A Little Rebellion Is a Good Thing

Troubles at Traymore College

By: Duncan Clarke

Narrated by: Charlie Boswell

When David Pritchard is hired to teach political science at a remote women’s college in 1969, he anticipates a quiet year before moving on to bigger things. However, it soon becomes apparent that all is not well at Traymore College. President Barton and his administration curtail basic academic freedoms, harass tenured professors, and impose tight constraints on students’ personal lives.

Appalled, David engages in intimate alliances with sympathetic faculty and several members of student leadership to stand up to the school’s administration. Together, they aim to ignite the press and spark far-reaching legal action. But Barton will not go down without a fight.

©2020 Duncan L. Clarke (P)2020 Duncan L. Clarke

A Good Thing

This story is set at a Virginian women’s college in the late 60’s. A young professor joins on to teach and finds that the school president hinders the freedoms of the students. He helps band them together as they push for change. So much of the injustices in the book ring true to what is taking place in the current political climate. I greatly enjoyed the narrator. He did a wonderful job at giving voice to the different characters. And of course...I’m a dog lover, so I’m a sucker for anything in which pups play a supporting role.

Change is Powerful..

Duncan Clarke has given us a glimpse of what it was like at a women’s college in the late 1960’s. When I first started listening to this story I wasn’t sure if I was going to like it. I am not a huge fan of snakes. But I liked how the memory started the story.  David Pritchard needs a job. He interacts with President Elzic Barton of Traymore College and gets hired. Traymore College is an all women’s college in rural southwest Virginia. Pritchard is a young lawyer with a degree in political science. He is charming, smart and surrounded by women. Just to name a few Evelyn, Valerie, RJ plus others.  In the beginning he dips his foot in the female pool and becomes the go to guy to complain about the Head President. He soon realizes that the treatment of these ladies is not right and starts to rebel against the President. Joining him are other facility members and students. Together they fight for the freedom of speech and women’s rights. This story is fast flowing. It touches on a lot of notes that are happening in today’s society. The contrast between Prichard and President Barton’s perspectives give this story many concepts and humanizes the issues. I also enjoyed the interactions between Pritchard and his different dogs Maggie and Zena. It gives him more charisma. This was a great story. It also has a romantic element woven in. Change is powerful. But what elevated it was that I got to listen to it narrated by Charlie Boswell. Boswell has an exceptional talent for delivering multiple voices. He switches between characters effortlessly and has great tone and pauses. Making the whole listening experience worthwhile. Those who like politics, movement and the fight for justices will like this story.

Rebellion is Good

A Little Rebellion Is a Good Thing: Troubles at Traymore College by Duncan Clarke is a great novel and one I really enjoyed listening to. When David Prichard takes a job at an all women's college in Western Virginia in the 1960s he isn't prepared for what he is faced with once he arrives. Once at the school, he finds copious amounts of freedoms being taken away from not only the students at the college, but also other faculty and all of it is lead by the ultra conservative President Barton. Almost immediately after his arrival at the school, students start showing up in his office asking for help when they find out that David has a law degree. Even other faculty start reaching out to him for help, delving into how their basic freedoms of speech and tenure are being undermined by Barton. Making alliances, some intimate and some platonic, with both students and faculty, including one of Barton's own right hand ladies, David begins his rebellion against the President even when threatened with never being able to find another job in academia. David begins receiving the brunt of Barton's fury, and when Barton can't physically take action himself he hires a man to get rid of Prichard. Thankfully, the hero of the story is really man's best friend, and David's best friend, as she keeps a watchful eye on David and protects him multiple times.
I have really enjoyed listening to this novel and the narrator was wonderful. I did have a bit of a hard time at first, as there is a high pitched noise in the background of the recording. I at first thought it was supposed to mimic nature sounds but then it continued through most of the recording. Eventually I learned to turn it out, but it was quite distracting at first. I highly recommend A Little Rebellion is a Good thing to anyone who loves a good suspense and a fight for what's right.

An insider's tale of 1960's rebellion

A Little Rebellion Is a Good Thing knocked my socks off. Many people, no doubt, are walking around with stories that should be books or movies in their heads. Many of them are made and successfully so. Many more are not. I'm grateful that Mr. Clarke fulfilled what must have been many nudges to bring this story to readers (and listeners). There are plenty of novels that depict this time in American history, and rightfully so. Our country was going through a lot of terrifying and hopeful changes. Mr. Clarke, er, David Pritchard, denounces the unjust and pitiful way that the president (and his boss) of Traymore College continues to run the school and stands up for the rights of the all-female student body very quickly and passionately. The conversations were very real and not shy of expletives when called for, but always intelligent and intriguing. So much emotion was behind many of Pritchard's thoughts and interactions with everyone he connected with. I also enjoyed how the story began, with a present-day reflection that brought us naturally to the story, which also looped everything back in nicely and not forcefully. I must also give accolades to the narrator, Charlie Boswell, who did a fantastic job giving voice to this novel. I thoroughly enjoyed his tone, pace, expression and versatility.

Fictional 1960s similar to 2020

History can be funny at times and A Little Rebellion Is a Good Thing by Duncan Clarke is a good example of this. With the upcoming presidential election in November, at times it feels like the issues faced in the 1960s are similar to what females are experiencing in 2020.

It is important to note that Mr. Clarke's novel is fiction but one can deduce that it may be based on his personal experiences. The story follows David Pritchard and his new career path of being a professor at the fictional Traymore College. Traymore College is an all women's college located in rural Virginia. Unfortunately, the college is run by misogynist, President Barton. Early on we find the bizarre and archaic rules that enforced upon these adult women. With Mr. Pritchard's background in law, he is the go-to for a student when she is facing expulsion. Even though I had to remind myself that this book is fictional and took place in the '60s when women's rights weren't exactly a priority, it still infuriated me. Again, there are some questionable relationships formed between students and faculty that I am sure would not be okay in today's #MeToo world.

The narrator Charlie Boswell did a great job switching up the voices for different characters. His role in this book made it more enjoyable and kept me interested.

Overall it was a decent book to listen to. There were a few parts that made me roll my eyes due to the pedestal the author put Mr. Pritchard on. I would be willing to give the author another chance and check out more of his work, whether it be in paperback or audio.