I simply couldn't wait to complete this book, solely for the purpose of penning a review to express just how dreadful I found it to be.

Judging from the other reviews, I suppose I'm in the minority here, but that's perfectly fine. In my opinion, with the exception of Miss Beryl and Will, there were essentially no likable or redeemable characters in this book. Everyone else seems to lead these abysmal, uninteresting lives and, quite frankly, seem to deserve precisely that.

I'm not entirely certain why the author felt the need to devote over 500 pages to a story that ostensibly spans only about one month. It struck me as being approximately 200 pages too long, and for about three-quarters of the characters, there wasn't a clear resolution.

I'm extremely disappointed in this book. I would never recommend it to anyone. I'm awarding it two stars solely because I'm aware that Russo is a talented author. He does manage to interweave a few moments of humor within this never-ending narrative of small-town folk who are masters of sarcasm and astonishingly mean-spirited towards one another, which is, to his credit, an admirable effort.

I came across an item on the book "Everybody's Fool" and discovered that it is a sequel to "Nobody's Fool". Fortunately, Costco had that on the table as well. It has been a long time since I read "Empire Falls" which won the Pulitzer. However, I remembered from that book, set in a similar place, that the book is long on character, short on plot. In other words, it's about life. I need to be in a certain mood for that type of tome, so I picked up and dove into this one.

Anyone who has grown up or spent time in a small Northeastern town as I did will appreciate this book. It has an amazing ability to create time and place and persons. I recognized my elderly elementary school teacher, the attorney, the keeper of the diner (which brought back memories of heading in after school for a cherry Coke and a grilled - not toasted! - English muffin for 25 cents), the local entrepreneur/real estate magnate, the small local bank executive, and the folks who hang around after high school since they really have no where else to go.

This is a phenomenal, beautifully written, engaging, and amusing work which I highly recommend.

Might as well turn this review into a "two/fer". I found out this was made into a movie starring Paul Newman. I thought to myself, how will they fit a 550 page novel into a 2 hour movie with all the intricate subplots and character interactions? Well, they did it by basically eliminating several of the characters and reshaping the story along just the major plot lines. The movie is well done. Newman was nominated for an Oscar and the other characters were also well cast. My wife noted, early on, "moves a bit slowly doesn't it?". Forty minutes later I asked if she wanted to stop watching and she said "No, I have to see what happens to these folks!". It grabs you just like the book. Not your story if you are looking for breakneck action, but if you want great characters and real life, this is a winner. I don't give too many 5 star reviews but both the book and the movie earned it!

I'm completely at a loss when it comes to understanding why this particular book has received such high ratings from my fellow readers.

Set in upstate NY and written back in 1994, I have a deep affection for upstate NY. However, I simply refuse to believe that it could be home to such sexist, mean-spirited, stupid, and racist individuals as portrayed in this book.

I searched high and low within the pages of this book but could not find a single redeeming quality. To make matters worse, the story seemed to drag on and on, never-ending.

It left me feeling disappointed and confused as to why others had such a different opinion of this book. Maybe I'm missing something, but as it stands, I just can't see the appeal.

4.5 Stars - Sometimes funny.......Sometimes Sad.......Sometimes even made me mad!

NOBODY'S FOOL is a story that delves into the ordinary yet extraordinary every day life of a small failing town. It is filled with unusual and addictive characters, each burdened with their own unique problems and unorthodox ways. The flawed 60-year-old Donald Sullivan, affectionately known as Sully, with his sarcastic mouth and bum knee, takes the reader on a memorable and often humorous journey through some of the unluckiest days of his life, which seem to be most of them. However, despite his flaws, his big heart and compassion for the old and weak truly shine through. Russo weaves a great tale, and having adored and laughed my way through the movie adaptation many times with my husband, I really thought I would breeze right through this 549-page novel. But in reality, that wasn't the case. Perhaps it was my mood or the bit of animal cruelty, which was worse than I recalled in the movie, but I just felt it was a little slow-paced and a bit too long. Still, it is a great read, and I am now eagerly looking forward to getting back to these crazy characters in EVERYBODY'S FOOL.

North Bath is a small and unremarkable town that exists in the shadow of its more prosperous neighbor, Schuyler Springs, in upstate New York. The new freeways have bypassed its fading grandeur, forever diverting people elsewhere. It is a backwater whose economic hopes rest on the proposed development of a large theme park.

Nobody's Fool indeed has a sense of the changing America, the advance of the new, and the unpredictable nature of big business. However, the novel is far more concerned with the characters who populate this small and isolated community.

Nobody's Fool is a sprawling novel that offers a detailed portrayal of small town life. We witness events unfold through the eyes of a group of larger-than-life yet very real characters. At the center of this group is Sully, a chronic underachiever who is always on the verge of a "stupid streak."

He is a tired 60-year-old with a bad knee and a history of broken and incomplete relationships. A working man and a jack-of-all-trades, he has a twinkle in his eye that makes it impossible for anyone to truly hate him (well, maybe except for the jealous banker Clive Jr).

