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A Fool Among Fools
It's 1986. Ronald Reagan is in the White House, Molly Ringwald is on the cover of Time and 29-year-old Michael Gregoretti is a struggling, underpaid copywriter at a big New York ad agency. He'd rather be writing plays; instead, he's writing awful commercials for a moisturizer formulated to conquer that dire, life-threatening condition: handruff.
Michael reluctantly accepts an assignment on a brand-new (and very secret) product – an aerosol butter – hoping it will lead to the kind of work that will land him a better job at another agency. But there's a catch: Working on this new account will also mean working for the rigid, compulsive and quite possibly insane Gwen Hammond, who thinks that Michael, with his off-the-wall ideas and unconventional campaigns, is just too much of a rebel to work with such a conservative client.
To further complicate life, Michael meets and falls for Craig Connolly, an absolute dreamboat from the South with a voice like FM radio and a face to match. Craig claims he'd like to be in a relationship and Michael wants to believe it. The problem is, Craig is already married – to his job.
Michael survives it all with the help of his two best friends: Irene Lucca, a witty book editor with a flair for vintage clothing and an eye for the art director Michael works with, and Anthony DeLorenzo, Michael's wise (and wisecracking) roommate and staunchest supporter.
By the time A Fool Among Fools ends, Michael has battled stuffy clients and stifling supervisors, written and produced what just might be the worst commercials in the history of advertising, found and lost love, and managed to keep himself – and the reader – laughing along the way.
Michael reluctantly accepts an assignment on a brand-new (and very secret) product – an aerosol butter – hoping it will lead to the kind of work that will land him a better job at another agency. But there's a catch: Working on this new account will also mean working for the rigid, compulsive and quite possibly insane Gwen Hammond, who thinks that Michael, with his off-the-wall ideas and unconventional campaigns, is just too much of a rebel to work with such a conservative client.
To further complicate life, Michael meets and falls for Craig Connolly, an absolute dreamboat from the South with a voice like FM radio and a face to match. Craig claims he'd like to be in a relationship and Michael wants to believe it. The problem is, Craig is already married – to his job.
Michael survives it all with the help of his two best friends: Irene Lucca, a witty book editor with a flair for vintage clothing and an eye for the art director Michael works with, and Anthony DeLorenzo, Michael's wise (and wisecracking) roommate and staunchest supporter.
By the time A Fool Among Fools ends, Michael has battled stuffy clients and stifling supervisors, written and produced what just might be the worst commercials in the history of advertising, found and lost love, and managed to keep himself – and the reader – laughing along the way.
- GenresFiction
375 pages, ebook
First published May 19, 2013
4 people are currently reading
70 people want to read
About the author
John Terracuso
1 book7 followersJohn Terracuso spent most of the 1980s working in New York City as an advertising copywriter. He then moved to HBO Home Video as creative services manager, followed by a stint in the New York PBS press office.
John has worked on several documentary and independent films, and wrote, produced, and directed the video short "It’s Someone’s Wonderful Life." John also wrote the pilot and several early episodes of "In the Life," the pioneering LGBT news and variety program seen nationwide on PBS stations. He is currently a freelance writer and fundraising consultant.
John has written four screenplays, including an adaptation of "The Traveler" in collaboration with the play’s author, Jean-Claude van Itallie.
John grew up on Long Island and graduated from Fairfield University in 1979. He lives in San Diego with Wendell Wyatt. They were married in 2014 on the seventeenth anniversary of the day they met.
A FOOL AMONG FOOLS is his first novel.
John has worked on several documentary and independent films, and wrote, produced, and directed the video short "It’s Someone’s Wonderful Life." John also wrote the pilot and several early episodes of "In the Life," the pioneering LGBT news and variety program seen nationwide on PBS stations. He is currently a freelance writer and fundraising consultant.
John has written four screenplays, including an adaptation of "The Traveler" in collaboration with the play’s author, Jean-Claude van Itallie.
John grew up on Long Island and graduated from Fairfield University in 1979. He lives in San Diego with Wendell Wyatt. They were married in 2014 on the seventeenth anniversary of the day they met.
A FOOL AMONG FOOLS is his first novel.
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Displaying 1 - 17 of 17 reviews
December 14, 2013
Adventures in Advertising ... This book was something of a nostalgic trip back to my own late 20s. The author and I were acquaintances within a large circle of gay men centered in Hoboken, New Jersey in the 1980s. I hadn't heard of him in probably twenty years, and when this book popped up, I had to read it.
Terracuso is a good writer - quick, amusing, literate (oh, dear lord, how nice to read someone who knows actual grammar rules and uses them!). His darkly comic memoir of life in a large (fictitious) advertising agency is really the story about a 29-year-old gay man facing the uncertainties and all-too-real fears of life in that dark decade, when Reagan was president and AIDS was killing us off as we were just beginning to mature.
Terracuso wonderfully captures both the sense of place and the emotional context of the time, reflecting gay New York in the years when Greenwich Village was the gay place to hang out and Chelsea was simply another neighborhood without much cachet.
The character of Michael Gregoretti is not entirely lovable - nor is he intended to be. Don't get me wrong - he's a nice guy, an attractive guy, with good ideas and a big heart. But he's embittered by the double whammy of a frustrating job in a homophobic corporation and life in the shadow of a plague. In fact, Michael is a bit of a whiner, and while his complaints are justified nicely by his razor sharp depiction of ad agency behavior, Terracuso writes him with enough spleen that he begins to get tiresome - just like lots of those friends we all had back then. What ultimately saves Michael from being unlikable is both the friends he has in the book - his marvelous roommate Anthony and his romance-writer chum Irene - and his parents. Rose and Joe Gregoretti live on Long Island, and Michael visits them periodically during the year in which the book takes place. We learn a great deal about this couple, and indeed a good bit of the family, during the crucial moments when they are on stage with their son. The love these two very real people show their son proves that he must be a great guy and worthy of our love as well.
