“Reading this book reminded me of watching a cat lick a dog’s eye goo.” Read more
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“Reading this book reminded me of watching a cat lick a dog’s eye goo.” Read more
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Founded in 1982 at San Jose State University in California, the Bulwer-Lytton Fiction Contest challenges entrants to compose opening sentences to the worst of all possible novels. Read more
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Fleishman Is In Trouble is the story of recently divorced 41-year-old “Toby Fleishman” (Jesse Eisenberg), who dives into the brave new world of app-based dating with the kind of success he never had dating in his youth. But just at the start of his first summer of sexual freedom, his ex-wife disappears, leaving him with the kids and no hint of where she is or whether she plans to return. Watch trailer
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The ceremony for the Mark Twain Prize, one of comedy’s top honors, celebrated Mr. Stewart’s achievements on “The Daily Show” and his activism on behalf of veterans and 9/11 emergency workers. Read more
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Ginder aces the small stuff: sparkling dialogue, hilarious supporting characters (Greta’s roommates!), whimsically named establishments—a doggy day care is BowHaus … He also aces the big stuff, characteristically insightful on sibling and parent-child relationships and politically on message. Read more
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Brad Leithauser Considers the Comedy of Verse. Read more
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Kirby’s book succeeds not just because she’s a preternaturally gifted prose stylist, but because of her willingness to take risks. She experiments with points of view and occasionally dips into metafiction (“Midwestern Girl Is Tired of Appearing in Your Short Stories” is a master class in storytelling, as well as a hilarious commentary on a fiction scene that’s seen men overrepresented for decades.) And yet she also knows when to tap the brakes, when to step back and let her carefully drawn characters speak for themselves. It’s a stunning collection from a writer whose talent and creativity seem boundless. Read more
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Want to read and laugh? From NPR’s yearly reading list, Books We Love, four NPR staffers offer their suggestions. Read more
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A nation recovering from the worst health emergency in 100 years needs novels full of humor. But if laughter is the best medicine, our fiction is in dangerously short supply. It’s an odd and persistent problem, compounded by the fact that most of the novels marketed as funny are, in fact, not very funny. Or they traffic in wit so dry their lips would crack if they smiled. Read more
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