Sully doesn't mean to cause harm to those around him; he simply doesn't think. He drifts through life haphazardly and is not the type to "indulge in regret" or desire much. If Sully were to reflect on his relationships with family and friends (which he rarely does), he would notice that they are constantly exasperated by him but are grudgingly glad he is there.

Sully is often bemused by other people. "In Sully's life, the years (let alone the days) glided by gracefully without boundaries, and he was always surprised by the endings and new beginnings that others saw, or thought they saw, in their existences."

Throughout the meandering narrative, we become intimately acquainted with Sully's adoring, slow-witted but philosophical friend Rub, his sharp-as-a-tack, octogenarian landlady and former schoolteacher Miss Beryl (a truly wonderful character), her mean-spirited son Clive Jr, Wirf the kindly, drunken lawyer, Carl Roebuck, Sully's sometime employer and nemesis, Vera his ex-wife, Ruth his long-term married lover, and Toby "the best looking woman in Bath," on whom he harbors a distant and inappropriate crush.

Nobody's Fool is a long novel with some slow sections, but it is filled with incisive characterizations and is very funny. I often found myself laughing out loud. It is also a warm and generous book that avoids being folksy, preachy, or pseudo-philosophical.

If you prefer short, focused, and carefully edited works of literature, then this may not be the book for you. However, if you are willing to immerse yourself in Sully's understated world, dedicate some time to the everyday dramas of North Bath, and simply go with the flow, you, like me, will love this book.

This was an interesting and yet frustrating book to review.

The characters within it are a complex mix. They are warm and kind at times, yet also capable of being hurtful. They show care for others, but also make some truly bad decisions.

We are informed right at the beginning that the town of Bath has been making poor decisions for a whopping 200 years. So, in a way, it seems almost understandable that the people there would follow suit.

Sully, in particular, is a frustrating and fascinating character. During the three weeks that the story unfolds, he makes some incredibly bone-headed decisions that are of the most self-destructive nature. However, he also goes out of his way to help and care for those around him. It's as if he is his own worst enemy. Every decision he makes, it seems, is hell-bent on destroying him, except for those he makes to assist others. Those decisions are, indeed, good.

There are many endearing characters in Bath. Take Beryl, for example, the octogenarian who believes in Sully above her own son. Then there's Wirf, the drunken, one-legged lawyer. And Rub, who simply wants to be Sully's best friend. These are just a few of the memorable characters.

This book is not only an interesting character study of a small town but also of a down-and-out man who seems determined to keep himself in a lowly state.

I look forward to continuing with Sully's story in Everybody's Fool one day soon.

It has been a full 7 years since I delved into this remarkable novel. That period is far too long, and unfortunately, I have forgotten the characters and the intricate details of the story.

Now, a sequel titled Everybody's Fool has emerged. As a result, I find it necessary to revisit Nobody's Fool once more to jog my memory.

I am a die-hard fan of Richard Russo. His writing style has always captivated me, and I am eager to immerse myself in his fictional world once again.

By rereading Nobody's Fool, I hope to regain a clear understanding of the original story and be better prepared to embrace the new adventures and developments in Everybody's Fool.

I look forward to rediscovering the charm and depth of Russo's work and sharing my thoughts and experiences with others.

This is truly interesting. I have received five likes, yet I haven't completed reading the book nor have I provided any comments on it. I find it rather strange that some people seem to be interested in the fact that I am reading this book which I consider to be both boring and interesting, with a touch of raunchiness. Every day, I pick it up with the intention of reading 20 pages. Sometimes, it manages to elicit a chuckle from me, while at other times, my mind simply drifts away. The book is great for helping me fall asleep easily when I go to bed, but then I quickly forget what I have read.

My husband was a construction worker, much like Sully, the main character in this book. The people in his company were also similar to Sully and his crew. He affectionately referred to them as "construction trash," and I assume that's what they called themselves as well. I didn't particularly enjoy being around them because they reminded me of the people Sully knew. However, I must admit that I do like Sully, his partner Rub, and his landlady, and I appreciate how he takes care of both of these people.

As for construction workers in general, there were some nice ones that my husband knew, but they were few and far between. When we lived in a small town of 200, I met ranchers and discovered that they were the type of people I liked the most. My husband would often drive into town to pick up something, and it would take him forever to return home. When he did, he would regale me with the stories he had heard in town, which were always quite entertaining.

The same thing would happen to me. I used to run into a woman in town who invited me to join their women's club. She thought I would enjoy it because it was a place where you could hear all the latest gossip, which she was eager to share with me. However, I refused to join for that very reason. She was turning some of the good ol' boys into bad apples, just like Sully's crowd, so I simply learned to tune her out and quickly forgot the stories she told.