"A Fool Among Fools" is sort of a "Mad Men" from a gay angle during the darkest time in gay history in America. I stopped watching "Mad Men" two seasons ago because I couldn't see myself in it any more...but, although I never worked in advertising, my heart was right in the middle of Michael Gregoretti's life. We've all known what it is to be a fool among fools.
Terracuso is a good writer - quick, amusing, literate (oh, dear lord, how nice to read someone who knows actual grammar rules and uses them!). His darkly comic memoir of life in a large (fictitious) advertising agency is really the story about a 29-year-old gay man facing the uncertainties and all-too-real fears of life in that dark decade, when Reagan was president and AIDS was killing us off as we were just beginning to mature.
Terracuso wonderfully captures both the sense of place and the emotional context of the time, reflecting gay New York in the years when Greenwich Village was the gay place to hang out and Chelsea was simply another neighborhood without much cachet.
The character of Michael Gregoretti is not entirely lovable - nor is he intended to be. Don't get me wrong - he's a nice guy, an attractive guy, with good ideas and a big heart. But he's embittered by the double whammy of a frustrating job in a homophobic corporation and life in the shadow of a plague. In fact, Michael is a bit of a whiner, and while his complaints are justified nicely by his razor sharp depiction of ad agency behavior, Terracuso writes him with enough spleen that he begins to get tiresome - just like lots of those friends we all had back then. What ultimately saves Michael from being unlikable is both the friends he has in the book - his marvelous roommate Anthony and his romance-writer chum Irene - and his parents. Rose and Joe Gregoretti live on Long Island, and Michael visits them periodically during the year in which the book takes place. We learn a great deal about this couple, and indeed a good bit of the family, during the crucial moments when they are on stage with their son. The love these two very real people show their son proves that he must be a great guy and worthy of our love as well.
"A Fool Among Fools" is sort of a "Mad Men" from a gay angle during the darkest time in gay history in America. I stopped watching "Mad Men" two seasons ago because I couldn't see myself in it any more...but, although I never worked in advertising, my heart was right in the middle of Michael Gregoretti's life. We've all known what it is to be a fool among fools.
October 29, 2017
Traditionally, there are more novels about the advertising industry than there are about most other industries, and the reason is not hard to find: advertising employs copywriters, many of whom are also would-be fiction writers. John Terracuso's A Fool Among Fools is an engaging entry in the micro-genre of advertising fiction, and you could also tag it as a gay novel, a New York City novel, and an Eighties novel, if you're into tagging. But it's really the advertising that's front and center here, and it would be unfortunate if, because the author and his protagonist Michael Gregoretti are gay men, the novel got restricted to a gay male readership. It has plenty else to offer besides sharp insights into gay relationships in the early AIDS era (although those insights are spot on).
I should pause here to get something out of the way: A Fool Among Fools is nothing at all like a certain television series about advertising you may have heard of. It's set in a different time period, it is not about being stylish in any sense, and it is decidedly not an ensemble piece. Since Terracuso chose to write the novel in the first person from Michael's POV, everything and everyone is filtered through his reactions, and the other characters do not have rounded dimensionality. Michael is an old-movie buff, and whether consciously or not, he sees everyone as fulfilling their role, major or supporting, in his story.
Michael's self-absorption could have been a drag, but I found the pages flying by. As in many other good first person novels, we are given enough information to "read past" the narrator. For example, most readers will have decided by the half-way point that one of the reasons that Michael is so unhappy in advertising is that he lacks the right talents for it. Not just writing talent, but the right sort of interpersonal talents as well.
That is not to let the advertising profession off the hook. Michael's feelings about it may be slightly exaggerated, but they do not seem unjust. He may caricature some of the colleagues and clients that he dislikes, but that they are basically mighty unpleasant, one does not doubt.
Wait a second, though! Isn't this a comic novel?
Ostensibly. However, my own anti-corporate biases will undoubtedly shine through when I say that I think that most straightforward narratives with workplace settings are melancholy if not downright depressing. People are not at their best in the workplace; they are usually much closer to their worst. A Fool Among Fools does capture that, and at a very fine level of grain, by going so deeply into the processes involved with specific ad campaigns that you are suffering right along with Michael and the others. Matthew Weiner could never do this on Mad Men, where a dozen pots have to be boiling at once. Television is just a different medium.
The satirical dimension of A Fool Among Fools is nippy rather than outright bitey, and this moderate approach pays off nicely in a "third-act revelation" about the worst person at the agency (and Michael's particular nemesis). As Michael says (and here he speaks for the reader as well), "It was amazing how many suspicions and unconscious observations could collide in my head in that half-second and suddenly all fit together and make perfect sense." It's a great moment, and one that has been perfectly set up in the course of the novel. Well done, Mr. Terracuso.
Michael's social and romantic life is constantly being squeezed by the demands of his professional life, which is very true in New York in any era. When it comes to gay protagonists, Michael seems to be of a type, most of whom, oddly, get named "Michael" by their creators. Let's see, there is Michael "Mouse" Tolliver in Armistead Maupin's great Tales of the City series, and then there is Michael Novotny, played by Hal Sparks on the U.S. version of Queer as Folk. There is an essay to be written on the Importance of Being Michael, apparently.
All these Michaels are "ordinary guys." They are reasonably handsome without being devastating. They are not tall. They are mild-mannered, although capable of cheek. They can be a touch geeky about their interests. They have close female confidantes. They pine for the perfect boyfriend. They are not hyper-sexual. They feel uncomfortable in leather bars and have to be persuaded to visit them. And so on.
There is a truism in big cities that when it comes to the great job, the great apartment, and the great romantic partner, you can have two if you're lucky, but you can never have all three. Michael Gregoretti barely even has one; the living arrangement with his roommate is OK. His job is terrible, and his boyfriend for most of the book is a cad par excellence. I like the way that Terracuso makes the boyfriend HIV-positive and still keeps him assholish; in most gay novels, that diagnosis is an early warning sign of impending sainthood. No such sentimentality here, which is nice.
