The English Experience is parody and gentle satire of a college professor and college work that also fits the cozy genre is almost fantasy, but not the D&D type. It’s the kind of thing most people who have not worked in academia probably think (erroneously, hence the fantasy) being a professor is like. Who wouldn’t want to lead study abroad, free trip, right? Wrong, mostly for reasons the story takes up in some way. Rather like its two predecessors, The English Experience is mostly only funny if you’re in on the joke but even more so than either of the first of novels. The in-jokes are aimed at anyone who has: 1) been a college or university instructor, 2) had to grade college or university written work, 3) had to work with college and/or university students, and/or 4) had to manage, organize, teach, or to some extent, take, a study abroad course. When it works, it really works, but sometimes, it doesn’t. It’s not just the tropes; dark academia does that too, and this is definitely not dark. It’s cozy.
The basic premise is that Jay Fitger of Payne University is coerced (as in departmental funding indirectly threatened if he refuses) into taking on a last minute study abroad class to England. Besides both the unwanted class, unwanted travel, Jay also has his ex-wife Janet to deal with, both in terms of their joint custody of Rogaine the dog, and the possibility of a shift in their general routine interaction (she works as senior admin of the Payne law school, so kind of but really colleagues). The students he must escort cover a range of stereotypes including the couple who may or may not be on a break (depends on who you ask), the pre-law student always ready to litigate, the one who never pays attention, the cat crazy one who might also be a little naïve, the one with a possibly sketchy history (rumor has it he did time in juvie), the one with some sort of vague (at least for Jay) chronic health problems, and the twins obsessed with being twins (and art). Expected problems ensue: housing sketchy; local guide sketchy; unappreciative or uninterested students; student who keeps running off to the Continent without permission; British food; and last but not least, the dreaded medical emergency in a foreign country. Tropes of both the UK and study abroad, check.
My biggest problem isn’t actually a problem since I actually am/fit all four of the above in-crowd options. I get the gags/humor. But that’s almost part of the problem. The student work that’s part of the story is clearly a parody of different types of student work stereotypes, but who finds that funny? It’s almost wince-worthy; I have to read the handful of paragraphs that don’t really answer what was asked, or that rant about a tangent, or that try to be more creative than necessary. I don’t really want to read more off the clock, so to speak. The other problem is I wonder if anyone who doesn’t get that these kinds of things are what some students really do do is going to find it entertaining, or just pointless. It’s not that these sections are bad, they do add to the character building and backstory sometimes. Part of me wonders what folks who might have been these students might think, if they recognize themselves or not.
It’s not a bad end of the Jay Fitger trilogy (or more officially the Dear Committee Members trilogy); general plot and character-wise, I liked this one better than part 2. I think the thing that really helped the whole story over the finish line is the epilogue chapter, the format, source, and content of which would definitely be spoilers, but it’s the best part of the story in some ways.