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Thornton Wilder
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Heaven's My Destination: A Novel Kindle Edition

by Thornton Wilder (Author) Format: Kindle Edition
4.0 4.0 out of 5 stars 39 ratings
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“If John Steinbeck’s mighty Grapes of Wrath is the tragic novel of the Great Depression, then Heaven’s My Destination is its comic masterpiece. —J.D. McClatchy

A hilarious tale about goodness in a fallen world, Heaven’s My Destination introduces George Marvin Brush, one of Thornton Wilder's most memorable characters. Brush, a traveling textbook salesman, is a fervent religious convert who is determined to lead a good life. With sad and sometimes hilarious consequences, his travels take him through smoking cars, bawdy houses, banks, and campgrounds from Texas to Illinois—and into the soul of Depression-era America itself.

This special edition includes an updated afterword by Wilder’s nephew, Tappan Wilder, with illuminating material about the author and book.

Previous page
  1. Print length
    250 pages
  2. Language
    English
  3. Sticky notes
    On Kindle Scribe
  4. Publisher
    Harper Perennial Modern Classics
  5. Publication date
    December 8, 2020
  6. File size
    6380 KB
  7. Page Flip
    Enabled
  8. Word Wise
    Enabled
  9. Enhanced typesetting
    Enabled
  10. See all details
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Editorial Reviews

Review

“Brilliant and sharp. . . . Wilder’s best novel.” — Edmund Wilson, The New Republic

“Here is a book that provides total pleasure—a picaresque contemporary Candide or Don Quixote, written with both affection and a gimlet eye. . . . It reads like a loving comedy.”  — New Yorker

"One of the most American books ever written. . . . Thornton Wilder's best, and most unexpected, book." — Wilfrid Sheed

“A good sardonic etching of this most godless of American ages.” — Commonweal

From the Back Cover

Drawing on such unique sources as the author's unpublished letters, business records, and obscure family recollections, Tappan Wilder's Afterword adds a special dimension to the reissue of this hilarious tale about goodness in a fallen world.

Meet George Marvin Brush—Don Quixote come to Main Street in the Great Depression, and one of Thornton Wilder's most memorable characters. George Brush, a traveling textbook salesman, is a fervent religious convert who is determined to lead a good life. With sad and sometimes hilarious consequences, his travels take him through smoking cars, bawdy houses, banks, and campgrounds from Texas to Illinois—and into the soul of America itself.

Product details

  • ASIN ‏ : ‎ B08SMGP3GD
  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Harper Perennial Modern Classics; Reprint edition (December 8, 2020)
  • Publication date ‏ : ‎ December 8, 2020
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • File size ‏ : ‎ 6380 KB
  • Text-to-Speech ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Screen Reader ‏ : ‎ Supported
  • Enhanced typesetting ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • X-Ray ‏ : ‎ Not Enabled
  • Word Wise ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Sticky notes ‏ : ‎ On Kindle Scribe
  • Print length ‏ : ‎ 250 pages
  • Page numbers source ISBN ‏ : ‎ 0062990217
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.0 4.0 out of 5 stars 39 ratings

About the author

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Thornton Wilder

Thornton Wilder

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Thornton Wilder (1897–1975) is an accomplished novelist and playwright whose works, exploring the connection between the commonplace and cosmic dimensions of human experience, continue to be read and produced around the world. His Bridge of San Luis Rey, one of seven novels, won the Pulitzer Prize in 1928, as did two of his four full-length dramas, Our Town (1938) and The Skin of Our Teeth (1943). Wilder's Matchmaker was adapted as the musical Hello, Dolly! He also enjoyed enormous success with many other forms of the written and spoken word, among them teaching, acting, opera, and film. His screenplay for Hitchcock's Shadow of a Doubt (1943) remains a classic psychological thriller to this day. Wilder's many honors include the Gold Medal for Fiction from the American Academy of Arts and Letters, the Presidential Medal of Freedom, and the National Book Committee's Medal for Literature.

