Reading Order
ArrowsmithSinclair Lewis's Arrowsmith Reading Order
Sinclair Lewis's Arrowsmith (1925) is his most earnest novel — Martin Arrowsmith the idealistic doctor navigating medical school, small-town practice, public health administration, and finally research science, each institution corrupting the pure scientific ideal. Lewis won the Pulitzer Prize for Arrowsmith but declined it, citing the prize's requirement to reward novels about 'the wholesome atmosphere of American life' as contrary to the aims of serious fiction. He accepted the Nobel Prize in 1930, the first American writer to do so. Written in collaboration with Paul de Kruif, a bacteriologist who provided the scientific detail, Arrowsmith is the most carefully researched of the Lewis novels and the one most widely read in medical schools. There are no sequels; Babbitt (1922) and Elmer Gantry (1927) are the companion satires from Lewis's greatest decade.
Where to start
Arrowsmith
Complete Arrowsmith Book List
- 1Buy
Arrowsmith
Sinclair Lewis·1925·The main novel — Martin Arrowsmith through medical school, country practice, public health, and finally laboratory research, the idealist in a world of medical compromise. - 2Buy
Babbitt
Sinclair Lewis·1922·The companion satire — George Babbitt in the real estate world, the same Lewis decade but the businessman rather than the scientist. - 3Buy
Elmer Gantry
Sinclair Lewis·1927·The companion in moral contrast — Elmer Gantry the fraudulent evangelist is the dark mirror to Arrowsmith's idealistic scientist, both navigating corrupt American institutions. - 4Buy
The Citadel
A.J. Cronin·1937·The British version of Arrowsmith — Andrew Manson the idealistic Scottish doctor in the Welsh mining valleys and then London, the most direct heir to Lewis's medical novel. - 5Buy
Dr. Zhivago
Boris Pasternak·1957·The Russian doctor-idealist — Yuri Zhivago navigating revolution and civil war, a more tragic version of the scientist who cannot reconcile his vocation with the institutions around him.
Arrowsmith — Frequently Asked Questions
Why did Sinclair Lewis decline the Pulitzer for Arrowsmith?
Lewis objected to the Pulitzer's stated criteria of rewarding novels that 'present the wholesome atmosphere of American life' — he felt this requirement would exclude serious, critical fiction and that the prize as constituted was an obstacle to American literary ambition.
Did a real scientist help write Arrowsmith?
Yes — Paul de Kruif, a microbiologist who later wrote Microbe Hunters, collaborated extensively with Lewis on the scientific content. Lewis credited him in the foreword and shared royalties with him.
Is Arrowsmith Lewis's best novel?
Most critics rank Babbitt highest for formal precision. Arrowsmith is often considered Lewis's most emotionally serious novel and the one that has held up best for readers interested in the scientific idealism theme rather than pure satire.
Monthly Newsletter
Never miss a big release
Get the most anticipated upcoming books delivered to your inbox once a month — no spam, no filler.
Monthly only. Unsubscribe anytime.
Book links are Amazon affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate, BookReleaseRadar earns from qualifying purchases at no extra cost to you.