When you turn the final page, you may realize that Terracuso has allowed his narrator virtually no victories in the course of the novel, only some tentative glimmers at the end; which is surely unusual. Is A Fool Among Fools bitter about corporate employment, the advertising world, gay New York City, the lies of romance, some combination of these, or is it simply bitter about life in general? It is surely bitter about something, but that is the source of the book's tang. It's better off without sugar-coating.
I should pause here to get something out of the way: A Fool Among Fools is nothing at all like a certain television series about advertising you may have heard of. It's set in a different time period, it is not about being stylish in any sense, and it is decidedly not an ensemble piece. Since Terracuso chose to write the novel in the first person from Michael's POV, everything and everyone is filtered through his reactions, and the other characters do not have rounded dimensionality. Michael is an old-movie buff, and whether consciously or not, he sees everyone as fulfilling their role, major or supporting, in his story.
Michael's self-absorption could have been a drag, but I found the pages flying by. As in many other good first person novels, we are given enough information to "read past" the narrator. For example, most readers will have decided by the half-way point that one of the reasons that Michael is so unhappy in advertising is that he lacks the right talents for it. Not just writing talent, but the right sort of interpersonal talents as well.
That is not to let the advertising profession off the hook. Michael's feelings about it may be slightly exaggerated, but they do not seem unjust. He may caricature some of the colleagues and clients that he dislikes, but that they are basically mighty unpleasant, one does not doubt.
Wait a second, though! Isn't this a comic novel?
Ostensibly. However, my own anti-corporate biases will undoubtedly shine through when I say that I think that most straightforward narratives with workplace settings are melancholy if not downright depressing. People are not at their best in the workplace; they are usually much closer to their worst. A Fool Among Fools does capture that, and at a very fine level of grain, by going so deeply into the processes involved with specific ad campaigns that you are suffering right along with Michael and the others. Matthew Weiner could never do this on Mad Men, where a dozen pots have to be boiling at once. Television is just a different medium.
The satirical dimension of A Fool Among Fools is nippy rather than outright bitey, and this moderate approach pays off nicely in a "third-act revelation" about the worst person at the agency (and Michael's particular nemesis). As Michael says (and here he speaks for the reader as well), "It was amazing how many suspicions and unconscious observations could collide in my head in that half-second and suddenly all fit together and make perfect sense." It's a great moment, and one that has been perfectly set up in the course of the novel. Well done, Mr. Terracuso.
Michael's social and romantic life is constantly being squeezed by the demands of his professional life, which is very true in New York in any era. When it comes to gay protagonists, Michael seems to be of a type, most of whom, oddly, get named "Michael" by their creators. Let's see, there is Michael "Mouse" Tolliver in Armistead Maupin's great Tales of the City series, and then there is Michael Novotny, played by Hal Sparks on the U.S. version of Queer as Folk. There is an essay to be written on the Importance of Being Michael, apparently.
All these Michaels are "ordinary guys." They are reasonably handsome without being devastating. They are not tall. They are mild-mannered, although capable of cheek. They can be a touch geeky about their interests. They have close female confidantes. They pine for the perfect boyfriend. They are not hyper-sexual. They feel uncomfortable in leather bars and have to be persuaded to visit them. And so on.
There is a truism in big cities that when it comes to the great job, the great apartment, and the great romantic partner, you can have two if you're lucky, but you can never have all three. Michael Gregoretti barely even has one; the living arrangement with his roommate is OK. His job is terrible, and his boyfriend for most of the book is a cad par excellence. I like the way that Terracuso makes the boyfriend HIV-positive and still keeps him assholish; in most gay novels, that diagnosis is an early warning sign of impending sainthood. No such sentimentality here, which is nice.
When you turn the final page, you may realize that Terracuso has allowed his narrator virtually no victories in the course of the novel, only some tentative glimmers at the end; which is surely unusual. Is A Fool Among Fools bitter about corporate employment, the advertising world, gay New York City, the lies of romance, some combination of these, or is it simply bitter about life in general? It is surely bitter about something, but that is the source of the book's tang. It's better off without sugar-coating.
July 23, 2013
4.5 stars
A Fool Among Fools by John Terracuso is not your typical M/M offering. This novel strays into the territory of self-revelation and keenly observes just how much the heart can endure before losing not only its fighting spirit but its joy as well.
Michael has dreams of being a writer. He whittles away at his own script for stage while toiling in a frustrating and most assuredly soul sucking job as a “junior” copywriter for product placement ads such as faux butter and nail strengthening kits. Along the way, he meets a man who seems to be so perfect yet can’t commit to any type of relationship, constantly stringing Michael along month after month until Michael realizes that to protect his heart, he needs to end whatever it is they had going in the first place.
Luckily, Michael also has incredibly warm and supportive parents who lend a great deal of comedic relief to an otherwise unhappy story and two close and loyal friends who try to steer Michael away from the ever present doomsday thought patterns he has about his life. No, this was far from a typical m/m romance; this was more of a fictional biography that made me alternately laugh and want to tear my hair out.
While the thrust of this novel is Michael’s increasing hatred for his job and for his bosses, the real message here is the idea of how much we endure so as not to look like the failures we fear we might be. The main character grapples relentlessly with the idea that time is marching on and he has so very little to show for it, in terms of both job success and artistic fulfillment. He is, in every sense of the word, trapped—in a thankless job, a strange and unsatisfying relationship, and his own desire to be a writer.
However, author John Terracuso keeps this novel from being just a whiny introspection and cleverly morphs it into a statement about how much the human spirit can endure and still keep moving forward toward happiness. He gives us delightful side characters that support his main character and also enlighten, cajole, humor and, yes, correct him as well. These are friends who point out not only the good in Michael’s life but the fact that he has a future ahead of him that will not always be so bleak.
As a result, there is a real sense of family and love that surrounds Michael and keeps him from going off the deep end over and over. Yes, we watch with growing frustration and a bit of real horror at how hw is constantly manipulated and tossed aside at his work and by his erstwhile lover, but we also sigh in relief as he bounces back again and again with his humor and sense of self intact. Michael is a cog in a corporate dime-a-dozen job but in the end he finds what is true and right and clings to it with all his strength. There is such hope at the end of this novel for our struggling hero.
