Stoner: Book review by moi

That's right! I read stuff. I don't just go bowling and hang out with my dog even though I will admit that for most of the readthrough my dog was right next to me while that was going on. It's been a while since I started, read, and finished a book compared to what I was doing earlier this year and this one was actually one of the best books I have read in my life. Special thanks to my buddy who has a relatively huge library of books here in Vietnam where it is quite difficult to get books in English.

It says on the cover there that this is "the greatest novel you've never read" and I think that is very true for most people. Not only had I never read it, I was unaware of its existence. This book could very easily be made into a blockbuster movie and the story is something that might surprise you about how engaging it is even though the topic matter doesn't seem at first glance as though it would captivate readers at all.

First off, this book has nothing at all to do with weed or any other drugs. I don't know if "stoner" meant back when in 1965 what it means today but there is no mention of drugs of any sort in the entirety of this novel.

Stoner takes place at the turn of the 19th to 20th century and follows the life of William Stoner. He seems to be just a normal person who accidentally figures out that he has a massive love for literature while he is attending university, the first in his poor farming family to ever do so.

Without giving away the story I'll just say that William Stoner is totally unremarkable in almost every way yet the reason why this story captivated me so much is because of the "normal-ness" of the character. He gets through life with a bunch of trials and tribulations including office politics, difficulties relating to his father, and ending up in romantic situations that at first seem wonderful but turn out to be something else entirely.

The story is tragic yet wonderful and I think that most people will be able to see a bit of William Stoner in themselves and the seemingly unremarkable aspects of their own lives as well as the people around them.

This book was not very highly regarded at the time of its original release in the 60's but someone decided to re-release it in the 2000's to much critical acclaim. The original publishers had very little faith it the book's ability to sell... and they were correct. But for some reason it has had widespread appeal more than 40 years after it was written and has sold hundreds of thousands of copies in 21 different countries. Perhaps this is because the ideals that the book talks about aren't often encountered these days, but the everyday struggle that the book revolves around is something that I think almost all of us can relate to from some aspect or another in our own lives.

I just looked it up and it turns out that the rights to make a film out of this has been purchased by Film4, but as of yet there has been no movement in production. I think it could make for a great film but if you want to get a jump start on it before they make such a thing (if they make it at all) I highly recommend this book.

I wasn't expecting to enjoy it as much as I did but I stick by my word in stating that this book is beautifully depressing and relatable and therefore would be a top book that I have ever read in my life.

In the meantime Nadi has no idea why I put these things next to her when she is trying to sleep and would likely prefer that I just leave her alone and keep my paper bricks away from her.