School Spirit

by Tom McHale

218 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published August 1, 1977

About the author

Tom McHale (1941-1982) was an American novelist from Pennyslvania.

Reviews

[Paul · Rating 3 out of 5]

A previous comment that referred to this book as the last before McHale’s suicide is incorrect. He published two books after thus one. However, I fail to see what that trivia (correct or incorrect) has to do with the quality of the book.

The book is oddly dated (1976). In at least two places, a character mentions “pot”, and another character says “You mean marijuana?” Amusing once? Sure. Twice? Now he’s being ironic, only 40 years before his time.

The book moves along, but the motivations of the characters strains credulity. Perhaps that’s part of the “black humor” that this is said to be an example of.

[Neglectedbooks · Rating 2 out of 5]

Tom McHale's first two novels, Principato and Farragan's Retreat, are among the great forgotten novels of the 1970s. This, his last book before his suicide, however, rare rises above the level of bad Playboy short stories. For a bunch of people who supposedly have not seen each other in years, the characters seem to spend much of their time phoning or sleeping with each other, and the protagonist, a coach who journeys back across the country to come to grips with a murder he tacitly enabled, is no more believable. Save your time. Read something else.

[Kayla Hannebohm · Rating 1 out of 5]

This review is meant for myself, so it may or may not be helpful to you.

Honestly, I thought this book was dry and boring. definitely not reading again.