If you are looking for another typical m/m romance then A Fool Among Fools by John Terracuso is not the book for you. However, if you are looking for a novel filled with wit and soul searching and, yes, a bit of redemption than this entertaining novel may just be the one you’ve been waiting for.
A Fool Among Fools by John Terracuso is not your typical M/M offering. This novel strays into the territory of self-revelation and keenly observes just how much the heart can endure before losing not only its fighting spirit but its joy as well.
Michael has dreams of being a writer. He whittles away at his own script for stage while toiling in a frustrating and most assuredly soul sucking job as a “junior” copywriter for product placement ads such as faux butter and nail strengthening kits. Along the way, he meets a man who seems to be so perfect yet can’t commit to any type of relationship, constantly stringing Michael along month after month until Michael realizes that to protect his heart, he needs to end whatever it is they had going in the first place.
Luckily, Michael also has incredibly warm and supportive parents who lend a great deal of comedic relief to an otherwise unhappy story and two close and loyal friends who try to steer Michael away from the ever present doomsday thought patterns he has about his life. No, this was far from a typical m/m romance; this was more of a fictional biography that made me alternately laugh and want to tear my hair out.
While the thrust of this novel is Michael’s increasing hatred for his job and for his bosses, the real message here is the idea of how much we endure so as not to look like the failures we fear we might be. The main character grapples relentlessly with the idea that time is marching on and he has so very little to show for it, in terms of both job success and artistic fulfillment. He is, in every sense of the word, trapped—in a thankless job, a strange and unsatisfying relationship, and his own desire to be a writer.
However, author John Terracuso keeps this novel from being just a whiny introspection and cleverly morphs it into a statement about how much the human spirit can endure and still keep moving forward toward happiness. He gives us delightful side characters that support his main character and also enlighten, cajole, humor and, yes, correct him as well. These are friends who point out not only the good in Michael’s life but the fact that he has a future ahead of him that will not always be so bleak.
As a result, there is a real sense of family and love that surrounds Michael and keeps him from going off the deep end over and over. Yes, we watch with growing frustration and a bit of real horror at how hw is constantly manipulated and tossed aside at his work and by his erstwhile lover, but we also sigh in relief as he bounces back again and again with his humor and sense of self intact. Michael is a cog in a corporate dime-a-dozen job but in the end he finds what is true and right and clings to it with all his strength. There is such hope at the end of this novel for our struggling hero.
If you are looking for another typical m/m romance then A Fool Among Fools by John Terracuso is not the book for you. However, if you are looking for a novel filled with wit and soul searching and, yes, a bit of redemption than this entertaining novel may just be the one you’ve been waiting for.
May 7, 2014
C+
First of all I would like to thank the author for sharing his book with us. A Fool Among Fools is not your typical MM book, I can not categorize this book as romance, is not 100% non fiction either.
This book is almost an autobiography. The events told from Michael´s POV are about routine, about work, about everyday issues we all face. And here lies one of the first things that got me thinking, I complain about my own boss everyday (or almost everyday) why would I want to read about someone else´s job problems and abusive bosses? Well, it will put your own office drama into perspective that's for sure.
On that note it was very depressing, Michael doesn't seem to be able to achieve his goals in life and is too scared to make a drastic change in his job to try something new. I guess we can all relate to that, one way or another.
Other than the huge amount of marketing and brand campaigns knowledge I got from Michael, his job and the main plot line of the book turn repetitive at times.
On the other side we have some brilliant scenes and moments in this book. Most of those moments revolved around Anthony, who I absolutely adored. Michael needed some serious help with his personal life too, and no one could do it better than BFF Anthony. He is funny, he is caring, the perfect companion to Michael´s drama.
Another secondary character that moved me, and was only there for a short appearance was Michael´s father, all the support and all the love Michael's needs was right there. Not so much with his homophobic brother. Michael´s interaction with his Dad got me all emotional.
Craig, the love interest. There is not much to say, even when Michael thinks he is in love, as a reader you don't see it, don´t feel it. He cares for Craig as a friend would do, and Craig is just too self absorbed to care about anyone else but him and his job. Sadly, life will turn the tables on him and he might find that there are other things that are important in life.
This is definitely different. Good or bad different? I will leave that up to you. There is a lot of content in this book, slow development of events, not much romance and some moments of pure genius, that are worth the reading time.
There is a lesson I take away from this book, because if nothing else it will leave you thinking about your own life, how much we endure in order to achieve our dreams. How much we are capable of. And when we have finally had enough and need to say no.
Reviewed by Connie
To see more of this review and others like it please visit us at Gay List Book Reviews at www.gaylistbookreviews.wordpress.com
First of all I would like to thank the author for sharing his book with us. A Fool Among Fools is not your typical MM book, I can not categorize this book as romance, is not 100% non fiction either.
This book is almost an autobiography. The events told from Michael´s POV are about routine, about work, about everyday issues we all face. And here lies one of the first things that got me thinking, I complain about my own boss everyday (or almost everyday) why would I want to read about someone else´s job problems and abusive bosses? Well, it will put your own office drama into perspective that's for sure.
On that note it was very depressing, Michael doesn't seem to be able to achieve his goals in life and is too scared to make a drastic change in his job to try something new. I guess we can all relate to that, one way or another.
Other than the huge amount of marketing and brand campaigns knowledge I got from Michael, his job and the main plot line of the book turn repetitive at times.
On the other side we have some brilliant scenes and moments in this book. Most of those moments revolved around Anthony, who I absolutely adored. Michael needed some serious help with his personal life too, and no one could do it better than BFF Anthony. He is funny, he is caring, the perfect companion to Michael´s drama.
Another secondary character that moved me, and was only there for a short appearance was Michael´s father, all the support and all the love Michael's needs was right there. Not so much with his homophobic brother. Michael´s interaction with his Dad got me all emotional.