Customer reviews

4 out of 5 stars
4 out of 5
39 global ratings

Top reviews from the United States

The Great Weldini
5.0 out of 5 stars Quick, cheap, and flawless
Reviewed in the United States on January 12, 2023
Verified Purchase
Book published in the thirties and reprinted in 2020 with excellent intro. The book arrived on time, was priced right and in excellent condition.
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nedrahsur
4.0 out of 5 stars A Depression Era Picaresque Novel
Reviewed in the United States on May 26, 2013
Verified Purchase
George Bush is no Don Quixote or Huckleberry Finn, but he is, in this picaresque novel. a traditional picar whose antics turn out to be the lens through which we can see the ills of society during the Great Depression. Anyone who was once young, naive, silly, idealistic and disallusioned can find part of himself in George Brush. I'm an old man who first read the book in 1960 when I was twenty-four years old. I suspect that readers my age now can more easily relate to the characters and situations than could younger readers. Nevertheless, I recommend Heaven's My Destination for its unique hero whose interactions with those around him are sometimes humorous and sometimes pathetic, but always poignant and memorable.
2 people found this helpful
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A. Woman
2.0 out of 5 stars A best seller of 1935
Reviewed in the United States on August 3, 2016
Verified Purchase
The main character's name is George Brush but due to an unfortunate span of eight years I kept reading it as George Bush. George Brush travels around the country and has small, rather odd adventures. Much as I expect George Bush does as well. If there was a plot to this book, I didn't get it. If there was a message in this book, I didn't get it. If there was any reason at all why Thornton Wilder felt the need to write this book, I didn't get it.
One person found this helpful
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Lawrence Kaye
5.0 out of 5 stars A Likeable Eccentric
Reviewed in the United States on March 23, 2015
Verified Purchase
I read this book many years ago and always remembered it. It
was a nostalgic experience for me to reread it. It's humorous and sad
like much of Thornton Wilder's work. The author is a specialist in
eccentric and likeable characters.
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G. Horn
4.0 out of 5 stars A Different Concept For Thornton Wilder
Reviewed in the United States on December 9, 2012
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A fun read with interesting characters, lots of surprises. Some of it is very appropriate for our times and some of it is a window to another time.
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Julia Lesnichy
5.0 out of 5 stars Good book, full of humor
Reviewed in the United States on November 11, 2013
Verified Purchase
Great novel, very sincere language, good plot, lots of interesting thoughts and tricky situations. I just love Wilder and read almost all his novels. I love him.
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Bob Newman
4.0 out of 5 stars Idealistic Idiot Inevitably Invites Irritation
Reviewed in the United States on September 17, 2016
Wilder's lighthearted spoof of religion and do-gooders is an easy read and will keep you amused throughout. George Brush, the main character, is a mix of Protestant morals and Gandhian behavior with a huge amount of plain old naivete thrown in. He is entirely innocent of how the world works. He doesn't know that ideals are not often translated into action so he constantly irks everyone he comes into contact with. His insistence on the truth alienates almost all. He manages to do good sometimes, but at other times his efforts go off the rails because he just can't understand why people don't live up to religious standards of love and charity. Most people feel that he's crazy, even though he earns a fair living as a traveling textbook salesman. He doesn't smoke, drink or date pretty girls. He once had sex with a girl and decided that they were already married and would be together for the rest of their lives. The only problem was that he couldn't remember her name or where she lived. He has a fine singing voice and makes friends through it, only to lose them by his unfailing tendency to be the "fine, upstanding, godfearing, American boy". It's a satire after all. He tells bankers that their system is immoral, he gives money to bank robbers, and winds up in jail more than once. He reads the Encyclopedia Britannica at every chance he gets. No doubt he is a one of that group of vivid, "religious" characters in American literature along with Arthur Dimmesdale, Elmer Gantry, Owen Muir, or Clyde Griffiths. Wilder made fun of the hypocrisies of American society, but provides an entertaining read as well. Maybe there is a strand here of wishing that human nature might be better than it is.
4 people found this helpful
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Upstairswindow
2.0 out of 5 stars Two Stars
Reviewed in the United States on March 5, 2016
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Odd
One person found this helpful
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