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Learning Curves A Novel of Academe edition by Dorie LaRue Literature Fiction eBooks

Download As PDF : Learning Curves A Novel of Academe edition by Dorie LaRue Literature Fiction eBooks

Switching gears from dark gallows comedy after the Omaha Prize winning RESURRECTING VIRGIL, Dorie LaRue follows in the tradition of the academic novel with a vigorous satire about a small provincial state university in competition with an elite private college. Seen through the eyes of a newly hired Romantic scholar, Dr. Joyce Michalak, who becomes the target of a self-deluded tenure committee, the story reverses the male predator professor/innocent female student victim dyad. Choosing a most inopportune time to fall in love with a student, a Bosnian immigrant, whose observations concerning US academia ultimately cause Joyce Michalak to rethink her political, social, and sexual philosophy, she makes a decision which separates her from her colleagues and their lack of moral agency but threatens to destroy all her hopes for tenure. During the course of the fast moving narrative, Dr. Michalak is intent on educating her provincial female students with a crash course in each wave of feminism, and all of her students in the joys of postmodern analysis, an education which they not only survive but which gives them opportunities to provide unignorable insight. The narrative moves along backgrounded by the greedy chancellor's forays into privitization until its unexpected yet inevitable climax and an orchestrated ending that makes LEARNING CURVES rock as a contemporary feminine LUCKY JIM.

Learning Curves A Novel of Academe edition by Dorie LaRue Literature Fiction eBooks

Kirkus Reviews: LaRue's novel satirizes the backbiting politics and scandals of a mediocre Southern university through the eyes of its faculty. Romantic scholar and professor Joyce Michalak returns triumphant from sabbatical, having caught the brass ring in academia--future publication by the esteemed Oxford University Press--in hopes of acquiring tenure to the English department. But Joyce's senior colleague, gatekeeper to the department and nemesis, Philip Tinsley, will go out of his way to shoot down Joyce's chances. As Joyce confronts her daily life of teaching apathetic students, rubbing elbows with celebrity guest professors and competing with the other lit teachers angling for tenure, she becomes romantically involved with one of her students, a young Bosnian man named Alexi. With Philip already out to ruin her chances at tenure, Joyce not only keeps the illicit (according to university rules)relationship a secret but goes on the offensive by filing a false grievance against Philip and digging into his sexually predatory habits. LaRue's novel gets stronger as it progresses and she focuses on a few central characters rather than the many ancillaries in the first part of the book. No one is who they seem as the evangelical (and adulterous) Chancellor Prouty wheels and deals with less-than-respectable corporations and institutions to bolster funds for the university. Prouty's hypocrisy and pathetic soul-searching are particularly funny and over the top. LaRue portrays Joyce as a flawed, self-absorbed woman who, nonetheless, is an appealing protagonist. The author makes sure that everyone gets what they deserve, as is often the case in a good satire--Joyce struggles to reach some sort of epiphany as a result of her affair with Alexi. Throughout the story, affairs abound and who will catch whom doing what first is a key element that keeps the pages turning in this intelligently written, humorous take on the ugly underside of academic life. A well-crafted, sardonic look at university life.

Kirkus Indie, Kirkus Media LLC, 6411 Burleson Rd., Austin, TX 78744
indie@kirkusreviews.com

Product details File Size 710 KB Print Length 328 pages Page Numbers Source ISBN 1460982908 Publication Date February 1, 2014 Sold by  Digital Services LLC Language English ASIN B00I6URTOQ

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Learning Curves A Novel of Academe edition by Dorie LaRue Literature Fiction eBooks Reviews

It's a decent story. Could easily be made better. But fundamentally, this book is deeply annoying, because it was written about an English professor, and written *by* an English professor ... and yet has more grammatical errors than a poorly written freshman essay. If I were an English professor I would be deeply offended. Instead, I'm just really annoyed.

But maybe all these things aren't grammatical errors, per se. Perhaps they are simply typos; typos of amazing variety and size. For example, page 183 has a long paragraph - which seems abrupt and out of place - that is largely repeated (nearly word for word) on page 258. The author clearly changed her mind on the order of the plot, and moved text around. But it is done so sloppily that it detracts, and distracts, from the novel. And only some of the connected changes were made, so that subsequently it is impossible to tell where the offending paragraph is actually supposed to be.

