H.M. Pulham, Esquire is an immersion into a single character and his parochial perspective.
High Point: Through the first-person narrative, the reader will see things that Pulham’s naive nature won’t let him see.
Low Point: There are a few–but not many–passages that are so detailed they become a bit of a mire.
Authors: John P. Marquand
Publication Date: 1941
Genre: Fiction
One appealing aspect of John P. Marquand’s novels is that their resolutions are not always neatly tied up. Marquand’s stories may conclude in such a way that leaves just a bit of uncertainty—as real life often does. That’s what you get with H.M. Pulham, Esquire.
Through the first-person narrative, Marquand gives us a bittersweet deep dive into the life of Pulham, an upper-class gentleman in early 20th century Boston. We know his thoughts as he struggles to meet the expectations of his family and his social class while attempting to pursue the people and vocations he loves. They don’t always mix well, and Pullham must often choose between others’ expectations and his own wants.
The reader will see things that Pulham’s naïve nature won’t let him see. Marquand remarkably portrays other characters close to Pullham who are experiencing similar conflicts as he, but Pulham may not recognize it. Marquand pulls it all together in the final chapter in a clever and effective way.
This is an immersion into a single character and his parochial perspective. If you don’t mind that, H.M. Pulham, Esquire, is a story worth reading.
Movie/TV Adaptation
H.M. Pulham, Esq. (1941)
Sources For This Book
Free eBook (Project Gutenberg): Not available
Free Audiobook (LibriVox): Not available
Available to Purchase: AbeBooks, Biblio, Thriftbooks
