Susan Gerstein's Blog - Posts Tagged "richard-russo"
Everybody's Fool
Richard Russo had pulled off that rare miracle: reading his novel “Everybody’s Fool” (the long awaited sequel to "Nobody's Fool") is such a pleasure that, while turning the pages breathlessly to find out who did what, when, and why, and arrive at the hoped for conclusion, one also wishes it would continue on and on and keep providing the rueful laughter and deep insight into a the lives of his large cast of characters. Never does the pace slacken; never does the reader lose sight of what makes these inhabitants of a seedy upstate New York town tick. Russo's ear for dialogue, his rendition of the voices of the people inhabiting this book is flawless; it reminds me of the late, great John O'Hara whose protagonists of the most diverse ethnicities, classes and geographic locations were unforgettably rendered.
Although the actual timeframe during which the action in “Everybody’s Fool” takes place is a mere several days, one gets such a complete picture of each of the protagonists, even minor ones, that by the end of the novel one feels a deep understanding of what motivates each of them. These people are decidedly not glamourous, their lives are hobbled by both emotional and economic circumstances; their perspectives are limited; and yet their full humanity shines off the pages. Richard Russo has an unsurpassed sense of the absurd, and while one roots for Sully, Raymer, Charice, Ruth and company to overcome adversity and prevail in their endeavors, there is the comic amidst the sadness that on occasion evokes uncontrollable laughter. The very first chapter, a potentially stand-alone set piece, takes place in the town cemetery during the internment of an Important Personage, a judge of some standing attended by the town’s mayor and police chief among others, is a masterwork of rueful comedy that should be required reading by anyone aspiring to fiction writing. That Richard Russo manages to begin his story on such a high note and then manages to never fall off that standard, that he introduces a large cast of characters that we learn to care about – or loathe, as the case may be – putting them on a rollercoaster of a ride, then accomplishes a thoroughly satisfying ending to each strand of the saga is a unique accomplishment. Bravo!
Although the actual timeframe during which the action in “Everybody’s Fool” takes place is a mere several days, one gets such a complete picture of each of the protagonists, even minor ones, that by the end of the novel one feels a deep understanding of what motivates each of them. These people are decidedly not glamourous, their lives are hobbled by both emotional and economic circumstances; their perspectives are limited; and yet their full humanity shines off the pages. Richard Russo has an unsurpassed sense of the absurd, and while one roots for Sully, Raymer, Charice, Ruth and company to overcome adversity and prevail in their endeavors, there is the comic amidst the sadness that on occasion evokes uncontrollable laughter. The very first chapter, a potentially stand-alone set piece, takes place in the town cemetery during the internment of an Important Personage, a judge of some standing attended by the town’s mayor and police chief among others, is a masterwork of rueful comedy that should be required reading by anyone aspiring to fiction writing. That Richard Russo manages to begin his story on such a high note and then manages to never fall off that standard, that he introduces a large cast of characters that we learn to care about – or loathe, as the case may be – putting them on a rollercoaster of a ride, then accomplishes a thoroughly satisfying ending to each strand of the saga is a unique accomplishment. Bravo!
