How I Became a Famous Novelist
Steve Hely, . . Grove/Black Cat, $14 (322pp) ISBN 978-0-8021-7060-6
Biting, hilarious and improbably affectionate, comedy writer Hely's debut skewers the literary world with a sendup of the quest to write the Great American Novel. Words are Pete Tarslaw's thing, and after watching a bestselling novelist prattle on about the truth, his “calling” and other ridiculous ideas on TV, Pete concludes that the sole way to save face at his ex-girlfriend's upcoming wedding is to become a famous novelist himself. His quest to construct a by-the-numbers bestseller is guided by rules like “At dull points include descriptions of delicious meals” and where to live (“An easy way to get credibility as an author is to live someplace rugged”), though the real adventure starts once he bags $15,000 for
Reviewed on: 05/04/2009
Genre: Fiction
Open Ebook - 224 pages - 978-0-8021-9982-9
Other - 154 pages - 978-1-84901-741-1
Paperback - 320 pages - 978-1-84901-572-1