The Hair of Harold Roux

Aaron Benham, writer, professor, husband, father, is having a midlife crisis.

He's stalled on his latest novel; he's dealing with the hysterical mother of a missing student as well as the worried wife of a doctoral candidate who won't finish his thesis; and he's disappointed his family once again by forgetting about the family trip they had planned. During that long weekend alone, while his family has gone on without him, Aaron wrestles with age-old questions: Who am I? How did I get here? What is my purpose?

Set in New England of the early 1970s, the novel ranges through time and memory and fiction itself. We are treated to Aaron's stream of conscience reminiscences of WWII Army life, the goings-on of the present day, and his struggles show more with his novel. In fact, we spend a lot of time inside Aaron's novel itself..."a thinly disguised memoir of his college days," to quote the back cover. And even some time inside the novel's novel...each story interconnected by outside events, haunting regrets, and foolish young decisions. Aaron's world allows him to be selfish and self-indulgent -- a guilty flaw he fully recognizes and explores at length through his own internal dialogue and that of Allard Benson, the alter ego of his novel. By the time we reach the conclusion, Aaron may or may not be a better person, but he's certainly aware.

Although it took me a little while to get into the rhythm, the story flowed easily, with beautiful language, well-drawn fully-fleshed characterizations, and smooth transitions. Well worth reading.

Thank you, LibraryThing Early Reviewers for the opportunity to read this book. show less

[this review is of the Bloomsbury USA 2011 reprint edition, as part of the LT Early Reviewers program]

A book that certainly deserves to be back in print. With a deft hand, Thomas Williams gives us a story of a writer giving us a story; weaving story on story until the reader is happily lost in the layers. In these pages is childhood, youth, coming-of-age, adulthood, responsibility, recklessness, struggles to keep things from changing, struggles to move on, and struggles to make the world live up to our dreams. If I started to describe the stories, I'd never stop writing. William's is a master craftsman and this work left me with that rare but delicious sense of coming out of a dream that, for me, marks the best of fiction. Thank you show more Bloomsbury for bringing this back, and for giving us the brilliant afterword by WIliams' daughter, author Ann Joslin Williams.

Os. show less

Story within story within story. So many layers, so many opportunities to confuse and frustrate, yet Williams manages to be piercingly clear while he delights. Simultaneously a coming of age story and a retrospective view from middle-age that is filled with elements of regret and cynicism.

Aaron Benham, university professor and author, is struggling to write his latest novel while he also struggles to make sense of his current life. The novel unfolds before our eyes, a story seemingly based on events in Aaron's early life. Williams' novel takes its name from a physicial attribute of a character in Benham's novel, one Harold Roux. Harold, most confident and comfortable while briefly living in Lilliputown, an illusion filled creation of show more his eccentric landlord couple, has his world view and self image shattered, while Benham's alter ego (Allard Benson) moves deftly from his novel to become a springboard for Benham's reflections on his life, marriage, family, and career.

This novel won the National Book Award in 1975, deservedly so. There are many passages I took time to read multiple times, to mark down, to share with friends. It is a book well worth reading - and well worth the current re-publication. show less

You have to admire the intricate construction of this layered novel of nested stories which confirms a long held suspicion that writers are well-served by the mining of their own lives. Happily, the author does not rely on clever devise alone, as the writing is strong, with well-drawn, believable characters struggling with life's challenges. The story-within-a-story design allows the author to explore the various themes from a multitude of perspectives, deepening the narrative. In less deft hands, this novel could easily have become muddied and confused, but Thomas Williams has a firm hold of his reins throughout.

A novel about a college professor writing a novel about a college student who wants to write a novel sounds like it's going to be an airless trip down a hall of mirrors, but The Hair of Harold Roux is surprisingly vivid. It pulls off the very neat trick of being two things at once, both an introspective, memoiresque piece of realist fiction in the vein of Richard Ford or Tobias Wolff and a more experimental novel that explores how life and memory are transformed into story. Stepping in and out of the nested narratives is disorienting only in the slightest degree; at each level the reader is guided by a craftsman's hand. Thomas Williams is an incessant observer of action and psychology, and so are his various alter egos within the show more book.

Reading the novel in 2011 adds yet another layer of interest. The novel was originally released in 1974 and is set in 1970, and it features characters looking back at and living through the years immediately following the second world war. Williams's long lens is even more powerful now with the added filter of the years since publication. Some outdated attitudes are certainly on display, but that's largely a function of how ready the narrators are to confront their own worst impulses. It's what makes them feel as real as they do even while they're reminding you of how fictional they are. show less

Thomas Williams wrote his National Book Award winning novel The Hair of Harold Roux decades ago, yet it remains a richly fascinating and relevant work of literature today.

There are stories within stories, 5 in all, woven together to create a ponderous exploration of life's struggles and mysteries. From the opening sentence - Aaron Benham sits at his desk hearing the wrong voices. - to the touching afterword written by his daughter, this book was captivating. There were so many intricate details to absorb, words and ideas to ponder, character motivations to analyze, fictions versus realities to discern, symbols of warm fires and the chill of absolute zero, twists of fate and luck, all written by a master. I took pages of notes as I show more read, not so much to help me write a review as to help me remember the unique and meaningful prose.

I was often reminded of the rich detail and style of John Irving, and was not surprised to learn he was a former student and friend of Williams. Thomas Williams never achieved Irving's commercial success in his lifetime, but based on this work, he should have. This is a highly recommended, well written novel. show less

First published in 1974, The Hair of Harold Roux won the National Book Award in 1975. I had never heard of Williams and feel like I’ve just made a great discovery. Williams is an amazing story teller and this novel is layered with story within story, each one as interesting and compelling as the others.

The narrator is Aaron Benson, academic and author, struggling to write a novel of his youth. He is married with two children and while he loves them and sees his need for them, he seems incapable of focusing on them and giving them the attention they need. He is struggling with his novel, working to recreate an unpleasant time in his life.

The main character in his novel is Allard Benson, at university after time spent in the military show more during WWII. He is clearly based on the young Aaron. Aaron does not romanticize his young self and looks at him with the same analytical knife that he uses to consider his current life. Allard meets Harold Roux, also in school after the war, who acts as Allard’s moral compass. Roux has high standards, is highly principled, and naïve. He has one weakness, his hair, which affects his entire experience at school. Both love Mary Tolliver, a beautiful, young student. Harold sees her as perfection, pure and to be protected. Allard also is drawn to her great beauty and sets out single-mindedly to win her.

Allard is basically so self-centered that while he might be drawn to friends, and tells himself he loves Mary, all his actions are directed toward the goal of getting what he wants. He wants Mary but plans to change her to be more like him. There is a lack of empathy in him; he might see that he is causing pain but that is something he observes and doesn’t really change anything for him. The final disaster of the novel within the novel is a result of his inattention to what is going on with the people around him.

Ultimately, the novel is about time, how we pass through it, carry experiences forward through it, and how eventually all our friends and family move away from us in their passage. A wonderful book. show less