William Stoner is proof that you don’t have to be remarkable to have an impact on someone’s life. He’s an ordinary college professor whose career spans both World Wars. While his mundane ways may seem boring to his family and colleagues, Stoner’s pedestrian life makes him all the more relatable and sympathetic. An outsider may consider Stoner unfortunate, but Williams makes us feel his devastation with him. Stoner stands out as one of the more memorable characters in twentieth century literature, if for nothing other than his staunch refusal to compromise his principles. While the narrative lacks action, I didn’t feel that it ever got slow. Despite its heart-rending plot, Stoner simultaneously is a celebration of the everyman and the simple life.