Man evolves from ape to caring but crude klutz

by Todd Johnson
For The Post

At 20 years old, Mike Magnuson lived in the music room of a local boarded-up elementary school, surrounded by the filth of nightly parties and no place to wash. Soon, he was caught having a 15-year-old runaway innocently spending the night, and was run out of town by his father, the superintendent.

"Lummox: The Evolution of a Man" is author Magnuson's memoir of his growth from a typical beer-guzzling oaf to a "lummox" who also happens to enjoy great literature, treats his wife well and even becomes an author. It takes a while for him to get there, though.

He goes to college, but drops out, gets a factory job and falls into the whole lifestyle that seems to come with it while enjoying his drum set and $35-a-month rent in the music room. He moves on to Eau Claire, Wisconsin, the nearby college town, and ironically gets a job at a reformatory for teenagers. He befriends a horribly scarred burn victim who can't stay out of trouble and leads Mike into it.

Mike gets back into school, and lives a "lesbian summer" in a house with intellectuals. It is something he had dreamed of moving up to from the average bar scene, but much of the time he finds these people to be judgmental and dull, and he can't help but be offensive to their politically correct sensibilities.

Another lull hits Mike after college, when he falls into a long, bad relationship. His literature degree earns him another factory job and the whole drinking and cheating lifestyle that hard labor seems to encourage. He fights through this and against a phantom defecator who leaves gifts on his Pinto, while learning to appreciate what he does have and what he can still become.

Lummox is a brutally honest, funny and at times poignant series of vignettes that Magnuson claims is all true, despite admitted condensing and changing of names. His casual writing style reads like a guy who is sitting in a bar with you, having a few beers and telling you his best drinking stories. It is entertaining, but sometimes comes off as a rough draft that could have used some polish and a little editing; however, the style does fit Magnuson's personality. He has become a writer and a caring person, but he's still crude, and he wants you to know it.