Kirjahaku

A beautiful hardcover edition of the collected stories of one of America's most revered and admired authors--originally published in the acclaimed collections Self-Help, Like Life, Birds of America, and Bark and including three additional stories excerpted from her novels. Moore is one of America's most revered writers, and this career-spanning collection showcases her exceptional talent for leavening tragedy with humor, for blending sorrow with subversive wit. Her keenly observed stories are peopled by a variety of lost souls--husbands, wives, lovers, tourists, professors, students, even a ghost--who are often grappling with pain or disappointment: a divorced man obsessed with self-help books, a washed-up Hollywood actress living in a hotel, a woman with a terminal illness. But however lovelorn or dislocated the characters--from the wisecracking wedding guest in "Thank You for Having Me" to the self-deluded musicians in "Wings" to the complicated parent-child pairs in "How to Talk to Your Mother (Notes)" and "The Kid's Guide to Divorce"--their stories are always grounded in insight and compassion. Moore's portraits of the parents of a seriously ill child in "People Like That Are the Only People Here" and of a woman haunted by guilt over the death of her friend's baby in "Terrific Mother" achieve a notably unsentimental and yet quietly devastating power. Whether moving or darkly funny, all of these pieces channel the messiness of the human condition through Moore's characteristically knowing, wry voice, and together they confirm her as a master of the short story.

'One of the funniest writers alive.' Dave Eggers'Her stories, her stories, are perfect.' Slate'Such a delight.' Sunday Telegraph'Poetic, sharp and devastatingly funny.' GuardianA wonderful collection from one of the most acclaimed and influential writers of her generation.Since the publication of Self-Help, her first collection of stories, Lorrie Moore has been hailed as one of the greatest and most influential voices in American fiction. Her ferociously funny, soulful stories tell of the gulf between men and women, the loneliness of the broken-hearted and the yearned-for, impossible intimacies we crave. Gathered here for the first time in a beautiful hardback edition is the complete stories along with three new and previously unpublished in book form: Paper Losses, The Juniper Tree, Debarking.

Disillusioned and loveless, a chain-smoking art history professor, who spends her spare time singing in nightclubs and tending to her young daughter, finds herself pursued by an erratic, would-be librettist. Reprint. 10,000 first printing.

An anthology of ten short stories focuses on women who are on the brink of loneliness--their mothers are dying, their husbands and lovers are leaving them--and who face their disappointments with anxiety laced with ironic humor. Reprint. 10,000 first printing.

NATIONAL BESTSELLER - A NEW YORK TIMES BOOK OF THE YEAR - From the bestselling author of A Gate at the Stairs A collection of twelve stories that's "one of our funniest, most telling anatomies of human love and vulnerability" (The New York Times Book Review).A volume by one of the most exciting writers at work today, the acclaimed author of Who Will Run the Frog Hospital? and Self-Help. Stories remarkable in their range, emotional force, and dark laughter, and in the sheer beauty and power of their language. From the opening story, "Willing"--about a second-rate movie actress in her thirties who has moved back to Chicago, where she makes a seedy motel room her home and becomes involved with a mechanic who has not the least idea of who she is as a human being--Birds of America unfolds a startlingly brilliant series of portraits of the unhinged, the lost, the unsettled of our America. In the story "Which Is More Than I Can Say About Some People" ("There is nothing as complex in the world--no flower or stone--as a single hello from a human being"), a woman newly separated from her husband is on a long-planned trip through Ireland with her mother. When they set out on an expedition to kiss the Blarney Stone, the image of wisdom and success that her mother has always put forth slips away to reveal the panicky woman she really is. In "Charades," a family game at Christmas is transformed into a hilarious and insightful (and fundamentally upsetting) revelation of crumbling family ties. In "Community Life,"a shy, almost reclusive, librarian, Transylvania-born and Vermont-bred, moves in with her boyfriend, the local anarchist in a small university town, and all hell breaks loose. And in "Four Calling Birds, Three French Hens," a woman who goes through the stages of grief as she mourns the death of her cat (Anger, Denial, Bargaining, H agen Dazs, Rage) is seen by her friends as really mourning other issues: the impending death of her parents, the son she never had, Bosnia.

