The Devil and Webster

January 23, 2017
Korelitz (Admission) raids the current news climate for this hot-topic read about diversity, protest, and “liberal idiocy” on the campus of progressive Webster College, headed by its first female and Jewish president, Naomi Roth, a feminist academic with her own radical past. Roth’s pride in Webster’s evolution from white male homogeneity to carefully culled inclusion is tested by the denial of tenure to popular black professor Nicholas Gall, which spawns a massive student movement to protect him led by Omar Khayal, a charismatic Palestinian student. Though Roth prides herself on speaking “truth to power,” when she is the “establishment” her words fall on deaf ears. They fail to impress even her own daughter, Hannah, a member of the protest movement; best friend, Francine, the college’s admissions dean going through her own academic crisis; and the restive college board. There’s much to ponder in this dense political and social debate, and it’s as overwhelming to Naomi as it is to readers, who, though pitying her no-win situation, can see the hypocrisy that blinds her. Ultimately, it isn’t the political twist that’s so riveting in Korelitz’s morality tale, but the apolitical, ageless struggle of a mother letting go of her daughter, a fact “so very ordinary, but... everything, too.”

June 26, 2017
A consummate actor, Burton hits all the right notes delving into the conflicted inner life of Webster College President Naomi Roth: she convincingly portrays Roth’s pain that her daughter is growing older and moving on, and as she deals with a student rebellion and its leader, Palestinian student Omar Kayal, whom she at once admires and distrusts. Burton makes listeners ponder, as Roth does, sets of antithetical values: freedom and discipline, friendship and principles, youthful idealism and unrestrained rebellion, pity and common sense. This is a thought-provoking book and Burton’s narration is excellent throughout. A Grand Central hardcover.

Kate Burton's conversational tone immediately captures the character of the first female president of venerable Webster College. Naomi Roth, an accomplished academic, connects well with both her contemporaries and young adults but doesn't take herself too seriously. Navigating faculty politics without ruffling too many feathers and dealing with hiccups in her personal relationships seem to be her greatest challenges. Burton transitions smoothly to a more thoughtful tone and crisper pace to mirror Naomi's increasing anxiety when events on campus devolve from conventional student protest to a situation threatening Naomi's position and the college itself. Rieger's cleverly written story offers multidimensional characters and an exploration of timely cultural topics. Burton's effective delivery of the novel's wry humor, anguish, and sober introspection results in a satisfying listen. M.O.B. � AudioFile 2017, Portland, Maine