Nobody's Fool

By: Richard Russo

Narrated by: Ron McLarty

Length: 24 hrs and 53 mins

Publisher's summary

From the Pulitzer Prize–winning author of Empire Falls, this slyly funny, moving novel about a blue-collar town in upstate New York—and about Sully, one of its unluckiest citizens, who has been doing the wrong thing triumphantly for fifty years—is a classic American story.

"Remarkable.... A revelation of the human heart." —The Washington Post

Divorced from his own wife and carrying on halfheartedly with another man's, saddled with a bum knee and friends who make enemies redundant, Sully now has one new problem to cope with: a long-estranged son who is in imminent danger of following in his father's footsteps. With its uproarious humor and a heart that embraces humanity's follies as well as its triumphs, Nobody's Fool, from Pulitzer Prize-winning author, Richard Russo, is storytelling at its most generous. Nobody’s Fool was made into a movie starring Paul Newman, Bruce Willis, Jessica Tandy, and Melody Griffith.

Look for Everybody’s Fool, available now, and Somebody’s Fool, coming soon.

©1993 Richard Russo (P)2003 Random House, Inc.

Critic reviews

"Remarkable.... A revelation of the human heart." —The Washington Post

"Russo is a master craftsman....Nobody's Fool is a big, rambunctious novel with endless riffs and unstoppable human hopefulness." —The Boston Globe

"Simple as family love, yet nearly as complicated, Richard Russo's confident, assured novel sweeps the reader up in the daily life of its characters." —San Francisco Chronicle

Headphones on & I looked crazy laughing aloud!

Where does Nobody's Fool rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

This would be one of the most memorable books I've listened to out of almost 300...because I kept laughing outloud...bursting in to jolts of surprised laughter and looking a little crazy while listening on the bus!!

Which character – as performed by Ron McLarty – was your favorite?

Sully is a character who just grows on you...it is like a deeper journey with one of the characters from "Grumpy Old Men." This character just continued to surprise me with his reactions and one liners to the very end.

Any additional comments?

This is definately a "character" novel...not a real plot driven story. Never the less the characterization (and the audio narration in particular) was so well developed with such perfect humour, that my enjoyment and shock at this character's personality just kept growing. Have to say a little disappointed with the end of the story, but still a very entertaining listen!

A simple and fun story, but a little long

Russo is a great storyteller, and the narration is awesome - The characters are dynamic and fun, the story is simple yet lively, and the pace is moderate to slow. However, I found that it did become a little long, almost as though there were a preset page limit the author was striving for.

If you like the simple, well-told stories, this is good. A Painted House, by John Grisham, was definitely a better all-around book of the simple life.

Sully is a friend you never want to lose

This is one of my most favorite books of all time. It's one of the few books I've read more than once. Laugh out loud moments, touching moments and many realistic moments for someone who lived in a small down and out kind of town.

You Coulda Fooled Me!

Where does Nobody's Fool rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

"Nobody's Fool" was one I'll remember for a long time. Not the best, but the characters tend to linger more than most. The banter and baiting are clever and the narrative is touching.

What was one of the most memorable moments of Nobody's Fool?

I loved the scene where Sully and his son are stealing the snowblower from his employer's lot. The sheer suspense and yet laugh-out-loud humor of the scene are really great comedy.

Which character – as performed by Ron McLarty – was your favorite?

Hattie, the addled old woman who owned the diner, kept cropping up to point up Sully's actual rough tenderness.

Who was the most memorable character of Nobody's Fool and why?

Of course Donald Sullivan, or Sully, was the one to watch as he grew and changed even though past his fifties.

Any additional comments?

I did have a little trouble catching changes in who was speaking since I don't always hear some sound ranges well and there were a number of men for whom a gruff or rough tone was a part of who they were.

much too long

I loved Empire Falls, by this author, and so I eargerly anticipated listening to this book. This is a good story with fascinating characters who are very well developed. I would have loved this book, except that it streched out so long. and I became so bored, that I had to force myself to continue. The excellent story became bogged down in endless detail. If 25% of it were cut, it would have been a better listen. The narrator was excellent, however, which kind of kept me going.

Great performance of a great novel

It helped that I had watched the Movie before. The novel shows a deep understanding of human nature particular to an Upstate NY town. The performance so matched the characters. It had elements that I deeply connected with and it will be a novel and a movie that I anticipate that I will go back to several times in the future. There is however a psychological depth that is not fully explored. The repartee takes away from that possibility.

Russo really gets upstate NY

I returned to this book as preparation for listening to Richard Russo’s final book in the Sully trilogy. It’s as good as I remember reading it back in the mid 90’s. I grew up in upstate New York and can recognize the characters and locations. Sully reminds me a bit of my father-in-law. Wonderful story and thought provoking as I remember my own time growing up there.

Russo is a master at blending humor and pathos

This is a book about quirky characters and the intertwining of their lives in a small town. You just know these are real people. Don't expect lots of action here but if you love a writer who is a real craftsman with words, one who clearly loves his characters and makes you love them too then this book is for you. Funny, sad, warm and enchanting. I'll listen to it over and over.

Surprised by other bad reviews...

I have to say I'm surprised by others bad reviews, but that's what makes us all different I guess.:) I loved this book. Much more than Empire Falls (which earned him a Pulitzer). His character development and caring for them was brilliant. That fact that Sully doesn't change is what makes it wonderful. Things changed around Sully. No Disney ending here, with I've been wrong, now I'm better off for it stuff. Just plain, simple life. And I love his explanation of the "stupid streak" coming on. You know it's wrong, you know it's going to screw things up, but you just can't help yourself sometimes.:)

Brilliant!

Finished listening to it the first time and went on to listen to it from the beginning again! It's like a song that you can't get enough of.