On the HahaFiction shelf
Less
The Arthur Less Books · Book 1 · 2017
Arthur Less would prefer almost any literary engagement to his ex-boyfriend’s wedding. With fifty approaching and his writing career offering little reassurance, he accepts invitations around the world and turns a scheduling excuse into an extended journey. Distance proves easier to arrange than peace of mind.
From the publisher’s blurb
“a struggling novelist travels the world to avoid an awkward wedding.”Read the full description at Hachette Book Group description
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What makes it funny?
In the opening excerpt, Arthur anxiously watches a hotel clock that stopped years ago. His escort is in the same lobby looking for him, but she believes the novelist she is collecting is a woman. He trusts the arrangements; she trusts her reading of his book. Neither notices the person they need.
The comedy at work
The narrator gives readers the explanation Arthur lacks, letting us watch his dignity collide with a fairly ordinary misunderstanding. Publishers Weekly also notes the irony around his literary standing: a writer who feels permanently second-rate still matters to people more than he understands.
Try this if…
Book-group readers recommend its wit and charm. Readers who enjoy writers’ vanities, travel mishaps and a sympathetic portrait of someone failing to feel successful have several reasons to follow Arthur abroad. The comedy makes room for romantic hurt and anxiety about aging.
Good to know
Less won the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction. Its love story draws on Arthur’s past relationships as well as his attempt to escape an awkward wedding. Less Is Lost continues his story.
More funny contemporary & literary
Sources & further reading
- Publishers Weekly review
Review
- Opening excerpt
Reading sample
- Publisher
Publisher
- Reader discussion
Reader discussion
- Publisher series guide
Publisher
- Author description
Author commentary
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