Sophie Gateclou answers “It's a remarkably good book that has...”

Chris Bischof asked this question about Stoner:

It's a remarkably good book that has developed a cultish following. What is it that makes Stoner so compelling?

Sophie Gateclou Stoner's life is quietly extraordinary. Right from the beginning of his life he defies the odds: he leaves his agricultural background and goes to uni…moreStoner's life is quietly extraordinary. Right from the beginning of his life he defies the odds: he leaves his agricultural background and goes to university, where he is discovered and guided by an astute university teacher who notices Stoner's love for literature and quietly recommends he switches from agricultural studies to study literature.

He becomes an exceptional English teacher (though that is never recognised) and twice in his life he discovers another love: the deep love for his daughter, Grace, and for another human being, Katherine. That kind of love between a man and a woman is rare. It was not just opportunistic, or lust, it was passion. Two human beings recognising themselves in each other.

I was told this would be a sad book to read. Yes, this is a sad story in many part. He is downtrodden, he is humiliated (by Lomax), he is mercilessly bullied (by his wife), he slowly grows apart from his beloved daughter, he has to let go of his love for Katherine. But through it all I felt the quiet strength of a man who is living by his own principles, including the one of not joining up in WW1. He lets go of Katherine because he is protecting her. He is himself and in that he is free. That is quietly exceptional. (less)

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