Title: Dear Committee Members
Author: Julie Schumacher
First published August 19, 2014
181 pages, Hardcover
ISBN: 9780385538138 (ISBN10: 0385538138)
Rating: 3.76
Overview
Dear Committee Members by Julie Schumacher is a humorous and satirical novel that will have you laughing out loud while also feeling the frustration of the main character, Jason Fitger. Fitger is a professor of creative writing and literature at a small liberal arts college in the Midwest, where his department is being subjected to harsh budget cuts and terrible conditions.
Meanwhile, the Economics Department above them is getting all the attention and lavish upgrades. Fitger’s writing career is stagnant, and his love life is a mess due to his questionable use of personal experiences in his books.
His star pupil is struggling to get recognition for his work, leaving Fitger feeling even more defeated. Through a series of witty and sarcastic letters of recommendation, Fitger expresses his frustrations and disappointments in a way that is both hilarious and relatable.
We highly recommend this book to anyone looking for a good laugh and a unique reading experience.
About the Author
Julie Schumacher is an accomplished author who hails from Wilmington, Delaware. She pursued higher education at Oberlin College and Cornell University, earning her MFA.
Her debut novel, The Body Is Water, was published by Soho Press in 1995 and received accolades as an ALA Notable Book of the Year and a finalist for the PEN/Hemingway Award. In 2014, Schumacher’s novel, Dear Committee Members, won the Thurber Prize for American Humor, making her the first woman to receive this honor.
Currently residing in St. Paul, Schumacher is a faculty member at the University of Minnesota, where she teaches in the Creative Writing Program and the Department of English.
Editoral Review
Dear Committee Members by Julie Schumacher is a satirical novel that takes the form of a series of recommendation letters by a disgruntled professor to various academic institutions, scholarship boards, and publishers. Published in August 2014, the book received critical acclaim for its witty, incisive portrayal of academia and its hilarious protagonist, Jason Fitger.
Julie Schumacher is a professor of English at the University of Minnesota and has published several novels and short story collections. Dear Committee Members is her seventh book and won the Thurber Prize for American Humor in 2015.
The novel is written in the form of letters of recommendation, a unique and clever approach to storytelling that allows Schumacher to explore the absurdities and frustrations of academia from a humorous and deeply human perspective. The novel follows Jason Fitger, a creative writing professor at Payne University, a small, mediocre liberal arts college in the Midwest.
Fitger is a curmudgeonly character, bitter about the state of higher education and the lack of support for the liberal arts. He is also going through a midlife crisis, dealing with a failed marriage and a strained relationship with his son.
Through his letters, Fitger vents his frustrations with the academic bureaucracy, his colleagues, and his own shortcomings. He is particularly obsessed with one of his former students, a talented writer who is struggling to make a name for herself, and he takes it upon himself to champion her cause.
Schumacher’s writing style is sharp, witty, and full of amusing asides and pop culture references. She uses the form of the recommendation letter to great effect, allowing Fitger’s voice to shine through in all its cranky glory.
The novel is also incredibly timely, as it addresses the current state of academia and the humanities in a way that is both hilarious and sobering. However, the novel does have its limitations.
Schumacher’s use of the recommendation letter format can be repetitive at times, and some readers may find Fitger’s rants tiresome. Additionally, the novel lacks a traditional plot or narrative arc, which may make it less appealing to some readers.
Despite its flaws, Dear Committee Members is a must-read for anyone who has ever been involved in academia. Schumacher’s portrait of the insular, ego-driven world of the liberal arts is spot-on, and her humor and wit make even the most mundane aspects of academia feel engaging and entertaining.
The novel is also a poignant exploration of midlife crisis, regret, and redemption, as Fitger comes to terms with his own limitations and failures. Overall, I give Dear Committee Members a rating of four out of five stars.
Its unique format, engaging writing style, and timely themes make it a standout work of contemporary fiction. I highly recommend it to anyone who enjoys witty satire and insightful commentary on the state of higher education.
