The Shakespeare Requirement
Julie SchumacherOnce more into the breach…
Now is the fall of his discontent, as Jason Fitger, newly appointed chair of the English Department of Payne University, takes arms against a sea of troubles, personal and institutional. His ex-wife is sleeping with the dean who must approve whatever modest initiatives he undertakes. The fearsome department secretary Fran clearly runs the show (when not taking in rescue parrots and dogs) and holds plenty of secrets she’s not sharing. The lavishly funded Econ Department keeps siphoning off English’s meager resources and has taken aim at its remaining office space. And Fitger’s attempt to get a mossbacked and antediluvian Shakespeare scholar to retire backfires spectacularly when the press concludes that the Bard is being kicked to the curricular curb.
Lord, what fools these mortals be! Julie Schumacher proves the point and makes the most of it in this delicious romp of satire
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Julie Schumacher grew up in Wilmington, Delaware, & graduated from Oberlin College & Cornell University. Her first novel, The Body Is Water, was published by Soho Press in 1995 & was an ALA Notable Book of the Year & a finalist for the PEN/Hemingway Award & the Minnesota Book Award. Her other books include the novel Dear Committee Members, a short story collection, An Explanation for Chaos, & five books for younger readers. She lives in St. Paul & is a faculty member in the Creative Writing Program & the Department of English at the University of Minnesota.