A NATIONAL BOOK CRITICS CIRCLE AWARD WINNER - A NEW YORKER ESSENTIAL READ - From "one of the most acute and lasting writers of her generation" (The New York Times)--a ghost story set in the nineteenth and twenty-first centuries, an elegiac consideration of grief, devotion (filial and romantic), and the vanishing and persistence of all things--seen and unseen. A Best Book of the Year: The New Yorker, NPR, Vulture, Lit Hub "Who else but Lorrie Moore could make, in razor-sharp irresistible prose, a ghost story about death buoyant with life?" --PEOPLE "Is it an allegory? Is it real? It doesn't matter... It's] a novel with big questions, no answers, and it's absolutely brilliant." --Lit Hub " A] triumph of tone and, ultimately, of the imagination." --The Guardian Lorrie Moore's first novel since A Gate at the Stairs--a daring, meditative exploration of love and death, passion and grief, and what it means to be haunted by the past, both by history and the human heart A teacher visiting his dying brother in the Bronx. A mysterious journal from the nineteenth century stolen from a boarding house. A therapy clown and an assassin, both presumed dead, but perhaps not dead at all... With her distinctive, irresistible wordplay and singular wry humor and wisdom, Lorrie Moore has given us a magic box of longing and surprise as she writes about love and rebirth and the pull towards life. Bold, meditative, theatrical, this new novel is an inventive, poetic portrait of lovers and siblings as it questions the stories we have been told which may or may not be true. I Am Homeless If This Is Not My Home takes us through a trap door, into a windswept, imagined journey to the tragic-comic landscape that is, unmistakably, the world of Lorrie Moore.

NATIONAL BESTSELLER - A collection of stories by one of America's most beloved and admired short-story writers that explores the passage of time and summons up its inevitable sorrows and hilarious pitfalls to reveal an exquisite, singular wisdom. - "Uncanny.... Moving.... A powerful collection." --The Washington PostHere are people beset, burdened, buoyed; protected by raising teenage children; dating after divorce; facing the serious illness of a longtime friend; setting forth on a romantic assignation abroad, having it interrupted mid-trip, and coming to understand the larger ramifications and the impossibility of the connection ... stories that show people coping with large dislocation in their lives, with risking a new path to answer the desire to be in relation--to someone....

A NATIONAL BOOK CRITICS CIRCLE AWARD WINNER Lorrie Moore's first novel since A Gate at the Stairs--a daring, meditative exploration of love and death, passion and grief, and what it means to be haunted by the past, both by history and the human heart. "The prose of I Am Homeless If This is Not My home] might be her finest." --Claire Messud, Harper's "An exquisite exploration of grief, longing, and our relationship with the past . . . mixing comedy with tragedy, and exploring what it means to be alive." --Kristyn Kusek Lewis, Real Simple From "one of the most acute and lasting writers of her generation" (Caryn James; The New York Times)--a ghost story set in the nineteenth and twenty-first centuries, an elegiac consideration of grief, devotion (filial and romantic), and the vanishing and persistence of all things--seen and unseen. With her distinctive, irresistible wordplay and singular wry humor and wisdom, Lorrie Moore has given us a magic box of longing and surprise as she writes about love and rebirth and the pull towards life. Bold, meditative, theatrical, this new novel is an inventive, poetic portrait of lovers and siblings as it questions the stories we have been told which may or may not be true. I Am Homeless If This Is Not My Home takes us through a trap door, into a windswept, imagined journey to the tragic-comic landscape that is, unmistakably, the world of Lorrie Moore. "Moore's exhilarating dialogue is acrobatic, her descriptions ravishing." --Donna Seaman, Booklist (starred review) " Moore] manages the impossible in her writing: every other sentence is a gut-punch or the funniest line you've ever read, and it coheres into some of the truest writing about life--for what is life if not constantly either hilarious or devastating, and often both? " --LitHub, "Most Anticipated Books of 2023"

A collection of short fiction explores the ever widening gulf between men and women and the paradoxical fear of and yearning for intimacy in characters whose lives are marked by disillusionment, misunderstandings, boredom, and lack of direction. Reprint. 10,000 first printing.

'You can sit back and have the time of your life reading A Gate at the Stairs.' Observer'One of the funniest writers alive' Dave Eggers'Hilarious and distressing, entertaining and wise' Roddy Doyle'Moore's a writer you don't quit.' Guardian***SHORTLISTED FOR THE ORANGE PRIZE FOR FICTION***A startlingly funny, inventive novel from one of America's most brilliant writers. With America quietly gearing up for war in the Middle East, twenty-year-old Tassie Keltjin, a 'half-Jewish' farmer's daughter from the plains of the Midwest, has come to university - escaping her provincial home to encounter the complex world of culture and politics.When she takes a job as a part-time nanny to a couple who seem at once mysterious and glamorous, Tassie is drawn into the life of their newly-adopted child and increasingly complicated household. As her past becomes increasingly alien to her - her parents seem older when she visits; her disillusioned brother ever more fixed on joining the military - Tassie finds herself becoming a stranger to herself. As the year unfolds, love leads her to new and formative experiences - but it is then that the past and the future burst forth in dramatic and shocking ways.Refracted through the eyes of this memorable narrator, A Gate at the Stairs is a lyrical, beguiling and wise novel of our times.

In this brilliant collection of stories Lorrie Moore addresses herself to a contemporary emotional dilemma - the widening gulf between men and women, and the simultaneous yearning for and fear of closeness.

