Rookery Blues [Mass Market Paperback]

Jon Hassler (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: November 26, 1997

Rookery State College in the late 1960s is an academic backwater if ever there was one--until the Icejam Quintet is born. With Leland Edwards on piano, Neil Novotny on clarinet, Victor Dash on drums, and Connor on bass, the group comes together with the help of its muse, the lovely Peggy Benoit, who plays saxophone and sings. But soon isolated Rookery State will be touched by the great discontent sweeping the country: the first labor union in the college's history comes noisily to campus. As a teachers strike takes shape, the five musicians must struggle with their loyalties--to the school, the town, their families, and one another. . . .

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Set amidst the discontent of the 1960s, Hassler's comic novel looks at a group of disaffected academics in a small Minnesota town.
Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From the Inside Flap

Rookery State College in the late 1960s is an academic backwater if ever there was one--until the Icejam Quintet is born. With Leland Edwards on piano, Neil Novotny on clarinet, Victor Dash on drums, and Connor on bass, the group comes together with the help of its muse, the lovely Peggy Benoit, who plays saxophone and sings. But soon isolated Rookery State will be touched by the great discontent sweeping the country: the first labor union in the college's history comes noisily to campus. As a teachers strike takes shape, the five musicians must struggle with their loyalties--to the school, the town, their families, and one another. . . .

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Mass Market Paperback: 512 pages
• Publisher: Ballantine Books (November 26, 1997)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0345423089
• ISBN-13: 978-0345423085
• Product Dimensions: 6.7 x 4.2 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 0.8 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 3.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (12 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,175,853 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Dickensesque, April 2, 2002

By 

Dave Schwinghammer "Dave Schwinghammer" (Little Falls, Minnesota USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Rookery Blues (Hardcover)

ROOKERY BLUES revolves around the experiences of the Icejam Quintet during the `60s at Rookery State College: Leland Edwards on piano, Neil Novotny on clarinet, Victor Dash on drums, Connor on bass, and Peggy Benoit, saxophonist and singer. The musicians are professors and instructors at the college. Each of them has a story line. The beautiful Peggy Benoit is taken with alcoholic Connor. She's kind of a groupie, being more enamored of Connor's reputation as an artist than the man. I found Neil Novotny, who plays clarinet, the most interesting character, because he gives Hassler an opportunity to satirize beginning novelists (and I imagine what he remembers about the experience himself). My favorite Hassler book is STAGGERFORD in which Hassler satirizes the political and personal machinations that occur in a high school setting. As a twenty-year teacher, I found those more interesting than the story line.
I also had fun trying to pick out any similarities to the two colleges Hassler taught at: Brainerd Community College and St. John's (just outside St. Cloud, Minnesota). There's an ice fishing scene which seems to point at the little lake right next to St. John's. The other character I found intriguing was Victor Dash, the faculty union representative. Most of the teachers involved find labor negotiations beneath themselves; Dash revels in the matter, would like nothing better than to strike.
Hassler is a Dickensesque writer, totally immersing us in this academic setting. Major characters and minor characters are given the same careful attention to detail. You can't lose with ROOKERY BLUES.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Gentle and heart-warming character study, June 27, 1998

By A Customer

This review is from: Rookery Blues (Paperback)

When most books feature disposable or interchangeable characters, it is a wonderful treat to read a book with people you can care about. To read fiction is to enter someone else's world and Hassler unerringly recreates such a vision in his wintery academic community. Without violence or bloodshed, he is able to create a gripping story of ordinary people in the grip of life's passion and circumstances. A great book.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Laugh? I thought I'd die!, October 28, 2002

By 

Schmerguls "schmerguls" (Sioux City, Ia USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: Rookery Blues (Paperback)

This is the eighth Hassler book I have read, and while it is different from some of his others, there is so much funny in the book my wife told me to go to another room to read since I was helplessly laughing aloud so very often. There is nothing theological about this book, and in fact nothing judgmental (I thought there could have been at least some indication of non-approval of the adultery), but nevertheless one can't help but be caught up in the zany story. Jon Hassler kind of suggests to me a male Anne Tyler.