Fat Bald Jeff [Paperback]

Leslie Stella (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: March 30, 2001

Addie Prewitt is a copy editor for the National Association of Libraries. When her boss, the repulsive Coddles, heaps another new project on her department -- with no additional remuneration naturally -- she decides she's had enough. She spends her days battling with her roommate, Val Wayne Newton, about whether Black Sabbath or Neil Diamond will occupy the turntable and her nights beating her overeager suitor, Martin Lemming, away from the door of her boudoir. When she discovers a piece of vile pornography in Coddles's dry cleaning, she has the means to retaliate. Meanwhile, Fat Bald Jeff, the tech-support guy who has to cope with her mechanical self-sabotage, turns out to be even more disaffected than she, and they hatch the ultimate plan to give the pigs some of their own medicine. With a surreal wit and a keen eye that bring to mind Lily Tomlin set loose in Dilbert-world, Fat Bald Jeff is a sharp satire and a paean to the petty humiliations of workers everywhere.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Anyone who has worked in a cubicle will be drawn to this paean to the overworked, underpaid drone, but Stella's debut fails the performance evaluation. First, communication skills: it mistakenly employs a navel-gazing, deeply misanthropic heroine whose superficiality rivals that of Bridget Jones and Ally McBeal combined. By the time Addie Prewitt, a 26-year-old copy editor at the National Association of Libraries in Chicago, finds her narrative voice, this long short story is over. Second, teamwork: the characters are so over-the-top from Addie's Deep Purple-loving roommate Val Wayne Newton to tech support co-worker Fat Bald Jeff that they continually steal the spotlight, the equivalent here of throwing a stapler into the assembly line. Third, productivity: more than two-thirds of the book passes before Addie takes decisive action. She and Jeff pool their respective writing and programming talents to get back at the slimeball management. Their naughty rebellion and the chaos it inspires are the strongest plotlines; unfortunately, Stella insists on dragging Addie back to her sentimental family troubles, which do not have any direct bearing on the final outcome. Fourth, follow-through: Addie's relationship to her hippie parents is like a quilt; every now and then she offers a new patch of history, but by story's end, it looks like the emperor's new clothes. And as for her sugar-daddy boyfriend (the obviously named Martin Lemming), he is a transparent plot device, not a fully developed character. All of these problems could have been more easily overlooked if the promised humor was sure and natural, but instead it is inconsistent and forced. The best bookmark for this novel is a pink slip. Agent, Amye Dyer.

Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information, Inc.

From Booklist

Although negatives abound in this novel, few things are as compelling to read as a send-up of something perceived as pompous, officious, and petty. For example, an organization. Let's say a library organization. The made-up National Association of Libraries has a headquarters populated by the dregs of "nerddom": from corrupt and sexually questionable bosses and boring self-important coworkers to Addie, our narrator, a self-absorbed, hypochondriacal, retro-snob copy editor. Beneath, in terms of building arrangement at least, is the tech-support department with our unlikely hero, Fat Bald Jeff. His skills as a computer tech are legion, but encouraged by Addie's tiny foray into bad behavior, he becomes a saboteur without equal. Will the two of them succeed in deflating the overinflated? Will Addie find love? Will Jeff get a raise? Will she get the stain out of her silk blouse? Although as subtle as a sledgehammer, this is a fun, harmless, and quick read. Don't look for inspiration, just amusement. Danise Hoover
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

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Product Details

• Paperback: 224 pages
• Publisher: Grove Press; 1st edition (March 30, 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0802137725
• ISBN-13: 978-0802137722
• Product Dimensions: 8.2 x 5.5 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 7 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (27 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,513,214 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

8 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Fun, Fun, Fun, March 18, 2001

By 

Beau Thurnauer "Beau" (Coventry, CT USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Fat Bald Jeff (Paperback)

Sarcasm offends some people. If it offends you then you might think of bypassing this volume and sticking to Oprahs list. But for others of us it is one of the ways we cope with what is going on in our world. Although this story centers on one girls life in the pits of going to work in a cubicle everyday you can easily unplug the cubicle and plug in whatever you do.

Stella has written a gem here and we can all relate to it. She has used her humor to write not a knee slapper but a book that made me smile and shake my head during every page. Over and over again I found myself relating something in my life to something in each characters life.

And as for Fat Bald Jeff? He represents everbody you ever made up a nickname for. Come on. Think about it. Haven't you ever had a nickname for someone and after a while you don't even remember his or her real name? Fat pants? Garbage? Furry? I have names for lots of people.

I have to use this book for a book group this month. This same group read Plainsong last month. No two books could be further from each other on the subject scale. It will be interesting if people who like one like the other. Just out of curiosity if you read both let me know what you thought.

Fun book to read, highly recommended,

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Ignatius Reilly reincarnated as a woman!, February 24, 2004

By 

J. Danielson "jd11757" (austin, texas United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Fat Bald Jeff (Paperback)

I loved this book! I loved the self-involved Addie-she had the same clueless disregard for reality as Ignatius Reilly in "Confederacy of Dunces" and the same inabilty to see how others perceived her.

I've known many "Fat Bald Jeffs" in my day, and it's nice to see them get their due. Fun, fast moving read!

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Light-hearted and funny when it wants to be, April 25, 2001

By 

J. Surowiecki (Hanover Park, Illinois) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Fat Bald Jeff (Paperback)

I found Leslie Stella's book "Fat Bald Jeff" to be a very light-hearted and fun read.

Addie Prewitt is a trapped in the world of cubicles along with the denizens that dwell there. Anyone who has (or ever had) such a job will immediately recognize most of the people described within. We all work with a Fat Bald Jeff.... admit it.

Addie describes herself as the female version of Austin Powers. Fat Bald Jeff is exactly that. He's fat. He's bald. He's Jeff. Together this unlikely duo hatch a scheme to get their justifiable revenge on the shallow office managers who have very little (if any) concern for the people they work with.

The supporting cast of characters are likeable enough. They do their jobs and remain in the background, allowing the author Leslie Stella to concentrate on Addie and Fat Bald Jeff.

Most of the other reviewers have commented on the book's general plot, so I'll just say that it's light and it's charming. If you're looking for a gut-buster, look elsewhere. This is a nice spring novel. I enjoyed it immensely.

Well done, Ms. Stella.