Craig, the love interest. There is not much to say, even when Michael thinks he is in love, as a reader you don't see it, don´t feel it. He cares for Craig as a friend would do, and Craig is just too self absorbed to care about anyone else but him and his job. Sadly, life will turn the tables on him and he might find that there are other things that are important in life.
This is definitely different. Good or bad different? I will leave that up to you. There is a lot of content in this book, slow development of events, not much romance and some moments of pure genius, that are worth the reading time.
There is a lesson I take away from this book, because if nothing else it will leave you thinking about your own life, how much we endure in order to achieve our dreams. How much we are capable of. And when we have finally had enough and need to say no.
Reviewed by Connie
To see more of this review and others like it please visit us at Gay List Book Reviews at www.gaylistbookreviews.wordpress.com
March 20, 2014
Synopsis: "It's 1986. Ronald Reagan is in the White House, Molly Ringwald is on the cover of Time and 29-year-old Michael Gregoretti is a struggling, underpaid copywriter at a big New York ad agency. He'd rather be writing plays; instead, he's writing awful commercials for a moisturizer formulated to conquer that dire, life-threatening condition: handruff.
Michael reluctantly accepts an assignment on a brand-new (and very secret) product – an aerosol butter – hoping it will lead to the kind of work that will land him a better job at another agency. But there's a catch: Working on this new account will also mean working for the rigid, compulsive and quite possibly insane Gwen Hammond, who thinks that Michael, with his off-the-wall ideas and unconventional campaigns, is just too much of a rebel to work with such a conservative client.
To further complicate life, Michael meets and falls for Craig Connolly, an absolute dreamboat from the South with a voice like FM radio and a face to match. Craig claims he'd like to be in a relationship and Michael wants to believe it. The problem is, Craig is already married – to his job.
Michael survives it all with the help of his two best friends: Irene Lucca, a witty book editor with a flair for vintage clothing and an eye for the art director Michael works with, and Anthony DeLorenzo, Michael's wise (and wisecracking) roommate and staunchest supporter.
By the time A Fool Among Fools ends, Michael has battled stuffy clients and stifling supervisors, written and produced what just might be the worst commercials in the history of advertising, found and lost love, and managed to keep himself – and the reader – laughing along the way."
My Review: This was a little outside my normal reading genres, but when the author contacted me for a review I thought it would be a fun, snarky book to read for a change. It really struck me as almost a Seinfeld style humor, finding the comedy in the everyday moments. There were times that the story kind of went a little slow but then you would catch a bit of humor that you could totally relate to your life (and then you start to sound like a lunatic because you are laughing so hard about something so simple). I missed a lot of the movie and actor/actresses and they didn't add to the story for me. That said, I still thoroughly enjoyed the characters and their interactions. I really loved the ending by the way.
Michael reluctantly accepts an assignment on a brand-new (and very secret) product – an aerosol butter – hoping it will lead to the kind of work that will land him a better job at another agency. But there's a catch: Working on this new account will also mean working for the rigid, compulsive and quite possibly insane Gwen Hammond, who thinks that Michael, with his off-the-wall ideas and unconventional campaigns, is just too much of a rebel to work with such a conservative client.
To further complicate life, Michael meets and falls for Craig Connolly, an absolute dreamboat from the South with a voice like FM radio and a face to match. Craig claims he'd like to be in a relationship and Michael wants to believe it. The problem is, Craig is already married – to his job.
Michael survives it all with the help of his two best friends: Irene Lucca, a witty book editor with a flair for vintage clothing and an eye for the art director Michael works with, and Anthony DeLorenzo, Michael's wise (and wisecracking) roommate and staunchest supporter.
By the time A Fool Among Fools ends, Michael has battled stuffy clients and stifling supervisors, written and produced what just might be the worst commercials in the history of advertising, found and lost love, and managed to keep himself – and the reader – laughing along the way."
My Review: This was a little outside my normal reading genres, but when the author contacted me for a review I thought it would be a fun, snarky book to read for a change. It really struck me as almost a Seinfeld style humor, finding the comedy in the everyday moments. There were times that the story kind of went a little slow but then you would catch a bit of humor that you could totally relate to your life (and then you start to sound like a lunatic because you are laughing so hard about something so simple). I missed a lot of the movie and actor/actresses and they didn't add to the story for me. That said, I still thoroughly enjoyed the characters and their interactions. I really loved the ending by the way.
March 9, 2015
Original Blog Post: Review Request & #Giveaway: A Fool Among Fools by John Terracuso
***We would like to thank author John Terracuso for donating an ebook copy of A Fool Among Fools, to 1 lucky commentator who gets chosen. Make sure to leave a comment in the post to get a free ebook copy of A Fool Among Fools.***
John Terracuso took me back to the good old days of the 1980s. I am a child of that generation and I remember how there was a whole lot of hope floating around. When Ronald Reagan became president, it was not a shocker, he was popular and he seemed the right choice. Michael is a man of this time and he goes on with his life filled with hope. As a writer, Michael had dreams of becoming a successful playwright but currently, he is a copywriter for an ad agency and the politics and intrigue going on around the workplace made all his dreams go poof and with it? His love life. Well, until Craig that is. Michael thinks he's got hope again but that goes blown in the wind when Craig turns out not to be the perfect man for him.
There is a lot going on here, many of which are funny and some are sad, but overall, it just tells us the life that is Michael. The good thing is, Michael has his friends to turn to and maybe give him the shoulder to gripe on. The better thing, the author is an awesome writer who makes me feel inadequate writing this review.
I mean, seriously (see?!), how often do I get to read a work style and talent I only met when reading the classics? The writing is superb, the editing is excellent (I am no editor but I cannot spot a flaw here) and the plot development did not leave room for doubts or excuses. His descriptive word makes for great imagery and does not leave any doubt that what went on inside his workplace were actually experienced by the author. I have a feeling this is almost autobiographical but then again, all authors leave a little of themselves in all their works. Thing is, what went on here was funnily accurate and real from his whinging to his griping to his bitterness of not being able to be who he really is: a gay man in the 80s.
