Wonderful Book News: The Re-Issue of FOOL by Fred Dillen

GREAT NEWS FOR THE BOOK WORLD:

FRED DILLEN’S novel “FOOL” will be published by AMAZON – August 7th!

Out of print for more than a decade, Frederick G. Dillen’s comic and now timely novel about an unlikely hero is being reissued as part of librarian and NPR commentator Nancy Pearl’s Book Lust Rediscoveries series.

Each book is personally selected by NPR commentator and Book Lust author Nancy Pearl and includes an introduction by her, as well as discussion questions for book groups and a list of recommended further reading.

“For Christ sake don’t become a fluffmeister” are the last words Barnaby Griswold’s father utters to him. But despite trying to turn out otherwise, Barnaby knows himself a fool and already makes his living as a fluffmeister, as a puffer-up of investments. Well-bred, more or less educated, friendly to everyone, Barnaby is in fact foolishly successful. Until he blows it all.

At forty-six, disgraced and broke and lonely, Barnaby must repair his life. Maybe, just maybe, he’ll find out that doing the foolish thing can lead to redemption.

REVIEWS

“Fool is about masculinity, the likelihood of failing to achieve it and the possibility of redeeming it. The moving but unsentimental narrative and Dillen’s happily offbeat prose add a surprising twist to Barnaby’s redemption.” – New York Times Book Review

“Frederick Dillen writes with the excitement and curiosity of a child, and the wisdom and talent of a master. Fool is romantic, funny, sad, sometimes violent, and absolutely serious.” – Andre Dubus

In short, this novel is a playful and tender romp through six  months in the life of a very lovable FOOL. – bookreporter

“Bumbling, solipsistic Barnaby is excruciatingly annoying. Yet halfway into the book, a strange fondness stirs. By the end, the reader is cheering him on as he achieves self-knowledge and a chance at love. Dillen’s prose is astonishing, manic, much of it is stream-of-consciousness, always Barnaby’s. For most fiction collections where readers appreciate the unconventional.” Library Journal