JRJR
Score Classic
What it's about
JR Vansant is an eleven-year-old sixth-grader on Long Island, and after a school field trip to Wall Street, he starts trading penny stocks from a pay phone. Using the mail and the phone, he builds a sprawling, absurd financial empire, while the adults around him, teachers, a struggling composer and failed artists, are swept along. The novel is told almost entirely in dialogue.
Why it's worth reading
It won the National Book Award. It's a huge, brilliant comic satire of American money culture.
You'll love it if you liked
Gravity's Rainbow
Infinite Jest
Catch-22Good to know
It's over 700 pages of mostly unattributed dialogue with no chapter breaks, which makes it very challenging.
By the numbers
- Readers93 out of 100 · counts 42%
- Critics63 out of 100 · counts 34% (its stronger lane)
- Bestseller10 out of 100 · counts 14%
- Buzz0 out of 100 · counts 10%
Critics and Bestseller are two ways to earn a place: a book's stronger one counts more. Buzz rewards recent bestseller weeks and prizes, so older books start at zero. The parts combine into the Must-Read Score, shown on a scale where the best book we found scores 99 and the last book to make the ranking scores 50.
Where it ranks
- #33 of the 309 literary novels we rank
- #90 of the 762 classics we rank
- #288 of the 2,816 books we rank
Why it made the list
Reads as
Moving, Epic, Thought-provoking
More by William Gaddis
If you like this, read next
The Color Purple
The Caine Mutiny
East of Eden
I, Claudius
A Room of One's Own
Angle of ReposeExplore the best-of lists
All 36 best-of lists →
Quick answers
Is JR worth reading?
Yes. It won the National Book Award. It ranks #288 of the 2,816 books in our ranking, with a Must-Read Score of 81.8 (the best book we found scores 99).
What is JR about?
JR Vansant is an eleven-year-old sixth-grader on Long Island, and after a school field trip to Wall Street, he starts trading penny stocks from a pay phone. Using the mail and the phone, he builds a sprawling, absurd financial empire, while the adults around him, teachers, a struggling composer and failed artists, are swept along. The novel is told almost entirely in dialogue.
How long does it take to read JR?
About 18 hours (725 pages), or about 5 weeks at 30 minutes a day.
What awards has JR won?
National Book Award (Fiction) winner (1976).
What should I read after JR?
If you liked it, try Gravity's Rainbow by Thomas Pynchon, Infinite Jest by David Foster Wallace or Catch-22 by Joseph Heller.