It's a 1965 classic. Set in the University of Missouri, it traces the life of William Stoner, a farm boy, who joins the University to study Agriculture, finds himself drawn to English Literature and ends up staying to teach at the same University.
The novel traces his life, his state of mind as he goes through life with no great passion or expectation, enjoying his teaching and bearing his difficulties with no resentment. His decision to stay away from the family, his work ethic at the University, his indifference to the bad behavior of his Professors, his relatives, his wife, his colleagues - his one passionate affair with his research assistant (perhaps his one moment of happiness), his love for his daughter, his final recognition at the University and his illness and death. There's a quality to the writing that takes you into Stoner's body, his feelings, his life, until we all feel we are the same at some level.
Brilliant writing. Thanks Vinod for sharing.
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