Straight White Male: (A Novel)

by Gerald W. Haslam

Book Overview

Leroy Upton, the "straight white male" who is the novel's central character, has come a long way from the sun-baked working-class neighborhood in Bakersfield where he grew up. The son of an oil-field laborer, Leroy is now a professor at a small college in Northern California. He is happily married, has three much-loved children, and close friends who share his memories and success.

But life is about to deliver a series of challenges that overturn...

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 087417354X
• ISBN13: 9780874173543
• Release Date: August 2000
• Publisher: University of Nevada Press
• Length: 288 Pages
• Weight: 0.90 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.7" x 6.0" x 9.0"

Customer Reviews

Straight White Male is a strange title, but it delivers!

What a treat to read a book with so much great dialogue, complex relationships, and spanning 50 years. I love books that give me a fresh or altogether new perspective on something as mundane (and sad) as growing old. Leroy Upton is an unforgettable character - someone you want to know, because he is so genuine and normal, yet who faces incredible challenges with wit and insight. As an only child who takes care of his aging and infirm parents, while balancing marriage and 3 grown kids, Leroy Shows us that age-old lesson: make the most of everyday, be kind and generous to your loved ones as life is short.

"Straight White Male"

I have read every book Mr.Haslam has written. This one, his first novel, is more than a good read; This is a deeply moving book. Anyone who grew up in the section of the Southern Central California Valley, especially on the 'other side of the bridge,' of which this story treats, is bound to connect, perhaps even in ways they had not yet identified. A must for Haslam fans.