Straight Man: A Novel

What I expected from Russo and I like it

This story kept me entertained. It’s really a story of a somewhat cynical middle aged guy. I’m a somewhat cynical middle aged guy.

If you are an academic, you'll immediately recognize these characters. It is so true to life. Sometimes I found myself saying this would be so funny if it were not true. For those considering a life in academia, this is a good read to give you a lighthearted glimpse into the disfunction and culture of faculty life. If you are not an academic, its just a funny story. Very enjoyable read.

Richard Russo was born July 15, 1949, in Johnstown, New York and grew up in Gloversville. He graduated from The University of Arizona where he earned a Bachelor's degree, a Master of Fine Arts and a Doctor of Philosophy. Russo was a teacher in the English department at Southern Illinois University Carbondale when he wrote his first novel "Mohawk" published in 1986. He eventually migrated to Colby College in upstate New York where he taught until his retirement. Russo's 2001 novel "Empire Falls" received the 2002 Pulitzer Prize for Fiction. He has written six other novels and a short story collection as well as collaborated in the production of several films including the adaptation of his own "Nobody's Fool" that starred Paul Newman. Much of Russo's work has been semi-autobiographical, drawing on his life from his upbringing in upstate New York to his time teaching literature at Colby College. Russo was last reported to live in Camden Maine."Straight Man" written by Richard Russo is literary fiction of the melodrama/comedy genre. The writing is variably complex with character dialog interlaced with an individual's thoughts. This writing style created numerable problems for the reader in discerning thoughts from dialog. Very careful attention was needed to the placement of quotation marks. The tale is narrated in the first person by the main character.The book's plot revolves around a group of middle age college professors who find themselves captive to a back woods college in Pennsylvania where, having achieved seniority and tenure, they find no reason to expand their horizons. The deception of their contentment is ultimately exposed as they struggle with the rampant rumors of an impending purge at the university that would reach into the tenured ranks. According to which rumors are listened to, the chairs are being asked or required to draw up lists of faculty in their departments who might be considered expendable. And so with the seeds of discontent planted among the privileged élite, the comedy of their social ineptitude and escapades is fatefully exposed by one William Henry Devereaux Jr. chair of the English Department and comedic `straight man".There's a lot going on in this novel that vies for the attention of the reader. The people that are introduced seem to come from a swinging door, in and out, of the story. It is at times difficult to remember which characters are which in the scheme of things. I noticed that even Russo recapped the list of characters at times in the narrative as though even he was having trouble remembering them or how they interfaced with each other. William Henry Devereaux Jr. provides the wit for the comedy. His sassy type of humor provides plenty of chuckles. On the overall, however, I didn't care much about most of the characters in the story; they were incredibly shallow though that may have been close to reality - you are presented a collective group of intellectuals that all seem to wear loafers because they can't seem to master the tying of shoes. The composition itself is a fairly long one, about 416 pages or so. At about the half way point, I was getting weary of Devereaux's humor and I just thought; why do good writers not know when to stop writing? In the beginning, I thought the novel was great....by the end I couldn't wait to be finished with it. Comedy in writing is a difficult quest. It needs to be continuously fresh or it's soon not funny anymore. As to the serious side of the narrative, how can you take the musing seriously when it emanates from such a dopey source? It's a reader's dichotomy.All and all I didn't think this was one of Russo's better works. If he had shortened it up some, it may have had a better chance. Also, I would have liked to see the dialog addressed better in the composition so that the character thoughts and speech were distinguished better; not interlaced.In my rating system, "Forgettable, "Pleasurable-Not Memorable" and "Memorable" I would rate this novel "Pleasurable-Not Memorable" and would recommend you add it to your reading list.

Okay, so I bought this book after I watched Lucky Hank. I loved Lucky Hank. Bob Odenkirk played the role of William Henry Devereaux Jr. perfectly. But, like with almost everything, I figured the book would be more fleshed out, and I was right. I couldn't put this down. And I'm not an avid reader, but man, I loved this book.

