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Fool
Barnaby Griswold makes a terrific living from foolishness. A New York investments player who does his research eating and drinking, a joyously well-to-do man with absurd instincts for the next deal, Barnaby senses possibility even in two Oklahoma car dealers across a dining room at La Cote. He joins those boys for a carousing flight to Oklahoma City, and there divines the...more
Hardcover, 302 pages
Published
January 9th 1999
by Algonquin Books of Chapel Hill
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Fool is about a fool, or a fluffmeister. He is Barnaby Griswold and he has spent his life fluffing through deals, and doing alright in that it seems. Except this book sees him on worse times as he has got in trouble for his deals (short selling), is divorced, has no money, and is suspended from trading so is basically not doing anything (he has never had a proper job in 46 years of life).
So that is the plot pretty much although as Nancy Pearl (an American librarian who reads a lot) explains in h...more
So that is the plot pretty much although as Nancy Pearl (an American librarian who reads a lot) explains in h...more
This is a poignant and beautifully written story of Barnaby Griswold, a fool with a knack for making money and making deals. When the story begins, we find him clawing his way back to life after catastrophic financial losses and an ugly divorce. The novel is sprinkled with little bits of perfect honesty about life, hope, death, failure and the ability to bounce back. Dillen's first novel, Hero, won the Dictionary of Literary Biography's first novel prize.
Read this because I enjoyed Nancy Pearl's others suggestions. Overall liked it, but found it very slow moving. However, loved the ending...one of my favorite endings. Interesting read, but took time to get through.
My annotation: “You’re a fluffmeister” are the last words Barnaby Griswald’s father ever says to him. Yet a fluffmeister is Barnaby’s default, as much as he may try to be an athlete, a lover, or a pilgrim.
A clever little book short on plot but rich on character development. I can definately identify with the main character, Barnaby Griswold.
this was a fantastic tale of the merits of self reflection and rewards for changes wrought through perseverence and hard work one oneself. a totally lovable and identifiable antihero who had me standing in my chair cheering him on, while holding my breath and not daring to hope for the dream. Go Barnaby Griswold !!
May 04, 2013
Tammy
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