The Natural

By Bernard Malamud

Book Overview

The classical novel (and basis for the acclaimed film starring Robert Redford) now in a new edition

Introduction by Kevin Baker

The Natural, Bernard Malamud's first novel, published in 1952, is also the first--and some would say still the best--novel ever written about baseball.

In it Malamud, usually appreciated for his unerring portrayals of postwar Jewish life, took on very different material--the story of a superbly gifted "natural" at play in the fields of the old daylight baseball era--and invested it with the hardscrabble poetry, at once grand and altogether believable, that runs through all his best work. Four decades later, Alfred Kazin's comment still holds true: "Malamud has done something which--now that he has done it!--looks as if we have been waiting for it all our lives. He has really raised the whole passion and craziness and fanaticism of baseball as a popular spectacle to its ordained place in mythology."

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0374502005
• ISBN13: 9780374502003
• Release Date: July 2003
• Publisher: Farrar, Straus and Giroux
• Length: 231 Pages
• Weight: 0.81 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.6" x 5.5" x 8.3"

Customer Reviews

A Natural Hit

A natural is defined as one who has natural talent, especially in baseball. In Bernard Malamud's 1952 novel, The Natural, written in Arthurian legend style, Roy Hobbs leads the New York Knights into victory after victory. With his trusty Excalibur-like bat dubbed "Wonderboy", Hobbs uses his natural talent and leads the Knights on a mythical quest for the pennant. In contrast, however, a natural may also mean, as it did in the Middle Ages, an innocent fool. In the novel, Malamud uses both definitions to tell a story of a hero whose pride got in the way. Throughout the book, Malamud uses references to different colors and the passage of the seasons as Roy meets a variety of different characters. The father-like coach of the Knights Pop Fisher, his puzzling love interest Memo, the pure Iris, the crooked gambler Gus Sands, and many more diverse characters help create a theme of good versus evil. From the ballfield where Roy wages battle, to the Pot of Fire night club where Roy is confronted with evil, Malamud develops the tragic story of a hero on a grail-like quest who is tempted by the forces of evil at every turn. In the novel, written much like a play, Malamud utilizes a pastoral style to present complex ideas in a natural way. Using film-technique, which is movie-like changes in scene, Malamud shows Roy's struggle to overcome the evil in his life. Facing the fixers, the fans, the slump, and the jinx, Roy Hobbs embarks on a mythical quest to battle pride and evil in a classic tale of the tarnishing of an American icon.

Life does not always have a Hollywood ending

Comparing "The Natural" the book to "The Natural" the movie is like comparing a fine multi-course meal to a big chocolate cake. Both are fine to eat, but expect a lot more variety and nuance out of the meal, not just the sweetness of the dessert. The book is the dark story of a strong and talented man ultimately taken down by his weaknesses. The movie is completely the opposite -- a typical Hollywood story of a hero overcoming adversity to emerge triumphant. Having read the book before seeing the movie, I was appalled at the movie's complete change of message from the book. Although I can understand the point of view of those who came to the book after the movie, it seems a bit simplistic to fault it on the basis that the ending was a bummer because it was not the happy one of the movie. Hollywood has always done that trick well -- "Breaking Away", "Hoosiers", "Rocky" etc. etc. etc. And they -- along with "The Natural" -- are good movies. But Malamud's true genius in "The Natural" (the book!) is that Roy Hobbs is not an icon -- he is a superman who turns out to be all too frail, a man on the run from the demons of his past, seeking his salvation in the power of his talents. There is nothing the matter with harmless escapism such as "The Natural" The Movie. But life is so much more complicated than that - a point which Bernard Malamud understands and commiunicates so well, and which Barry Levinson and his screenwriters have chosen to overlook.

Surprisingly dark and depressing, but a fascinating read.

I wish that I would have read the book before I had watched the movie. I went into The Natural expecting to experience an uplifting story of a country boy who makes good, wins over his childhood sweetheart, and lives happily ever after. That, suffice to say, is not the way the book plays out. As a warning, other readers who enter the book with those same sort of narrow expectations will doubtlessly be disappointed somewhere along the way. However, I would be remiss to say that, in spite of the aforementioned let-downs (and perhaps even partly because of them), I found this work to be a facinating read. Malamud details a commentary on life, interspersed with wonderful Arturian allusions, through a saga of the game of baseball. Hobbs' character illustrates that, contrary to the movie's claim, that talent alone is not enough to succeed in life, and the way in which the story unfolds, while admittedly somewhat simple, is entertaining all the same. Once I got into it, I couldn't put the book down. The best advice I could give to readers would be to be open minded of the storyline, and not to limit yourself to preconceived expectations (this assuming you have watched the movie first). In doing so, I expect one will find Malamud's style to be fluid and his tale to be valuable.

The Natural is a powerful book that transcends baseball.

The Natural is a powerful work that contains some of the most vivid imagery I have ever read. It is a story of human struggle and redemption through suffering. Roy Hobbs, the protagonist, is a flawed figure whose shortcomings are only surpassed by his ability to hit a baseball. Malamud manages to weave a tale that makes you want Roy Hobbs to succeed to be "the best player ever to play the game." To its credit the book bears almost no resemblance to the movie of the same name. Roy Hobbs is not Robert Redford! Malamud's use of imagery is well illustrated when a young Roy, on his way to a major league tryout as a pitcher has a showdown at a carnival with the Slammer. Each pitch is described in a way that shows just what a natural Roy is. His first major league at bat is also beautifully described. I must say that this book is not for the squeamish. It is an adult drama, well written and finely crafted. In short this is a book that is about more than baseball yet is baseball in its truest essence.