In this warm, bighearted novella, pulitzer prize winner richard russo nobodys fool, straight man, empire falls transports his characters from the workingclass east coast of his novels to one of europes most romantic cities. William of occam, says hank, sought to reconcile faith with rational inquiry p. William henry devereaux jnr, hank at almost fifty, is interim chairman of the english department at the chronically underfunded west central pennsylvania university in railton. But russo, the author of the novels mohawk, the risk pool and. Jan 01, 1997 the richard russo books ive read have all taken place in decaying new york mill towns. Top 10 best richard russo books best richard russo book series. In a couple of his books i think that perspective overwhelms the plot of the novel and those books fall short for me. The first edition of the novel was published in january 1st 1997, and was written by richard russo. In english departments the most serious competition is for the role of straight man p. His novels empire falls and nobodys fool were both adapted to film. Richard russo made his debut as a published author in the novel mohawk. Top 10 best richard russo books best richard russo book. The protagonist is a hapless middleaged man whos ironic, irreverent, perhaps even brilliant, but lost without the keener emotional insight and wisdom of his beautiful wife.
Richard russos latest cast includes average men and one big. A gloriously funny and involving fourth novel from the author of such comfortableasoldshoes fictions as mohawk 1986 and nobodys fool 1993. As he established in his previous books mohawk,the risk pool, andnobodys fool russo is unique among contemporary authors for his ability to flawlessly capture the soul of the wise guy and the heart of a difficult parent. Richard russo has 39 books on goodreads with 437584 ratings. I think both straight man and that old cape magic fall into that category. The main characters of this fiction, humor story are. Random house, 1997 is a novel by richard russo set at the fictional west central pennsylvania university in railton, pennsylvania. William has just decided to settle in a beleaguered stint as the departmental head, where he finds extremely important to tread the water and go. Listen to straight man audiobook streaming online free. Why does russo call the first portion of the novel occams razor. In straight man, author richard russo introduces the readers to william henry devereax, a writing teacher and a onetime novelist.
Russo introduces them one at a time, setting each man in a nest of. The book was published in multiple languages including english, consists of 391 pages and is available in paperback format. Book overview hilarious and truetolife, witty, compassionate, and impossible to put down, straight man follows hank devereaux through one very bad week in this novel from pulitzer prizewinning author richard russo. Pdf straight man book by richard russo free download 391. Mohawk, the risk pool, nobodys fool, straight man, and empire falls, and a collection of stories, the whores child. His novels empire falls and nobodys fool were both adapted to film richard russo made his debut as a published author in the novel mohawk. Sep 07, 2011 though russo has diversified somewhat with his latest two books, bridge of sighs and that old cape magic, 1997s straight man remains the anomaly in his backlist. Download it once and read it on your kindle device, pc, phones or tablets. This is one of the amazing best richard russo books that come along with the excellent plot and subject as well. Russos other bestselling books include straight man, the memoir elsewhere, and an acclaimed story collection. Below is a list of richard russos books in order of when they were first released.
He earned a bachelors degree, a master of fine arts degree, and a doctor of philosophy degree from the university of arizona, which he attended from 1967 through 1979. Richard russo books list of books by author richard russo. Reading richard russos newest novel, straight man, you cant help but experience a strong sense of deja vu. From a commencement speech he gave at colby college, to the story of how an oddly placed toilet made him reevaluate the purpose of humor. Russo s protagonist is william henry devereaux, jr. Straight man by richard russo penguin random house audio. Hilarious and truetolife, witty, compassionate, and impossible to put down, straight man follows hank devereaux through one very bad week in this novel from pulitzer prizewinning author richard. Free download or read online straight man pdf epub book. William henry devereaux has been the chairman of the english department for quite a while now and one thing he knows as hell clear that it is not just one department that he runs. Anyone familiar with richard russos acclaimed novels will recognize gloversville, once famous for producing that eponymous product and anything else made of leather. It is available in paperback, hardcover and kindles. A novel vintage contemporaries kindle edition by russo, richard. May 10, 2017 richard russos latest cast includes average men and one big star.
Use features like bookmarks, note taking and highlighting while reading straight man. This detailed literature summary also contains topics for discussion and a free quiz on straight man by richard russo. Straight man by richard russo goodreads share book. Russo was teaching in the english department at southern illinois university carbondale when his first novel, mohawk, was published, in 1986.