This is a great read although I must say that not all would love to read a book where an HEA or an HFN is in the horizon. What I got is, Michael went on with life, for the better? For the worse? I don't know.
***We would like to thank author John Terracuso for donating an ebook copy of A Fool Among Fools, to 1 lucky commentator who gets chosen. Make sure to leave a comment in the post to get a free ebook copy of A Fool Among Fools.***
John Terracuso took me back to the good old days of the 1980s. I am a child of that generation and I remember how there was a whole lot of hope floating around. When Ronald Reagan became president, it was not a shocker, he was popular and he seemed the right choice. Michael is a man of this time and he goes on with his life filled with hope. As a writer, Michael had dreams of becoming a successful playwright but currently, he is a copywriter for an ad agency and the politics and intrigue going on around the workplace made all his dreams go poof and with it? His love life. Well, until Craig that is. Michael thinks he's got hope again but that goes blown in the wind when Craig turns out not to be the perfect man for him.
There is a lot going on here, many of which are funny and some are sad, but overall, it just tells us the life that is Michael. The good thing is, Michael has his friends to turn to and maybe give him the shoulder to gripe on. The better thing, the author is an awesome writer who makes me feel inadequate writing this review.
I mean, seriously (see?!), how often do I get to read a work style and talent I only met when reading the classics? The writing is superb, the editing is excellent (I am no editor but I cannot spot a flaw here) and the plot development did not leave room for doubts or excuses. His descriptive word makes for great imagery and does not leave any doubt that what went on inside his workplace were actually experienced by the author. I have a feeling this is almost autobiographical but then again, all authors leave a little of themselves in all their works. Thing is, what went on here was funnily accurate and real from his whinging to his griping to his bitterness of not being able to be who he really is: a gay man in the 80s.
This is a great read although I must say that not all would love to read a book where an HEA or an HFN is in the horizon. What I got is, Michael went on with life, for the better? For the worse? I don't know.
June 29, 2015
Ah, 1986; the year of Chernobyl, the birth of the Oprah Winfrey Show, and another average year in terms of hopes and dreams in New York City. Using 1986 as the setting for his hilarious and touching “A Fool Among Fools,” John Terracuso cleverly uses the readers fondness for the past to tell a story that is like a brilliant mash-up of a great 80’s tv show sprinkled with all the good parts of a Jennifer Aniston movie.
Michel Gregoretti, “Fools” driving narrative force, finds himself coping with the grind of being a copywriter at some nameless, mammoth New York ad agency where Don Draper would not be entirely out of place scouting the pretty new things loitering in the lobby. Underpaid and immensely talented at his craft, Michael churns out terrible commercial after terrible commercial for a new novelty product. In hopes of changing his current rut, Michael accepts a new assignment that will get him a better paying, more respectable position. With this new assignment comes the introduction of the utterly evil Gwen Hammond, a villainess, and Craig Connolly, a love interest for Michael who isn’t without his own flaws.
Replete with the two best friends who help Michael to realize his true motivations in like, “Fools” moves along with the pace of a zany romantic comedy with the quest for love at its core. Presented with obstacles along the path to a possible shot at success in both the workplace and in the home, Michael’s life is literally a commercial in itself - the reader gets glimpses into different parts of his life without getting the whole picture in one full swoop. The reader in a way must piece together Michael’s life and appetite for success and put together the composite of his quite funny and endearing character.
“A Fool Among Fools”, while on the surface may appear as just another throwback to the screwball comedies of the 50’s, has many moving parts. Terracuso smartly presents characters that although living in Reagan’s era, are very modern and savvy. Each situtation that Michael finds himself in has a comical tone, but also a self-reflective one. It’s a character study in the least, and a modern romantic comedy at best.
Michel Gregoretti, “Fools” driving narrative force, finds himself coping with the grind of being a copywriter at some nameless, mammoth New York ad agency where Don Draper would not be entirely out of place scouting the pretty new things loitering in the lobby. Underpaid and immensely talented at his craft, Michael churns out terrible commercial after terrible commercial for a new novelty product. In hopes of changing his current rut, Michael accepts a new assignment that will get him a better paying, more respectable position. With this new assignment comes the introduction of the utterly evil Gwen Hammond, a villainess, and Craig Connolly, a love interest for Michael who isn’t without his own flaws.
Replete with the two best friends who help Michael to realize his true motivations in like, “Fools” moves along with the pace of a zany romantic comedy with the quest for love at its core. Presented with obstacles along the path to a possible shot at success in both the workplace and in the home, Michael’s life is literally a commercial in itself - the reader gets glimpses into different parts of his life without getting the whole picture in one full swoop. The reader in a way must piece together Michael’s life and appetite for success and put together the composite of his quite funny and endearing character.
“A Fool Among Fools”, while on the surface may appear as just another throwback to the screwball comedies of the 50’s, has many moving parts. Terracuso smartly presents characters that although living in Reagan’s era, are very modern and savvy. Each situtation that Michael finds himself in has a comical tone, but also a self-reflective one. It’s a character study in the least, and a modern romantic comedy at best.
November 14, 2019
A Fool Among Fools is a decent book. I take my hat off to anyone who can write a novel. It’s a daunting task. But quite frankly, this book did nothing for me.
Pros: It’s well written. I didn’t find a single error in spelling or grammar, or any inconsistencies in punctuation or capitalization. It’s witty at times. And there’s some halfway attempt at introspection.
Cons: The story is just plain boring. Michael isn’t necessarily self-absorbed, but he certainly doesn’t seem like anyone I’d warm up to.
In the year or so during which the story occurs, I think Michael has sex with two men: his unreachable, new, on-again off-again boyfriend, Craig; and his old boyfriend, who’s in town from L.A. for a few days. I am about Michael’s age and grew up in the time when the story takes place, but when I was 29, I certainly had more sex than Michael ever does.
