Hank Devereaux, chair of the dysfunctional English department at a small university, is having a midlife crisis.  His wife, leaving town, fears he’ll be either in jail or the hospital before she returns — and she is not disappointed.  Straight Man is hilarious, I had to stop reading it in bed because it was too hard to giggle quietly enough to keep from waking Sarah up.  I don’t know anything about Russo but it is clear that he has spent time in academia, his portrayal of the odd personalities and petty politics is too perfect to be guesswork.  This is one of the best books I’ve read in years, I highly recommend it.