all it’s cracked up to be, or is Babbitt just in a midlife crisis? We’ll break down why this novel still resonates today, from its hilarious social commentary to its critique of materialism. Tune in to find out why Babbitt has earned its place on the list of 100 most lovable books—and why you need to read it!

Links

JayRuud.com

StaceyMargaretJones.com

Amazon

Treasure of Sherwood book

https://a.co/d/2MRNdd8

Mr. Catherine book

https://a.co/d/3bPVBMG

Publishers

Encircle Publications

https://encirclepub.com/encircle-author/jay-ruud/

Creators Publishing

https://www.creators.com/books/mr-catherine

BIOS

Jay Ruud is a retired professor of English at the University of Central Arkansas, now devoting much of his time to fiction writing. He earned a Ph.D. in Medieval Literature from the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, and taught college literature courses for 40 years. He chaired the English department at the University of Central Arkansas for 13 years, prior to which he was Dean of the College of Arts and Sciences at Northern State University in South Dakota. He published scholarly books on Chaucer, Dante, and Tolkien, and has retold the traditional legend of King Arthur for modern readers as a series of Merlin Mysteries. He is currently in the midst of a series of Robin Hood mysteries, the most recent of which, Treasure of Sherwood, has just been published by Encircle Press.

Stacey Margaret Jones is an Arkansas writer, whose novel MR. CATHERINE was a finalist for the Eric Hoffer New Horizons Debut Novel Award. She's also a Pushcart-Prize-nominated poet, essayist and literature and creative writing instructor. She lives with her husband author Jay Ruud and their four literarily named dogs, Gwenhyfar, Lavinia, Gareth and Sylvia. You can find her on Instagram at @sharkushka and TikTok at @normfluencers.