What a delight this book is!
In a voice entirely his own, and with terrific humor and great sympathy toward his oddball hero, John Butman engages us in this original tale of relationships, power, loyalty, love, business dealings, responsibility, and fine men's shoes. Butman is a careful observer of people. He's particularly good at noting the small details, usually passed over, that make a situation or character, no matter how far-fetched, come alive.
This unusual (and very funny) story of improbable coincidences, and contradictory and conflicted characters, is one that provided great pleasure to this reader. I eagerly look forward to what John Butman does next.

Good things come in small packages. This novel has its own ironic but not unsympathetic tone towards it characters. You might hear some echoes of John Barth, Nabokov, S.J. Perelman in terms of the novel's unusual set up, humor, and wordplay. The humor in particular is interesting because much of it is sharp-edged satire of the absurdly monied classes of the eighties and nineties, with their grotesque MacMansions, devotion to gigantic cars, and the need to demonstrate to one and all that they are indeed richer than you. Yet, once we meet one of these people in the form of Arthur Worthy, we are charmed by him, much as Theo, the neo-Thoreauvian butler, is charmed. The details are rich, the oddities entertaining (I shall never look at a wrought-iron railing again without certain unrelated words coming to mind), and the twists and turns unexpected.
Buy it, read it, and read it again. It's even better the second time.

Townie is an exceptionally well-written and engaging first novel and I so enjoyed it I was sorry when I turned the last page. How often do you laugh out loud while reading silently and alone? I was charmed by Arthur and Theo, lovably flawed, and by their unlikely, but very appealing relationship. The plot and characters make Townie more than good enough ro recommend, and the writing itself is a real pleasure; it's a rare treat to come across unfamiliar words in contemporary fiction.
Three cheers for Butman!! When's the next novel due?

In 1947 America, what did "Made in Japan" mean? Today, Americans feel exactly the opposite about this phrase, due in no small part to the lifetime of influence of the work of Joseph Moses Juran, one of the world's seminal leaders in the quality movement. Born in 1904, Juran's extraordinary intensity (he's still at it) and his brilliant prescience about quality have established world renown respect for his quality consulting, teaching, and especially his writing. Author Butman depends heavily on Juran's extensive personal involvement in this first and only authorized biography that understandably shies away from a more critical analysis of Juran's impact in business. Butman describes numerous details of Juran's life, including his early life of dire poverty in Romania, the family's trek across the world to live in a tar-paper shack in Minneapolis, Minnesota, his early odd jobs from age nine to sixteen, his academic proficiency and expertise in chess, his college degree in electrical engineering (the first in his family history), and his career years with Western Electric in the famed Hawthorne plant. Juran was employed there during the time of the now famous Hawthorne studies, as was W.E.Deming, although the two never actually met while with the company. Juran's surprisingly frank acknowledgment of his lack of managerial skills and his comments on the fascinating experience working with immediate post World War II Japan (he first travelled there in 1954) establish a personal connection with this self confessed abrasive quality leader who means so much to countless quality professionals throughout the world. Juran's works abound (to quality professionals, his massive 2,000 page "Quality Control Handbook" is sacrosanct) and are considered fundamental references for anyone interested in better understanding the meaning of quality and how best to integrate these principles in any organization. At age 92, Juran now devotes his time to writing a three volume autobiography that should further fill in the details of this extraordinary life. This is a fascinating story essential for all quality professionals. For more information on Juran, check out this site: http://www.juran.com/juran/bio/bio _jmj.html.