The long descriptions of how advertising works were a little dull; I certainly felt like I was wasting my time listening to a fictional character drone on about his horrible manager; and forgive me if I sound a little smug, but a young man’s goal in life is to write short advertising copy for TV commercials? I appreciate a good TV ad, but to me, Michael is not the most ambitious young man. I don’t expect every gay man to join the Peace Corps or to work for a nongovernmental organization, or even to work in a soup kitchen as a volunteer, but even at the height of the AIDS epidemic, Michael couldn’t find anything to do with his life other than go to work at a job on the 61st floor of a skyscraper (oh, the drudgery!), write short bits of copy, complain about his boss, and not find love? In truth, Michael comes off as a bit of a dullard. And then, to top it all off, mommy swoops in and saves Michael’s ass at the last minute, when he faces financial peril at age 30. Life is pretty easy for this guy.
Sometimes it’s good to count your blessings. I don’t think Michael knows how to do that. In short, the main character is pretty shallow, and so is the story
Pros: It’s well written. I didn’t find a single error in spelling or grammar, or any inconsistencies in punctuation or capitalization. It’s witty at times. And there’s some halfway attempt at introspection.
Cons: The story is just plain boring. Michael isn’t necessarily self-absorbed, but he certainly doesn’t seem like anyone I’d warm up to.
In the year or so during which the story occurs, I think Michael has sex with two men: his unreachable, new, on-again off-again boyfriend, Craig; and his old boyfriend, who’s in town from L.A. for a few days. I am about Michael’s age and grew up in the time when the story takes place, but when I was 29, I certainly had more sex than Michael ever does.
The long descriptions of how advertising works were a little dull; I certainly felt like I was wasting my time listening to a fictional character drone on about his horrible manager; and forgive me if I sound a little smug, but a young man’s goal in life is to write short advertising copy for TV commercials? I appreciate a good TV ad, but to me, Michael is not the most ambitious young man. I don’t expect every gay man to join the Peace Corps or to work for a nongovernmental organization, or even to work in a soup kitchen as a volunteer, but even at the height of the AIDS epidemic, Michael couldn’t find anything to do with his life other than go to work at a job on the 61st floor of a skyscraper (oh, the drudgery!), write short bits of copy, complain about his boss, and not find love? In truth, Michael comes off as a bit of a dullard. And then, to top it all off, mommy swoops in and saves Michael’s ass at the last minute, when he faces financial peril at age 30. Life is pretty easy for this guy.
Sometimes it’s good to count your blessings. I don’t think Michael knows how to do that. In short, the main character is pretty shallow, and so is the story
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
January 1, 2014
The author, John Terracuso, gave me a copy of this novel in exchange for my review.
Michael Gregoretti is insecure, whiny and a bit bitchy and from the moment he said that he identifies with every role Eve Arden played I knew we were soulmates. I experienced this novel while stuck at my parents home missing the family dinner flying high on Nyquil and black tea. “A Fool Among Fools” was a funny, tender, sad and happy tale of a man not sure of where his life was taking him and if he should go quietly.
Though set in the 80’s, Terracuso manages a work that comes off as simply nostalgic instead of dated. Michael goes on a date in his 501s and Gwen smokes in the office. More than one of the characters is into vintage and Michael has a love affair with classic Hollywood.
“A Fool Among Fools” is a very human story. In this character driven tale it is essential for the reader to connect with Michael and, as stated earlier, I did. He is flawed and human but an easy character with whom to sympathize and to want to succeed. He works hard, honors his mother, loves his grandmother and is looking for a happy ending. This debut story reads as a memoir. There are big moments but they are not exaggerated for entertainment purposes but all about getting to know this great guy who is living his everyday life.
March 7, 2014
In the 80s Michael Gregoretti would love to be writing plays, but the need to pay rent and buy food force him into copywriting for one of those insane advertising agencies in New York City. It is hard to decide which is more ridiculous, the products, the ads created for them, or the toxic personalities who are leads for the campaigns. In spite of the inane nature of what he's writing ads for, Michael works hard to get it right, only to have his best ideas shot down by cranky clients or delusional and unreasonable bosses at the agency. The author takes the reader through the tortuous path from first efforts through lunatic videotaping, to meetings with obstreperous company execs to the day to day mix of over-achievement, overwork and daily humiliation.
I really enjoyed this book. The main character is gay, but that's beside the fact, the real story being the characters with all their quirks and inanities. If you aren't laughing at their antics you are shaking your head fatalistically. The trouble is that you don't have to be working in the outrageous ad industry to recognize these "madmen" who are such utter fools and yet wind up running the whole show. I guess the Peter Principal about workers rising to the level of their incompetence was wrong.. they can rise all the way to the top.
That's All I Read, http://kitmossreviews.blogspot.com
I really enjoyed this book. The main character is gay, but that's beside the fact, the real story being the characters with all their quirks and inanities. If you aren't laughing at their antics you are shaking your head fatalistically. The trouble is that you don't have to be working in the outrageous ad industry to recognize these "madmen" who are such utter fools and yet wind up running the whole show. I guess the Peter Principal about workers rising to the level of their incompetence was wrong.. they can rise all the way to the top.
That's All I Read, http://kitmossreviews.blogspot.com
August 2, 2015
Review also posted on http://www.wodfreview.com
4.5 Stars
This story takes place in the 80’s and if you’ve lived through that decade you’ll be able to relate to A Fool Among Fools and if not it will give you an idea of what it was like and a bit of a history lesson. There isn’t a romance but the main character does fall in love it’s just not the focus of the story. This story fits perfectly in the gay fiction genre so if you’re looking for a romance this story may not work for you but you’ll be missing out on a great story.
For the most part I really enjoyed the read but it took me awhile to get into the book and along the way there are some slow parts that made it feel like it dragged. The writing is excellent, I had no trouble visualizing the scenes and that’s very important for me. The characters are great, they had me laughing at their crazy way of doing things but be warned with the story taking place in the 80’s there are some dark and frightening things. Being gay in the 80’s had its challenges with trying to gain acceptance and AIDS exploding onto the scene with no understanding of the disease and no cure in sight it made that decade a frightening one.
