Stoner (novel)

Stoner
First edition
AuthorJohn Williams
Cover artistEllen Raskin
LanguageEnglish
GenreCampus novel
Set inColumbia, Missouri
PublisherThe Viking Press
Publication date
1965
Publication placeUnited States
Media typePrint (hardcover)
Pages278
OCLC647139
813/.54
LC ClassPZ3.W6744 St PS3545.I5286

Stoner is a 1965 novel by the American writer John Williams. It was reissued in 1972 by Pocket Books, in 2003 by Vintage[1] and in 2006 by New York Review Books Classics with an introduction by John McGahern.[2]

Stoner has been categorized under the genre of the academic novel, or the campus novel.[3] Stoner follows the life of the eponymous William Stoner, his undistinguished career and workplace politics, marriage to his wife, Edith, affair with his colleague, Katherine, and his love and pursuit of literature.

Despite receiving little attention upon its publication in 1965, Stoner has seen a sudden surge of popularity and critical praise since its republication in the 2000s, championed by authors such as Julian Barnes, Ian McEwan, Bret Easton Ellis and John McGahern.[4][5]

  1. ^ Barnes, Julian (2013-12-13). "Stoner: the must-read novel of 2013". The Guardian. Archived from the original on 2015-11-03. Retrieved 2015-11-02.
  2. ^ John Williams, Stoner, New York: New York Review Books, 2003.
  3. ^ Wiegenstein, Steve (1990–94), "The Academic Novel and the Academic Ideal: John Williams' Stoner", The McNeese Review 33.
  4. ^ Barnes, Julian (2013-12-13). "Stoner: the must-read novel of 2013". the Guardian. Retrieved 2022-03-28.
  5. ^ Doyle, Máire (13 June 2017). "Stoner, the pearl of 'Lazarus literature'". The Irish Times. Retrieved 2022-03-28.