Deservedly a cult classic since John McGahern championed it on its republication in 2003, Stoner, in this, its 50th anniversary year, is a great novel in the purest sense. William Stoner, the son of poor farmers, arrives at a university in 1910 to study agriculture. There he discovers a love of literature that causes him to reject his plans and the family farm and instead pursue a college lectureship. He marries into a banker's family only to quickly realise that his wife is cold, unloving and intent on using their only child, a daughter, as a weapon against him. Stoner endures through his passion for teaching. His long academic career remains modest yet meaningful. Stoner is a study of an ordinary life graced by quiet heroism. Unquestionably one of the finest novels of the 20th century, its genius lies in its candour and in prose that simmers with subtle intent.
