Dear Committee Members
Books | Fiction / Literary
4
Julie Schumacher
“Like Richard Russo’s Straight Man this book has a lot to say about the humanities in American colleges and universities…. Very funny and also moving.” —Tom Perrotta, New York PostA BEST BOOK OF THE YEAR: NPR and Boston Globe Finally a novel that puts the "pissed" back into "epistolary." Jason Fitger is a beleaguered professor of creative writing and literature at Payne University, a small and not very distinguished liberal arts college in the midwest. His department is facing draconian cuts and squalid quarters, while one floor above them the Economics Department is getting lavishly remodeled offices. His once-promising writing career is in the doldrums, as is his romantic life, in part as the result of his unwise use of his private affairs for his novels. His star (he thinks) student can't catch a break with his brilliant (he thinks) work Accountant in a Bordello, based on Melville's Bartleby. In short, his life is a tale of woe, and the vehicle this droll and inventive novel uses to tell that tale is a series of hilarious letters of recommendation that Fitger is endlessly called upon by his students and colleagues to produce, each one of which is a small masterpiece of high dudgeon, low spirits, and passive-aggressive strategies. We recommend Dear Committee Members to you in the strongest possible terms.Don’t miss Julie Schumacher's new novel, The English Experience, coming soon.
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More Details:
Author
Julie Schumacher
Pages
192
Publisher
Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group
Published Date
2014-08-19
ISBN
0385538146 9780385538145
Community ReviewsSee all
"So incredibly clever! A laugh-out-loud read. "
M. A. Daniels
"A collection of increasingly florid, sardonic, and misanthropic letters of recommendation, composed by embittered creative writing professor Jason Fitger, encapsulates the petty absurdities of 21st century academia. Although better suited to a New Yorker “Shouts and Murmurs” column than a full length novel, Schumacher manages to draw pathos from Fitger’s life of noisy desperation. A few highlights:<br/><br/>“Be assured: the literature student has learned to enquire, to question, to interpret, to critique, to compare, to research, to argue, to sift, to analyze, to shape, to express. His intellect can be put to broad use. The computer major by contrast, is a technician—a plumber clutching a single , albeit shining box of tools.<br/><br/>“The reason for denial of his promotion was narrow scope of research/ limited field. Good lord: he’s a scholar of Slavic languages—fluent in nearly a dozen —do you want him to coach the volleyball team? Admittedly an absurd suggestion: I’m certain the volleyball coach earns three times the salary of a literature professor”<br/><br/>On a flagrantly unrepentant plagiarist: “If Sellebrita Online is in need of an editor/copywriter who refuses to allow the demands of honesty or originality to delay her output, it will have found one in the unflappable Ms Tara Tappani”.<br/><br/>“Let this humble communique serve as my recommendation for Lee Rosenthal; the poor kid tells me he has applied for a spring semester job in your office. He can read and write; he’s not unsightly, and he doesn’t appear to be addicted to illegal substances prior to 3:00 pm”<br/><br/>“Mr Knapp demonstrates all the winsome ebullience one expects these days from a young person more inclined to socialize with machines rather than human beings. His approach to problem solving is characterized by sullenness punctuated by occasional brief bouts of good judgment”."
Lesley Williams
"My exact sense of humor. "
Chris D
"Great format for light reading. Humorous and heartwarming with some unexpected twists and tear-jerker moments. You would never expect a story made of emails to be this good but it is! One off so you don’t have to worry about a series"
L R
Liz Rade
