Sully is just a wonderful main character and very, very lovable! I found myself saying often enough, 'Sully, Sully, Sully!' (a line that others in the book say frequently about Sully!)--not in exasperation, really, but more out of love for him. Tsk, tsk, tsk. There are a lot of good reviews on this book on here already, so I just want to add a few things. Yes, the dialogue is superb, as in Russo's other books, too. He has an incredible ear, and you really can open the book at any place and get absorbed in it--especially if you pick anywhere that has dialogue in it.
Also, I felt Sully was portrayed not just in all his flaws, but wholistically, as Russo showed Sully's compassionate side as well. Who else but Sully could handle old, demented Hattie so well and with such patience and humor? Who but Sully would 'get' at Carl with not only such crazy humor, but an underlying affection as well? Or take the time to talk with his elderly landlord each time he saw her? And yes, Sully might have had a lot of bad luck, but I felt that Russo strongly portrayed this irrascible character as having his share of good and happy moments as well, someone that yes, was having his own fun with life's tragedies. What I love about Russo's writing, too, is that he's never maudlin, always keeps things understated, or couches them in humor (but again, keeps things 'real').
This book, which is very 'dense' by the way, with its detail and dialogue (something I really liked), made me think about the role of luck in life, made me question how much we determine what we do, and if we can really change at age 60 or older (I think the answer, with Sully, is both yes and no, not to beg the question!).
This was a book that I got totally absorbed in, chuckled out loud at, laid aside to think about--and so now I'm looking forward to reading 'The Straight Man'. But think I'll buy a copy of this novel that's in better condition than the one I have, as it's a keeper, a book that can be read again and again, and a real winner. Russo has my admiration for his superb writing skills!
Also, this has to be one of the funniest (perhaps "wittiest" is a better word) books I've read in a long time. The humor seems effortless and grows naturally from the characters and their situations (though it's far from the strained sitcomy humor so many novelists seem to prefer). I often laughed out loud.
Highly recommended!
Nothing much happens in this novel, other than a few days in the life of Donald Sullivan, Sully, and the people who rotate around him in the small town of Bath, NY. But there is an Everyman quality in Sully's lackadaisical attitude toward life, his easy-going nature, his friendliness and grumpiness. He's the kind of person you'd never notice in a diner, but he's deeply ingrained in the life of this small community.
Richard Russo has a talent for developing characters, through their actions and the subtle flashbacks that talk about their pasts. Sully is the quintessential Russo character, and is charming and amiable, even if he can be a pain in the ass. But like all humans, he has good and bad qualities, and this book, more than anything, shows us how human being act in good and not so good ways.
This is such a good book it would go on my desert island list.
Russo's ear for dialogue is always pitch perfect and always makes a connection with the reader, causing either laugher or insight into the personalities of his characters. He clearly loves his characters, and his description makes you love them too, even when they're fairly unlovable. The main character, Sully, is a hard-as-nails 60-year-old curmudgeon who abandoned his wife and son when the latter was an infant. Since then, he's refused to take responsibility for anyone or anything, he's constantly humiliated and degraded his best friend, he's been in and out of jail, and he's never apologized or shown vulnerability to anyone. And yet, he's so well developed that you can't help feel sympathy, if not empathy, for him.
When his son reenters his life and introduces him to his grandson, a clear opportunity for softening up this crotchety old man presents itself, but Russo never reduces his characters with sentimentality. Though we get a glimpse of why Sully might be such a hard man (he was abused by his father when he was a child), you never get the impression that Russo is making excuses for him. Sure, you understand the ghosts that haunt Sully and see how such issues could do irreparable harm to someone, but none of this excuses the way he's treated his own son. His son doesn't excuse it, Sully doesn't argue the point, and as a reader you don't feel moved to do so either.
In the end, Sully has indeed grown and developed. He's accepted responsibility for a few things in his life, and he's even allowed a few people to do him some significant favors without rewarding their generosity with scorn. That said, even the ending of the book makes a point of resisting sentimentality, which would be way too easy. Sully's gains are modest, and there's no getting around the fact that age 60 is a little late to start changing people significantly. The book leaves you interested in where the twilight of Sully's years might take him, without dismissing the long, hard trip his life has been.
Oh yeah, though it might be hard to imagine it based on the heaviness of the themes address in this review, this book is laugh-out-loud funny too.