I did enjoy one of her stories, though, which I will title "Fran and the Runaway Cow." A cow managed to escape just outside of town and was running across a rancher's property at the same time that Fran and her husband were driving down the road in her red convertible. They saw a man shooting at the cow, so they stopped the car and ran into the field after him. I can still picture Fran, wearing her high heel shoes and tight jeans, with her bleached blonde Dolly Parton hair, running across the field to confront the man. She said that she began crying and screaming at him, just like any ex-city person would do, even me. She told him that you don't shoot cows in front of people because it can be traumatic for them.

Then the owner of the ranch showed up. I imagine he was quite angry to find someone on his land shooting a rifle and a cow at the same time. He told the owner of the cow that it was now his cow. Can you believe that? He wouldn't let the owner of the dead cow take it away. Word spread around town within minutes, and soon ranchers came driving over to check out the cow. They brought hunting knives and maybe a chain saw or two. They cut up the cow and took it to a meat processing plant. Before long, the town had a free barbecue for everyone.

But you might ask, why did the man kill his own cow? He said that he was tired of it getting loose all the time and having to chase it down. I wonder if he ever thought of using more barbed wire on his fence. Now that's what I call a good story, even if it isn't written particularly well. It's not raunchy, and it's not long and drawn out.

I was recently talking to one of my friends about this book, and the conversation somehow shifted to racism. I told her how I had quit a club in the town where we are currently living because the members made racist comments. Well, she then started telling me about sycamore seeds and how they have a mouth but no brain. "Just like racists," she said. They also look like little aliens, which makes them rather scary. I don't think I managed to convince her to read this book, but I tried. Some things just don't happen, and there's usually a good reason for it.

Update: I was just over halfway through this book when the thought occurred to me: If I simply turn each page without actually reading them, can that count as having read the book?

Last update: I finally finished the book by speed reading. The movie was great, but the book was far too verbose for my taste. I will never attempt to read another book by this author, but according to reviews, most people seem to like his books. I just prefer a lot more action in my reading material.

Damn it was good to be back in North Bank with Sully and co.

Before I jump into Everybody's Fool, I decided to do a re-read. Russo is truly a master at capturing the essence of small town USA.

This book, upon re-reading, has revealed more problematic aspects than I recalled from my first reading. However, despite these flaws, it remains a joy to read.

The characters are so vividly drawn that they seem to come alive on the page. Sully, in particular, is a complex and engaging protagonist.

The story weaves together the lives of the townspeople in a way that is both realistic and captivating.

Russo's writing style is engaging and easy to follow, making it a pleasure to immerse oneself in the world of North Bank.

Overall, while this book may not be perfect, it is still a great read that I would highly recommend to anyone interested in small town life or character-driven fiction.

Rarely has a 550 - page book gone by so quickly for me!

The main character, Sully, seems to roll through his life almost aimlessly. One thing leads to another, and that momentum carries the reader along as well.

This novel is more of a slice - of - life than anything else. It presents the ordinary yet captivating events of Sully's life.

However, if it has any moral, it’s the importance of found families over those you grew up in. Sully discovers the significance of the relationships he forms along the way, which often mean more to him than his biological family.

Now I can't wait to see the 1994 movie starring Paul Newman. I'm curious to see how the movie adapts the story and brings Sully's character to life on the big screen.

I expect the movie to capture the essence of the novel and perhaps add its own unique touches to make it an equally engaging experience.

I'm looking forward to seeing how Paul Newman portrays Sully and whether he can bring out the character's complex emotions and personality.

I'm sure the movie will be a great addition to the story and will allow me to further immerse myself in Sully's world.

This book took an incredibly long time to read.

I was extremely interested in reading this particular book mainly because I discovered that there is now a sequel.

I had possessed the book for a considerable while yet never got around to reading it. The reason being that it is very thick, consisting of over 500 pages.

I recall seeing the Paul Newman movie way back in the 90's and absolutely loved it. Paul Newman was simply perfect for playing this character. He was outstanding in this role, just as he was in everything he did.

Subsequently, I read another book by Richard Russo and adored it. So, I once again decided that I had to read this book. Then, when I saw that the sequel was out, I knew without a doubt that I had to read it.

I did watch the movie again last weekend before I finally finished reading the book. I really enjoyed the fact that a lot of the funny remarks made in the book were retained in the movie. They did leave out a few characters, but the main ones were very well cast.

This book is highly enjoyable, but it is long and lacks traditional chapters. Instead, it is divided by the days of the week. It is composed entirely of dialogue and description, with lots of dialogue. That is precisely why I gave it a 4 and not a 5, as it truly did take me a long time to read it.

A slow read for me, but also perfectly timed.

The story kicks-off just before Thanksgiving, which is a time when families come together and give thanks for all the blessings in their lives.

As the story progresses, it picks-up around Christmas, a time of joy, celebration, and giving.

The characters in the story experience the magic of the holiday season, with twinkling lights, festive decorations, and the exchange of gifts.

Finally, the story ends on New Year’s Eve, a time to look back on the past year and look forward to the future.

The characters reflect on their experiences and make resolutions for the new year.

Overall, it was a wonderful read that captured the spirit of the holiday season and left me feeling warm and fuzzy inside.