In another place the antagonist complains about a student's comma splices. The sentences both before and after this one misuse commas. This is ironic, of course, but not purposefully so. And what's with these dashes? Sometimes two short ones are used, sometimes three ... and sometimes the dash is simply one long line. Good lord. These schizophrenic dashes even appear, at times, in the same sentence. But they are necessary, in some form or another, as the author tends to use multiple asides - and asides from asides, then further digressions - throughout the book. It's as if she can't make up her mind what a particular sentence will be about, so she just throws in everything.

Here there be spoilers. Or maybe not, hard to tell. On page 289 the antagonist tells us unequivocally that he will not change his vote. "Of course, he would not fold his cards, change his vote. He has stood up to worse ... At this point, he was sure how the department voted. And Joyce will be out." This is part of Philip's internal ruminations. And he goes on, explaining his decision, the unmovable force behind it, and his secure position in the department that protects him, come what may. Then he thinks a bit about the besieged chancellor. Then his thoughts wander back to Joyce and how he had, in fact, changed his vote. He thinks "Right now, O'Hara [the department chair] was apprising Joyce secretly of the changed vote." WTF?

This sort of sloppiness permeates the book. Most of the inconsistencies are more subtle than the above, but they are pervasive throughout. As a reader, I am annoyed enough to write a bad review, because this level of inattention displays a lack of respect for the author's customers. I asked for this book for Christmas, because it sounded good. I could have had a different book instead. (Perhaps a Dilbert collection! THAT would have been worth the money.) And frankly, I'd like my day back from reading this one.

For the author, here is my advice 1) Hire a copy-editor; one is desperately needed. 2) Learn how grammar works, and commas, and semi-colons, and prepositional phrases, and tense agreement, and all the other things that should only be clichés. I feel certain your department will offer a course. 3) And most importantly, figure out what the plot points are and where they occur, and then stick to this plan. Then change ALL the text, rather than just some of it, so that it isn't so self-contradictory. If one of the plot points is regarding some sort of ambiguity - perhaps in a character's decision, or motive, or whatever - then, by God, show it to be, at the very least, on purpose. The characters don't have to be decisive, but the author does.

Do all that, and you will have a good book. This one is only a somewhat-promising third draft. Only somewhat? Yes. I wanted the main character to fight, and fight well. She made some mistakes, which is fine - realistic, even. But she was in the right, and she should have - could have! - torn those bastards apart. Instead she gave up? Then won by accident? Blah. You didn't even try very hard to sell it. You just stopped writing, and pretended that's the way it was building up the whole time.

But that's just a fundamental flaw, really. The main problem is, all the fundamental flaws are superseded by the superficial flaws. Perhaps underneath, the book is actually quite good? Who knows, could be true. Maybe it's like Wagner "His music is better than it sounds."
Kirkus Reviews LaRue's novel satirizes the backbiting politics and scandals of a mediocre Southern university through the eyes of its faculty. Romantic scholar and professor Joyce Michalak returns triumphant from sabbatical, having caught the brass ring in academia--future publication by the esteemed Oxford University Press--in hopes of acquiring tenure to the English department. But Joyce's senior colleague, gatekeeper to the department and nemesis, Philip Tinsley, will go out of his way to shoot down Joyce's chances. As Joyce confronts her daily life of teaching apathetic students, rubbing elbows with celebrity guest professors and competing with the other lit teachers angling for tenure, she becomes romantically involved with one of her students, a young Bosnian man named Alexi. With Philip already out to ruin her chances at tenure, Joyce not only keeps the illicit (according to university rules)relationship a secret but goes on the offensive by filing a false grievance against Philip and digging into his sexually predatory habits. LaRue's novel gets stronger as it progresses and she focuses on a few central characters rather than the many ancillaries in the first part of the book. No one is who they seem as the evangelical (and adulterous) Chancellor Prouty wheels and deals with less-than-respectable corporations and institutions to bolster funds for the university. Prouty's hypocrisy and pathetic soul-searching are particularly funny and over the top. LaRue portrays Joyce as a flawed, self-absorbed woman who, nonetheless, is an appealing protagonist. The author makes sure that everyone gets what they deserve, as is often the case in a good satire--Joyce struggles to reach some sort of epiphany as a result of her affair with Alexi. Throughout the story, affairs abound and who will catch whom doing what first is a key element that keeps the pages turning in this intelligently written, humorous take on the ugly underside of academic life. A well-crafted, sardonic look at university life.

Kirkus Indie, Kirkus Media LLC, 6411 Burleson Rd., Austin, TX 78744
indie@kirkusreviews.com