''Somebody’s Fool'' is a 2023 novel by American author

Richard Russo Richard Russo (born July 15, 1949) is an American novelist, short story writer, screenwriter, and teacher. In 2002, he was awarded a Pulitzer Prize in Fiction for his novel '' Empire Falls''. Several of his works have been adapted into televisi ...

. It is the third installment in Russo's "North Bath Trilogy", following '' Nobody’s Fool'' (1993) and ''Everybody’s Fool'' (2016). The book is set in the fictional town of North Bath in

Upstate New York Upstate New York is a geographic region of New York (state), New York that lies north and northwest of the New York metropolitan area, New York City metropolitan area of downstate New York. Upstate includes the middle and upper Hudson Valley, ...

, and it continues the storylines of characters from the previous books. Russo explores themes of small-town life, aging, and mortality. The book was published by

Alfred A. Knopf Alfred A. Knopf, Inc. () is an American publishing house that was founded by Blanche Knopf and Alfred A. Knopf Sr. in 1915. Blanche and Alfred traveled abroad regularly and were known for publishing European, Asian, and Latin American writers ...

to critical success, with a critic from ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...

'' calling it Russo’s "best book."

Conception

Somebody’s Fool is Russo's 10th novel. Russo did not plan to write a second sequel to his original novel, '' Nobody’s Fool (1993)'', but he decided to return to the series because he found that the characters connected him with his late father. In an interview, Russo stated: Russo spent about four hours each morning crafting the novel in longhand. In the afternoons, he worked on digitizing and editing. He composed the book during the

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and the

George Floyd protests The George Floyd protests were a series of protests, riots, and demonstrations against police brutality that began in Minneapolis in the United States on May 26, 2020. The protests and civil unrest began in Minneapolis as Reactions to the mu ...

. These events influenced the novel's darker themes, including police brutality and race relations. In an interview, Russo reflected, "George Floyd’s murder made me realize I couldn’t write another book with main characters as police officers without addressing the presence of bad cops."

Plot

In this last book of Russo's "Fool's" trilogy, the story returns to North Bath and the characters from the previous two books. The story is set in February 2010 when the fictional town of Schuyler Springs is in the process of annexing neighboring North Bath in the name of reducing expenses. The book opens with the death of Donald "Sully" Sullivan, the main character in previous novels. Sully's son, Peter, struggles with whether to leave North Bath and his decision is complicated by a list of people his father left for him to check on. Doug Raymer retires as chief of police, and his romantic partner and subordinate, Charice Bond, fills his old position. The storyline mainly follows Peter Sullivan and his relationship with one of his estranged sons, Thomas, who has been raised by his mother and an abusive stepfather in West Virginia. Thomas comes to see Peter, stating that he is stopping by on his way to visit Montreal. In fact, Thomas has come to take revenge on his father, who he blames for his difficult upbringing. While visiting, Thomas gets drunk at a bar, after which he gets a concussion and falls into a coma following a battering by a corrupt police officer. This event discloses Thomas's contemplation of arson against Peter's house. As for Doug and Charice, they have been stopped dating, but Doug wishes to get back together with her. They eventually rekindle the romance when Charice, with her new job as chief of police, badly needs Doug in solving the identity of a suicide at the Sans Souci Hotel. Charice, who is black, must also deal with racism and dissension from many of the police officers she oversees. The novel ends with Thomas waking from the coma and the prospect that what might have gone wrong between Peter and Thomas can be remedied. Doug learns that the victim in the suicide case was a previous mayor. Charice decides to resign from the police force since she plans to go to law school, and both she and Doug resume their relationship. Doug decides to accept an offer to return as the police chief.

Reception

The book received favorable reviews. Hamilton Cain, writing for ''

'', praised Russo as "paint nga shining fresco of a working-class community, warts and all, a 30-year project come to fruition in this last, best book." Cain admired Russo's skillful handling of third-person narration and the portrayal of multiple perspectives and small-town dynamics. However, he pointed out that some chapters seemed overly detailed and certain flashbacks could be confusing. A review in the ''

Washington Post ''The Washington Post'', locally known as ''The'' ''Post'' and, informally, ''WaPo'' or ''WP'', is an American daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C., the national capital. It is the most widely circulated newspaper in the Washington m ...

'' praised the storyline involving Peter in which he grapples with accepting the man he has become. The critic described this storyline as the most compelling aspect of the book.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Somebody's Fool 2023 American novels English-language novels Sequel novels Alfred A. Knopf books Novels set in New York (state)