“A witty, engaging critique of the impact of unfettered managerialism and the havoc it has wrought in South African academic institutions.” —Mbongeni Malaba, Bulletin of the National Library of South Africa “As a ‘court jester,’ Tomaselli challenges all academics to reflect on their lives as academics at contemporary universities and urges them to become academics again.” —Whitey van der Linde, Acta Commercii

"Thoroughly enjoyable.... Tomaselli’s most exquisite book offers extremely valuable insights into the working conditions of a South African academic experiencing the slow but steady rise of neoliberalism and managerialism." —Thomas Klikauer and Meg Young, Australian Universities’ Review

Keyan Tomaselli's accessible critique of market-driven neoliberalism is offered as a metaphor to analyze the excesses, contradictions, and obstructions in contemporary university governance. With incisive satirical humor, Tomaselli delves into the quirks of education administrative systems to show how manic management negatively affects teaching, research, science, and reasoning—and must be brought into check to preserve the very nature of the academy.