“I’d bet big money that this novel is about to become one of your favorite books…”
– Karen Russell, author of St. Lucy’s Home for Girls Raised by Wolves
WEEPING UNDERWATER LOOKS
A LOT LIKE LAUGHTER
Michael J. White
G.P. Putnam’s Sons
Penguin Book Group (USA)
$24.95 Hardcover
ISBN: 978-0-339-15590-1
On sale February 4, 2010
As featured on Twin Cities Live “What to Read Next!”
Watch the show on May 17!
This debut novel set in Des Moines is a smart, darkly funny coming-of-age tale of growing up and going under.
Read author Michael J. White’s comments on the creation of WEEPING UNDERWATER and sample this chapter from the book!
“I’d bet big money that this novel is about to become one of your favorite books. It’s a blood-red first-love story, a raw dealing of tragedy and its aftermath, and a wild spin throughthe lust- and grief-addled mind of one of the most honest and deliriously inventive narrators I’ve ever read…. WEEPING UNDERWATER will leave you hoarse from laughing, weak in the knees, possibly craving Iowa State Fair pickles, and helplessly in love.”
– Karen Russell, author of St. Lucy’s Home for Girls Raised by Wolves“Michael J. White’s WEEPING UNDER WATER LOOKS A LOT LIKE LAUGHTER is laugh-out-loud funny. His masterful use of description makes this awkward coming of age tale a great debut novel. I look forward to another novel by Mr. White!”
– Angie Grafstrom, Inspiration Hollow, Roseau, MN
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MBA BOOKSELLER INFORMATION
Booksellers — Earn up to $100 in rebates from MBA for promoting WEEPING UNDERWATER LOOKS A LOT LIKE LAUGHTER!
Midwest Connections rebate form for (PDF) – now available!WEEPING UNDERWATER LOOKS A LOT LIKE LAUGHTER
WEEPING UNDERWATER LOOKS A LOT LIKE LAUGHTER ($24.95 Hardcover, ISBN: 978-0-339-15590-1) is available from Penguin Group (USA) or from your preferred wholesaler. Be sure to contact the publisher for more information about this title.
Author Michael J. White will be a featured author at the MBA Spring Meeting in Minneapolis on Saturday, March 6.
Michael White does not live in the Midwest region, but he may be available anyway. If you are interested in scheduling an interview, book club event, or event with him, please contact Amanda Soule at G.P. Putnam’s Sons Publicity by email: amanda.soule@us.penguingroup.com or telephone at 212.366.2425.
MBA and Putnam would love to have your comments and reviews for this debut novel. Please send them to us so we can share your endorsements with your fellow MBA booksellers and with your customers!
DOWNLOADS
- Full-color sign/flyer (PDF)
- Full-color shelf-talker (PDF)
- Behind the Book (PDF)
- Sample Chapter (PDF)
- Author photo (JPG)
- Book cover photo (JPG)
- Midwest Connections rebate form for WEEPING UNDERWATER LOOKS A LOT LIKE LAUGHTER (PDF)
– now available! - Midwest Connections Generic Display Materials
ABOUT THE BOOK
George Flynn can’t help himself. He’s still haunted by the fallout from his first love, and keeps sneaking glances back to how it began. Uprooted after his family’s move to Des Moines, George is the new nobody on the block, with no friends and no clue. He soon finds his footing when he falls in with the enchanting Schell sisters. Emily, an aspiring actress and the mysterious star of St. Pius High School, becomes the object of his deep infatuation. But it’s the younger sister, Katie—with her crush, her quirks, and her scathing deadpan humor in the face of multiple sclerosis—who really gets George hooked on the Schells.
After a shocking accident destroys the delicate balance of their lives, George and Emily travel through anger, depression, and cheap motel rooms, searching for forgiveness yet losing each other. On this simultaneously hopeful and self-destructive journey, George struggles to win Emily back in order to save himself.
Told with razor-sharp wit and no-holds-barred honesty, this is a vivid, moving novel about friendship and first love—about dealing with grief and trying to come of age without coming undone. With this debut, Michael J. White proves himself to be one to watch: a writer with talent and imagination to spare.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Michael J. White was born and raised in St. Louis, though he also spent several years in Chicago and Des Moines. He has taught English in South Korea, Peru, Poland, and New York City. A Columbia MFA graduate, he lives in Denver.
Read author Michael J. White’s comments on the creation of WEEPING UNDERWATER.
