Nobody's Fool

Rating:
Summary: The fullest of Russo's novels.
Review: Combining the humor that would bloom fully with Straight Man with the darker sensibility of Mohawk, Russo strikes gold with Nobody's Fool and especially Sully. I could use the word engrossing and all its synonyms and permutations but it simply won't cut it. An ultimately uplifting wonder, Nobody's Fool dazes in its scope and unassuming humor.

Rating:
Summary: Moving, Down to Earth, Humorous
Review: A must-not-miss book; when I turned the last page I regretted there was not more.

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Summary: Real-life wonderful characters that you care about.
Review: I can not recall a book I enjoyed as much as this one on all levels since Irving's " A Prayer for Owen Meany". Engrossing tale of people of all sorts, old and young, male and female, and the small town that glues them all together in one way or another. A modern tale in some ways but it envoked feelings in me of an earlier era perhaps because of several elderly characters that reminded me of members of my own family. The book made me look at success and failure in a different way - some of the folks in this book would seem like failures to me and to others like me but THEY didn;t see themselves that way and I think they are right! As soon as I put this book down I picked up Russo's " The Risk Pool" and was immediately captifvated again. Richard Russo can write and write beautifully. His is an extraordinary talent and I thank him for sharing it. My wife has not been able to put down "Nobody's Fool" and she NEVER reads a book I reccommend to her, but I catch her grinning when she doesn't know I am looking so there you have it! Read the book.

Rating:
Summary: I want to live in North Bath!!!!
Review: As funny and warm-hearted a novel as you will ever read. Sully is the perfect ironic hero. The characters are drawn so real and the setting is so believable that I reacted emotionally to their every twist and turn. I wish North Bath were a real town so I could move there and spend my day's wages with Sully at The Horse. I'd even buy him his evening's worth of beer.

Rating:
Summary: I read it ever-so slowly...I dreaded reaching the last page.
Review: Russo's writing is touching in its honesty. His characters are so well-developed and true you'll feel like you have shared an intimate conversation with them. As the book came to an end, well, I just didn't want to let go.

Rating:
Summary: A Banquet
Review: If you've seen the movie and not yet read the book, it's tantamount to eating a radish and missing the banquet. Fiction just doesn't get any better than this. Every character has been crafted to perfection. Rub, Clyde, Beryle, Wacker, Clive Junior, Wirf, and of course...Sully.They'll stay with you forever. Bravo Russo!

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Summary: The warmest, most cheering thing I've read in a long time.
Review: Having seen the movie, with Paul Newman perfectly cast as Sully (the rest of the casting was equally inspired), I looked for the book. I couldn't put it down. I was reading it in my truck at stoplights. Mr. Russo creates characters that reminded me of Steinbeck's struggling lower-rungers in "Cannery Row" and "Sweet Thursday". Were you ever afraid to pick up a new book, afraid it couldn't possibly be as satisifying as the one you just finished? That's the way I feel about "Nobody's Fool". Reader's block, I guess.

Rating:
Summary: Read this book!
Review: In brief, Nobody's Fool is yet another brilliant, hilarious and affectionate snapshot of small-town life in a fictional upstate New York town from Richard Russo. Though he mines the same territory in most of his works (absent, good-for-nothing fathers), in Nobody's Fool we get inside the head of one of these said fathers in Donald "Sully" Sullivan. And as is also the case with Russo's novels, his plots take their time to develop. In the hands of a less skilled writer, that could be infuriating, but Russo's prose and characterization is so entertaining, by the time he gets to the point you're having so much fun, it makes the wait more than worth it.

If you're looking for an introduction to Russo's work or just want a great novel to live with for a few weeks, Nobody's Fool is the perfect balance between "serious" literature and homespun storytelling. Do yourself a favor and start reading.

Rating:
Summary: Great Read
Review: Mr. Russo is becoming one of my favorite authors. NOBODY'S FOOL is about nothing and yet it is about everything. He presents with a group of richly drawn characters in a small "dying" town in upstate New York. Donald "Sully" Sullivan is at the heart of the novel and forever in our hearts. This novel is to be savored and enjoyed.

Rating:
Summary: Great read!
Review: Simply put, this book is a winner. If you love character development, great dialogue and wit, you'll laugh and cry to the last page. Some writers don't know how to end a novel, and leave readers feeling cheated, unsatisfied, or disappointed. Although I was worried as I neared the end of the book, I had nothing to fear. Richard Russo, in my opinion, couldn't have ended this story any better.