Duffleman Does Academe

And so begins Isaac Sweeney, writing for Academe, the journal of the AAUP, in his review of Fight for Your Long Day:

"I laughed at parts of Fight for Your Long Day, a new novel by Alex Kudera. At other parts of the novel, I felt inspired. But most of all, Fight for Your Long Day made me sad. Part of my sadness came because Kudera writes elegantly and has created an insightful, tragic, sometimes comic protagonist (I dare not call him a hero) named Cyrus Duffleman, whom the narrator calls “Duffy.” He reminds me of Hamlet—a bit of an introverted whiner, but the kind you love to hear whine. I’m sad when Duffleman is sad. I’m even sadder when he has bits of hope, like when there’s the prospect of an affair with an attractive student, because I know it won’t work out for him. As with any other effective tragic character, there’s something satisfying in watching his tragedy unfold."

Thanks, Isaac.

Cyrus Duffleman is a fictional character. The real tragedies in America concern people like Isaac Sweeney--good teachers and hard workers who risk the worst consequences if they try to defend themselves.

Follow this link for the full review: http://www.aaup.org/AAUP/pubsres/academe/2011/JF/br/br3.htm

And check out Isaac's short fiction here: http://www.smashwords.com/books/view/35484

or here: http://www.smashwords.com/books/view/36908