'America's first lady of darkness and mirth.' Guardian'I'd rather spend time with her than anyone else on Earth.' Nicole Flattery'Lorrie Moore is one of my very favourite writers.' Monica HeiseyComplicated, awkward, funny, cruel, heartbroken, mysterious; Self-Help forms an idiosyncratic guide to female existence which is just as relevant today as it was 30 years ago. These stories are modern America at its most real, with characters sharing thoughts and experiences they could have borrowed from our own lives. This is how to deal with divorce, adultery, cancer, how to talk to your mother or become a writer, the Lorrie Moore way.

A startlingly perceptive series of portraits of the young, the hip, the lost, the unsettled and the unhinged of modern-day America, from the supremely talented Lorrie Moore.'Her stories, her stories, are perfect.' Slate'Irresistible.' New York Times Book Review'Such a delight.' Sunday Telegraph'One of America's most brilliant writers.' StylistLorrie Moore's dazzling collection of stories is remarkable for its range, emotional force and dark humour, and for the sheer beauty and power of its language. It unfolds a startlingly brilliant series of portraits of the young, the hip, the lost, the unsettled and the unhinged of modern-day America.In what may be her most stunning book yet, Lorrie Moore explores the personal and the universal, the idiosyncratic and the mundane with all of the wit, brio and verve that have made her one of the best storytellers of our time.

'She writes with such panache, such extraordinary perception and wit.' Elizabeth Day'A forensically brave writer, with a semantic virtuosity rarely equalled.' Telegraph'Unmissable.' Marie Claire'Hilarious and distressing, entertaining and wise.' Roddy DoyleA brilliantly funny and sharply observant novel from one of the most acclaimed American writers of her generation.This novel follows the lives of two 11-year-olds intent on escaping childhood. As the strength of their friendship is tested repeatedly, they begin to take their first, exhilarating steps towards adulthood.

From one of the most celebrated imaginations in American literature, Lorrie Moore's new novel is a magic box of longing and surprise.

He is living in an America hurtling headlong into hysteria, after all. High up in a New York hospice, he sits with his beloved brother Max as he slips from one world into the next. A call from Illinois summons him back to his troubled old flame Lily, the great love of his life.

'America's first lady of darkness and mirth.' Guardian'The best American writer of her generation.' Nick Hornby 'Unmissable.' Marie ClaireFrom one of the most celebrated imaginations in American literature, Lorrie Moore's new novel is a magic box of longing and surprise.High up in a New York City hospice, Finn sits with his beloved brother Max, who is slipping from one world into the next. But when a phone call summons Finn back to a troubled old flame, a strange journey begins, opening a trapdoor in reality. It will prompt a questioning of life and death, grief and the past, comedy and tragedy, and the diaphanous separations that lie between them all.'Moore writes with such panache, such extraordinary perception and wit, that not a single sentence is wasted.' Elizabeth Day 'One of the most acute and lasting writers of her generation.' New York Times 'That Moore publishes so rarely is a gift in itself, because it compels you to read her over and over. . . Moore's a writer you don't quit.' Guardian'One of the funniest writers alive.' Dave Eggers

Shortlisted for the Frank O'Connor International Short Story AwardIn these eight masterful stories, Lorrie Moore explores the passing of time and summons up its inevitable sorrows and comic pitfalls. Gimlet-eyed social observation, the public and private absurdities of American life, irony and half-cracked love wend their way through these stories, in which Moore is always tender, never sentimental and often heartbreakingly funny.

'Lorrie Moore is one of my very favourite writers.' Monica Heisey 'America's first lady of darkness and mirth.' Guardian 'I'd rather spend time with her than anyone else on Earth.' Nicole FlatteryComplicated, awkward, funny, cruel, heartbroken, mysterious; Self-Help forms an idiosyncratic guide to female existence which is just as relevant today as it was 30 years ago. These stories are modern America at its most real, with characters sharing thoughts and experiences they could have borrowed from our own lives. This is how to deal with divorce, adultery, cancer, how to talk to your mother or become a writer, the Lorrie Moore way.

Award-winning author Lorrie Moore has been writing criticism for over thirty years - and her forensically intelligent, witty and engaging essays are collected here for the first time. Whether writing on Titanic, Margaret Atwood or The Wire, her pieces always offer surprising insights into contemporary culture.'Exhilarating . . . I was struck not only by Moore's intelligence and wit, and by the syntactical and verbal satisfactions of her prose, but by the fundamental generosity of her critical spirit.' Guardian'One of America's most brilliant writers . . . This book is a delight.' Stylist'Intimate and approachable . . . See What Can Be Done flooded my veins with pleasure.' New York Times'An incisive, wide-ranging and enjoyable collection . . . Marvellously nuanced.' Observer'Impressive . . . so witty and well-mannered . . . Has something wise or funny on almost every page.' Financial Times'The entire book is filled with the sharp, off-the-wall, completely brilliant observations that Moore is famous for.' The Pool