Love May Fail

Quick, Matthew

ISBN 10: 1504612205 ISBN 13: 9781504612203

Publisher: Blackstone Pub, 2015

Synopsis

Escaping her ritzy Florida life and her cheating husband, Portia Kane returns to the South Jersey home of her youth and resolves to save herself by assisting a beloved English teacher who has retired after a traumatic incident.

About this title

Review

Brilliant . . . compulsively readable . . . a plot that keeps you guessing . . . The emotional authenticity of his characters and their pitch-perfect Philly dialogue make it little wonder that his entire back catalogue has been optioned. But you don't need to wait for the film: Love May Fail is as wholly transporting as any cinematic experience. The blackly comic, quicksand tone of Vonnegut might be the presiding spirit, but Matthew Quick has a uniquely rewarding voice and one that, for his native Philadelphia, is creating a space in contemporary fiction all of its own. (GQ)

Quick excels at writing what he knows, and making readers feel intimately connected to his characters. Love May Fail also reflects his mastery of devising humorous dialogue, interlaced with rabid vulgarity. "The truth will set you free," Portia furiously states at one point "But first it will piss you off." Once a high-school English teacher himself, the author captures how painful it is to have a misguided student and feel powerless to help them. Portia recalls how Nate would end each school year optimistically by handing his students personalized Official Member of the Human Race cards, encouraging them to "make daring choices, work hard, enjoy the ride, and remember-you become exactly whomever you choose to be." You can almost see the movie poster now. (Wall Street Journal)

Darkly funny . . . readers will be engrossed (Publishers Weekly)

Quick, an ex-teacher, nails the symbiotic student-teacher relationship, with all of its attendant baggage, squarely on the head in this engaging slice-of-life dramedy with definite big-screen potential (Booklist)

An easy, enjoyable, and thoughtful read with laughs and tears along the way. Quick's devotees won't be disappointed. (Library Journal)

Complex and thought-provoking American comedy about love and the meaning of life (Daily Mail)

Inspiring . . . Matthew Quick has a way with wounded characters. (Boston Globe)

[One of] the seven books you have to read this summer. (Marie Claire)

Ultimate summer reading. (Good Housekeeping)

Quick nails it again with his quirky-but-damaged characters and gritty real-life stories - but this time, it's an ex-wife of a cheating pornographer, her hoarder of a mother, and her former high school English teacher both moving and delighting us. (Glamour)

Edition details

• Publisher: Blackstone Pub
• Publication date: 2015
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 1504612205
• ISBN 13: 9781504612203
• Binding: Audio CD