About Schmidt

By now you've probably seen the movie, and read reviews that say movie and book are quite different. 'S true. But they are at heart the same...gently exploring a prickly yet subtle man, leading a life of quiet desperation, less tears than wistful sighs, less chest-pounding than weary acceptance. The movie pokes you a little bit more, but I guess it has to. Plot is not the deal here, nor is dialogue, even. It's all character. Schmidt is in a period of great loss, his catastrophic losses (retirement, wife's death) ill preparation for the smaller, more damaging ones (daughter patronizes him, he realizes the relationship was based on the mother and he was just an extra). This book reminded me of Updike's 'Rabbit' series, though this one is a more pleasant read. I was glad to find this author and will read more of his. Highly, highly recommended.

About Schmidt is an absolutely mesmerizing read. I had previously read Mistler's Exit and eagerly looked forward to reading this book. It did not disappoint.The character of Schmidt is not a likeable one but fascinating none the less. Still coming to terms with the death of his wife he doesn't know quite how to react to his daughters love for a partner in his old firm. The fact that the boyfriend is jewish does not help matters. He manages to maintain a distant relationship with her but realizes that she is repudiating her past in order to become part of his family and after marriage she will convert to Judaism. The emotional turmoil that pervades this book is as heartrending as it is self inflicted. The moral if there is one is that one must come to terms with ones past. With the death of his wife and the loss of his daughter Schmidt's journey to self awareness and acceptance is compelling reading. If you seek a story about the soul of a man then this book is for you, warts and all.

Having never read Begley before, I did not know what to expect. I'm happy to report that once I got used to his style (complex sentence constructions), I settled in and really enjoyed this book. Albert Schmidt, it seems, should be someone whose butt we want to kick. He's grouchy and way too stuck on himself. But he's also quite observant, and this is ultimately what made me like him. He can sniff out a phony at twenty paces and he's not afraid to challenge those who pry too deeply (witness his altercation with his son-in-law-to-be's mother, a psychiatrist who takes it upon herself to lift Schmidtie from the depression he's been in since the death of his wife. He combats her phychiatrist's offensive with his attorney's defense and it's rather humorous). Though Schmidt spends much of the book moping around and looking back on his life, he begins to let his hair down when he takes up with a feisty waitress, who gets him thinking about possibilities. Is she only doting on him to get a big tip? The passages in which Schmidt and Carrie's relationship develops are really touching. In Albert Schmidt, Begley has created a truly memorable character in less than three hundred pages. Begley's prose is elegant -- it's obvious he worked hard on this book. I wish I could say the same for Richard Ford, whose "Women with Men" I read just before this book. Compared to Begley's latest work, Ford's collection is light and airy, puff pastry crud. I recommend Ford read "About Schmidt" before he embarks on his next project