patricia Heawood

This book wont appeal to everyone. Its tone, texture and message are out of tune with the aggressive 'positivity' which is everywhere extolled by our society. But I loved the hero of this novel, and to me, his quiet, dignified endurance was very moving. Someone said 'most people live lives of quiet desperation'. Some would say that's their own fault, but I think they are wrong. Life sometimes take mysterious turns, and who is to say how much we are in control of. Stoner is heroic in his quiet way. We all know someone like him: the decent, reliable, unshowy person who yet embodies a noble integrity.