I highly recommend A Fool Among Fools it’s a great read and it was fun going back to the 80’s
July 15, 2013
You would think that as a writer, a dream job would be one where you could write all day. In this story, A Fool Among Fools, that’s exactly what Michael has gotten. And he utterly hates it.
There is pettiness, backstabbing, not to mention outright hatred among his coworkers. The long days of having to set up a commercial over and over again. It really messes with your life and your love life.
When he meets Craig things are looking up in that department. Craig, however, isn’t exactly what he seems to be. Hot and cold, Michael never knows what’s going on in Craig’s head.
This is a very interesting first story by the author. It has funny moments as well as melancholy ones. Michael seems anxious to break out, to find himself and where he belongs in the world. When it all comes crashing down around him, he turns to the only people he hopes can understand.
Will Michael get rescued? Or will he be stuck in his dead end job forever?
The story doesn’t exactly have a HEA ending, but it leaves you feeling Michael has grown and will one day find where he truly belongs.
Lucky's 4 sweet pea review appears at http://mrsconditreadsbooks.com/index....
There is pettiness, backstabbing, not to mention outright hatred among his coworkers. The long days of having to set up a commercial over and over again. It really messes with your life and your love life.
When he meets Craig things are looking up in that department. Craig, however, isn’t exactly what he seems to be. Hot and cold, Michael never knows what’s going on in Craig’s head.
This is a very interesting first story by the author. It has funny moments as well as melancholy ones. Michael seems anxious to break out, to find himself and where he belongs in the world. When it all comes crashing down around him, he turns to the only people he hopes can understand.
Will Michael get rescued? Or will he be stuck in his dead end job forever?
The story doesn’t exactly have a HEA ending, but it leaves you feeling Michael has grown and will one day find where he truly belongs.
Lucky's 4 sweet pea review appears at http://mrsconditreadsbooks.com/index....
January 12, 2014
I really enjoyed this book. It is very well-written with plenty of witty dialogue and funny moments that hook you and keep you wanting more.
Who can't empathize with Michael, who hates his job and finds himself often unlucky in love? I quickly became attached to him and could feel his frustrations. I applauded his gusto when he stood up for himself to the wretched Gwen, and wanted to shake him for not showing the same backbone in his love life.
Lucky for Michael, he has supportive parents and friends who love him for who he is and see the great in him. When it seems all is lost, and he may as well just pack it in, Michael pulls himself up by his bootstraps (with the help of his parents), and gets ready to embark on a new phase in his life.
Even through the most melancholy moments, Terracuso pulls the reader through with humor and great writing. I highly recommend this very entertaining book.
Disclaimer: I received this book from the author free of charge in exchange for an honest review.
Who can't empathize with Michael, who hates his job and finds himself often unlucky in love? I quickly became attached to him and could feel his frustrations. I applauded his gusto when he stood up for himself to the wretched Gwen, and wanted to shake him for not showing the same backbone in his love life.
Lucky for Michael, he has supportive parents and friends who love him for who he is and see the great in him. When it seems all is lost, and he may as well just pack it in, Michael pulls himself up by his bootstraps (with the help of his parents), and gets ready to embark on a new phase in his life.
Even through the most melancholy moments, Terracuso pulls the reader through with humor and great writing. I highly recommend this very entertaining book.
Disclaimer: I received this book from the author free of charge in exchange for an honest review.
December 29, 2014
We follow the protagonist, Michael, through mid-1980’s Manhattan. In many ways, he is barely getting by. His job at an advertising agency seems like an interesting reinterpretation of Hell, and at first, that is a great backdrop for the outrageous humor that's woven through this story. This must be hyperbole - how could any real-life villain approach Gwen's treachery? And yet ...
If this were the whole story, I would have chalked up this read as a bunch of good laughs from some entertaining characters. But there are some darker threads here, too. Decades removed, it can be difficult to imagine how frightening the emerging AIDS threat was during that period. And you probably don't need to be a young gay man to experience loneliness in a grand city like New York, but Michael provides a brilliant glimpse of what it would be like if our teenage angst were to follow us into our adult life.
This is a well-crafted tale with wit, warmth, irony, and lots more.
If this were the whole story, I would have chalked up this read as a bunch of good laughs from some entertaining characters. But there are some darker threads here, too. Decades removed, it can be difficult to imagine how frightening the emerging AIDS threat was during that period. And you probably don't need to be a young gay man to experience loneliness in a grand city like New York, but Michael provides a brilliant glimpse of what it would be like if our teenage angst were to follow us into our adult life.
This is a well-crafted tale with wit, warmth, irony, and lots more.
January 17, 2016
Set in New York during the 1980s, A Fool Among Fools follows the trials and tribulations of the long-suffering Michael Gregoretti, an aspiring playwright who slaves away his days at an cut-throat ad agency writing commercials for therapeutic hand creams and aerosol butter. Although he tries to produce good, honest work for the agency’s clients, he often finds his ideas punted to the side or ridiculed. Worst of all, he just can’t seem to escape the influence of Gwen, his insane former supervisor who is determined to subject him to her will. Peopled with sympathetic characters, humor, and realism, readers will become completely (and uncomfortably) immersed in Michael’s claustrophobic work environment. Recommended for comedy lovers, and anyone who feels underappreciated at work.
October 31, 2013
It's 1986. Ronald Reagan is in the White House, Molly Ringwald is on the cover of Time and 29-year-old Michael Gregoretti is a struggling, underpaid copywriter at a big New York ad agency. He'd rather be writing plays; instead, he's writing awful commercials for a moisturizer formulated to conquer that dire, life-threatening condition: handruff.
- See more at: http://druesrandomchatter.blogspot.com/2013/10/review-fool-among-fools-by-john.html
- See more at: http://druesrandomchatter.blogspot.com/2013/10/review-fool-among-fools-by-john.html
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