Shorter than some of the author's sagas, this book is a compassionate, though rather limited, look at the lives of a group of aging literature professors in a small, rural college in Pennsylvania that is part of the larger university. Told from the perspective of fiftyish Henry (Hank) Devereaux Jr., the current English dept chair, the immediate concern of all are rumored severe budgetary cuts that could reach into the ranks of tenured professors. Consistent with the constant, low-level wariness that they exhibit towards each other, now heightened, they are convinced that Hank has colluded with the administration in creating a "list" of names to be terminated. Of course, the inevitable recall movement is started - the solution to their problems that always proves to be inadequate.More broadly, the author captures the securities, but more so the insecurities, that are a part of living and working in such an insular academic setting. All have achieved a secure position through either political maneuvering or, in the case of Hank, cashing in on a long since dissipated notoriety for a work of fiction. Ironically, the security of tenure gives them the means to assiduously guard their turf and freely exchange caustic barbs when threatened, or otherwise. What they cannot escape is the unsettling realization that they have reached their academic limits with few prospects. It's hardly surprising that the anxieties and demands of the college find their way into their domestic lives as manifested by affairs, divorces, and reckless competitiveness.But Hank Devereaux is the author's main focus. He is an amused, detached kind of guy, irritating to most to a greater or lesser degree, including his colleagues, his wife Lily, and his daughters. Perhaps it is his general outward indifference that has allowed him to navigate these perilous waters, especially the temptations, better than most, which in the end is not entirely lost on the others.The book is probably more an amused, imagined look at college academia than one of hard-nosed reality. The quips, barbs, developments, and shenanigans are entertaining and at times somewhat comic, but do sometimes strain belief.

Very good writing and with terrific character development. Witty and real. One main protagonist throughout, but many interesting colleagues also. This book takes place in academia, in a small college town in Pennsylvania. The book starts slowly but with each chapter gets both more profound and more interesting.

This is a proper novel with a relatable and funny protagonist who meddles his way through his career, family, friends and frenemies. Straight to the point narrative with no slacking and no deviation. Loved his writing

Russo can really write so this book was no surprise. My only issue was with the epilogue which I hated. I don't need all the loose ends tightening up; life's not like that... it's messy and disjointed.

You dive into the characters‘ world. Great humor.

Straight Man is a very funny novel yet an extremely poignant story that shows a high degree of sensitivity to the human condition. The setting is a second or third level state university in Pennsylvania in the 1990s, in April toward the end of the academic year. Henry (Hank) Devereux, Jr. is an English professor and interim chair of his department and is turning 50. A delay in the university's budget from the legislature has exacerbated the conflicts within his dysfunctional department and put Hank in the uncomfortable position of providing the administration with a list of faculty to fire. These conflicts are amplified by a developing mid-life crisis which leads him to question his relationship with his wife, his two adult daughters, his distinguished and rather overbearing academic parents, and particularly the worth of his own academic career.The two threads of this novel are the window that it provides on academic life and the second window that it opens on the travails - mental, emotional and physical - of reaching middle age. Both are approached through humor and biting satire, but with an element of tenderness for both the individuals and institutions that are the objects of Hank's concerns. Henry Devereux, Jr., himself, is a very well-crafted character - someone you will likely feel that you know intimately by the end of the novel.Straight Man is a good example of a modern `campus novel' Its humor and elegant prose resonate with that of Changing Places, by David Lodge, and The History Man, by Malcolm Bradbury - both late 1960s/early 1970s representatives of this genre. Its humor and trenchant portrayal of academic characters and politics also echo with Lorenzostein, by Mary Smetley, a more recent magical-realistic treatment of these issues in academia in the 1980s and 1990s.A must read for anyone interested in the `campus novel' genre and for those readers who would enjoy a humorous, but sensitive, treatment of mid-life issues.