July 1, 1997 a gloriously funny and involving fourth novel from the author of such comfortableasoldshoes fictions as mohawk 1986 and nobodys fool 1993. Richard russo is bestknown for writing novels about smalltown american life. Russos straight man was a bit different from our usual book club fare, offering us a comical look at smalltown university life and politics in place of the more somber books weve read recently. Would you say that this describes hanks search during the course of the novel. Straight man is the fourth novel by pulitzer prizewinning american novelist, richard russo.
In this uproarious new novel, richard russo performs his characteristic highwire walk between hilarity and heartbreak. He earned a pulitzer prize for his novel empire falls. Though russo has diversified somewhat with his latest two books, bridge of sighs and that old cape magic, 1997s straight man remains the anomaly in. Richard russo audio books, best sellers, author bio. Find books like straight man from the worlds largest community of readers. Russo was born in johnstown, new york, and raised in nearby gloversville. The humor came in his reactions to the zany behavior of other characters.
It is a midlife crisis tale told in the first person by william henry devereaux jr. The film version of nobodys fool earned him a wider audience, but the pulitzer in 2001 for empire falls ensured a spotlight on his work for years to come. Straight man is an exceedingly funny novel from author richard russo. Straight man is a very funny novel yet an extremely poignant story that shows a high degree of sensitivity to the human condition. Though russo has diversified somewhat with his latest two books, bridge of sighs and that old cape magic, 1997s straight man remains the anomaly in his backlist. First jane smiley came out of the comedy closet with moo, a campus satire par excellence, and now richard russo has gotten in on the grovesofacademe game. Straight man varies that by taking place in a decaying pennsylvania railroad town. Richard russo is an american author of literary fiction. Straight man chesterfield county public library overdrive.
Books similar to straight man goodreads share book. Straight man is definitely my recommendation of 2003, thus far. In this uproarious novel, richard russo performs his characteristic highwire walk between hilarity and heartbreak. During the course of the novel, which begins with the burial of one dog. Hilarious and truetolife, witty, compassionate, and impossible to put down, straight man follows hank devereaux through one very bad week in this novel from pulitzer prizewinning author richard russo. This is where the author grew up, the only son of an aspirant mother and a charming, feckless father who were born into this closeknit community. Pdf straight man book by richard russo free download. The richard russo books ive read have all taken place in decaying new york mill towns.
In these nine essays, richard russo provides insight into his life as a writer, teacher, friend, and reader. Bob newhart has been an extremely funny comedian for decades, but in all of his situation comedies he was the straight man. Hilarious and truetolife, witty, compassionate, and impossible to put down, straight man follows hank devereaux through one very bad week in this novel. The setting is a second or third level state university in pennsylvania in the 1990s, in april toward the end of the academic year. Russo s straight man was a bit different from our usual book club fare, offering us a comical look at smalltown university life and politics in place of the more somber books weve read recently. Straight man is a middleagers book,centering on an english department in a pennsylvania college where tenure matters more than anything far more than sex and none of its protagonists are likely to resign to bravely head into more adventurous seas. Early in the book, various characters, including lily and hanks mother, let hank know that they are worried about him. Mar 15, 2020 richard russo paints a man for whom its all over from all sides and still he does not want to commit suicide. After a while you begin to wish you lived in richard russo s world, sunday times a funny and clever novel, times literary supplement the author has never been funnier. Straight man by richard russo book club discussion. Richard russo s straight man invalidates the widely held notion in academe that nothing happens in a department during an interim chairs watch. The task he has chosen for himself, of wooing my mother with a bright red pickup truck, a patsy cline tape, and a string of malapropisms, is ample justification to me for not taking the world too seriously, its relentless heartbreak notwithstanding richard russo, straight man. Straight man by richard russo overdrive rakuten overdrive.
Notable moments include the chairmans hiding in the rafters as the faculty vote. Richard russo books, ebooks, audiobooks, biography barnes. Such is the canvas of richard russosstraight man, a novel of surpassing wit, poignancy, and insight. In this uproarious new novel, richard russo performs his characteri. Notable moments include the chairmans hiding in the rafters as the faculty vote on his dismissal. As he established in his previous books mohawk, the risk pool, and nobodys fool russo is unique among contemporary authors for his ability to flawlessly capture the soul of the wise guy and the heart of a difficult parent. William has just decided to settle in a beleaguered stint as the departmental head, where he finds extremely important to tread the water and go with its flow. Such is the canvas of richard russos straight man, a novel of surpassing wit, poignancy, and insight. This is actually a series of some personal writings by marcus aurelius. Russo does a very subtle and masterful job of slowly developing the interior henry devereux jr.