There's a reason classic literary novels become classics. They were written with great care and emotion when things like cell phones and the Internet and our desire for instant gratification didn't exist. The novel was entertainment, submersing the reader into a different world. The Jungle does all that and more.
Jurgis and Ona came to America where the streets were paved with gold. They worked and worked hard yet every time they took one step ahead the rug seemed to be pulled out from under them. They were the victims of Packingtown, the meat packing plants of Chicago at the beginning of the 20th century. I had no prior knowledge of this time and place, however Mr. Sinclair's descriptions made me feel the cold of Chicago in the winter, the smell of the cow blood coating the floor and the agonizing pain of each cut or blister that gave Jurgis's place to a more able bodied man.
The one scene that struck me hard was when Jurgis was shipped off to jail. He walked into his cell on Christmas Day, away from his family. His pain and heartache gripped me at that moment. If you love a book that grabs your emotions never letting them go, give The Jungle a try. Keep in mind it wasn't written for a modern reader. Let the words show you the way through a brilliantly told story.
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