Company Man [Paperback]

Brent Wade (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: February 1, 1993

An African-American novel probes the interior of corporate America and reveals malice and mistrust behind the smiles, handshakes, and pats on the back. Reprint. Tour.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

William Covington is black, impotent and paralyzed in half of his face from a recent suicide attempt, a gunshot to the head. Raised by a grandmother to be "a Generic, a man devoid of any cultural affiliation," he's a conservative member of the black bourgeoisie who hates his own "niggerishness" (his grandmother's term). Slowed by digressions, flashbacks and occasionally pretentious writing ("My mind is now a colander separating sentiment from remnant obligations"), this flawed first novel provides an interesting study of black self-hatred while also targeting a soulless corporate world riddled with subtle racism. Covington, an executive at an electronics company, writes from a hospital bed, addressing this confessional to an estranged homosexual friend. This device is strained, primarily because Covington, a sellout who spies for top management, is not a wholly sympathetic character; nor does his suicide attempt seem convincing. Forced by his impotence to confront sexual stereotypes of black men, Covington is brought down by the mere threat of a phony sexual harassment charge in the novel's closing pages.
Copyright 1991 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Library Journal

While recuperating from a poorly aimed shot to the brain, Bill Covington writes long letters to his friend from childhood. Paul has been out of touch since high school, but now he is the focus for Bill's reconstruction of the events that put him in the hospital. Bill tells him how as a young black executive he happily filled the affirmative action slot at Varitech Corporation; how he coveted the house in an upscale neighborhood, the Jaguar parked out front. But then came the impotence, the paranoia, and the racial guilt. The question haunted him: Was he an employee like all the others, or must he always think first of himself as black? In this first novel, Wade wholeheartedly supports the latter belief, unfortunately allowing the polemic to encumber an otherwise imaginative narrative. However, it is interesting to see this claim for ethnic loyalty over all else coming from a black perspective.
- Paul E. Hutchison, Bellefonte, Pa.
Copyright 1992 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 219 pages
• Publisher: Anchor (February 1, 1993)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0385425635
• ISBN-13: 978-0385425636
• Product Dimensions: 7.9 x 5.1 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 8 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #318,733 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Refreshing, African American executive fiction is a rarity., August 13, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Company Man (Paperback)

It was a treat to read a novel which featured an African American in corporate America.The book also showed the inner workings of someone suffering from a mental disease. Wade did a good job of presenting a piece of the African American perspective of corporate life without being bitter.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars interesting take on corporate life, February 14, 1997

By A Customer

This review is from: Company Man (Hardcover)

Brent Wade's first novel is a pretty good book. You can see that the author still has a lot to learn about dialogue and pacing, but overall, it's a good first effort. It takes a look at corporate life from a black perspective and reveals the hidden racism and innuendo that is played out daily in corporation boardrooms. It's worth a look. Also check-out "High Cotton" by Darryl Pinckney

4.0 out of 5 stars Worth your time...a good book, May 31, 2009

By 

poker student "solid player" (Sicklerville, NJ United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Company Man (Paperback)

I bought this book after reading a review about it in a black entertainment magazine. That was about 18 yrs ago. I read the book; I enjoyed it...then put it away. I recently moved. Going thru my book collection; I rediscovered this book and decided to reread it. I was not disappointed.

In this book, we get a chance to follow the career of the fictional character, William Covington. When I read this book the first time, I'd begun my corporate career. Unlike the character's career, I didn't quite advance like I'd hope. So this book provided me with an interesting "flashback" to my own early career thoughts and ambitions. Perhaps I was lucky not to succeed. It certainly didn't bode well for William Covington.

I do know that I've learned to tell white co-workers when I've think they've been out-of-line with some racially inappropriate comment. I didn't do this early in my career; I had a southern co-worker take me aside and tell me to "quit" overly catering to white folks. He was right. And I learned.

Maybe this book will help others to do the same thing. Your career is important, but your own self-respect is worth more...at least that's what I decided.

Good luck,

standtall