The Straight Man : A novel

Rating:
Summary: A few mild smiles, chuckle at the end. Glad Im not in Acade
Review: Sad that the talented characters in this academic setting do so little with their lives. There are more laughs in any sitcom. The final page gave me my biggest smile. All professors should spend at least ten years in real life. Their sense of humor saves them but amuses me little.

Rating:
Summary: very funny!
Review: a warped view of academia and whole new twist on "team" approach to employment. (Probably closer to reality). department budget and politics, romance and lust, and ducks/ geese are all tangled up in this droll story.

Rating:
Summary: A Laugh out Loud read!! Wonderful
Review: I must admit I am not much of a Comedy reader, until now. I noticed this on the bargain table on my way to the check-out at B&N and the Goose on the cover caught my eye, The jacket and first few pages seemed good ( it was a really long line ) so I fugured what the heck. WHAT A WONDERFULLY FUNNY STORY. Perhaps I just have an easy sense of humor, but I loved this book, I was able to relate the characters to some of my co-workers and really enjoyed this story. I'm not saying everyone will like it but I'm reccomending it....

Rating:
Summary: Terrific
Review: This book is incredibly well thought out and is Russo's masterpiec

Rating:
Summary: Ironically funny story about a man's struggles with family
Review: 1st time Russo reader...an excellent book that I read while on a camping trip with my family. I could not put the book down. Not a novel reader, I was enthralled with the character strength and the way Russo wrapped everyone together. I am a Russo fan now.

Rating:
Summary: A novel with character
Review: This afternoon, I finished Richard Russo's "Straight Man," not only one of the funniest books I've read in years, but also a story bursting with some of the roundest characters I've ever seen. Almost everyone in this delightful satire of college politics is just unpredictable enough to keep you caring throughout, with even the least likable characters rarely allowing themselves to be pigeonholed. It's the mark of a great writer like Russo that he can paint his figures, both major and minor, in such varied shades of gray, rather than the two-tone monotony that plagues so much of what passes for "best" on today's best seller lists. Indeed, to paraphrase Ben Stiller in the film "Zero Effect," there are no good guys and bad guys in "Straight Man," just a bunch of guys (and gals), sporting all the choirboy virtues and midnight-dark flaws of the people we know in our own lives, from sensitive leches to violent innocents to a loving, lovable bigot to the protagonist himself, an average schmoe teaching at a below-average school who gives the impression of knowing everything but, comically, hasn't the foggiest.

Rating:
Summary: I had to stop reading often so I could laugh.
Review: William Henry Devereaux, Jr. The unwilling chairman of a small English college. Has taken to talking to his dog about softball, particularly how moving from his "zen" position in left field to first base has left him spiritually damaged. Hank has a wry sense of humor and his insistence on exhibiting a whimsical attitude in the face of out-and-out raving lunacy. Will keep the reader in hysterics. Read this book. You'll love it.

Rating:
Summary: The Funniest Book I Have Ever Read
Review: An avid reader, I am not one to write a review of a book nor laugh out loud while reading. This book was so hilarious and well written that I was inspired to inform every other reader I know. You must read this book. The story is excellent and captivating, making it very difficult to put down. I work a lot and appreciate readers who do not want to waste time starting a lousy book- this one is worth your time!

Rating:
Summary: Are you in Academe? Then you must read this!
Review: Working at a university (and in a college of liberal arts similar to the one described in the book) I sometimes couldn't stop myself from laughing. The similarities to other academics I know are hilariously accurate!

Rating:
Summary: Absolutely Fantastic
Review: Straight Man is the type of extremely funny, sad, and very well-written novel that John Irving would produce if he had an editor that was more willing to cut out a bunch of extraneous detail. I'm a huge Irving fan, but this book offers equally vivid characters AND a storyline that moves right along.