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This title in other editionsThe Secret Society of Demolition Writersby Marc Parent
Synopses & ReviewsPublisher Comments:The Secret Society of Demolition Writers is the literary equivalent of a whodunit, featuring an eclectic group of fictional characters. The cast includes a delusional schizophrenic narrator, an egg donor with second thoughts about her decision, a pharmacist who forms a weird crush on a woman who beat both of her parents to death, and a little girl who understands that an old safe is the threshold to another, ghostly world. Equally diverse and surprising are the authors themselves, who have sold millions of books worldwide: Aimee Bender, Benjamin Cheever, Michael Connelly, Sebastian Junger, Elizabeth McCracken, Rosie O'Donnell, Chris Offutt, Anna Quindlen, John Burnham Schwartz, Alice Sebold, Lauren Slater, and Marc Parent, the editor of the collection. Parent came up with the idea for this book when he went to see a demolition derby. Impressed by the way the drivers took every kind of wildly improvised chance in trying to make their cars the last vehicle standing, he realized that writers might do the same if they didn't have to attach their names directly to the fiction they wrote. The result is a group of reckless, smashing stories that have never been published before — the stories these writers have always wanted to tell. The Secret Society of Demolition Writers is both an intriguing game and an excellent collection in its own literary right, a combination that will certainly make it the talk of the book world.
Review:"Instead of whodunit, this anthology of 12 anonymously penned short stories asks 'who wrote it?' Parent gathers tales by well-known authors (including Aimee Bender, Michael Connelly, Sebastian Junger, Elizabeth McCracken, Anna Quindlen, Alice Sebold and himself) under the premise that freedom from reputation and byline leads to exciting storytelling. The device is intriguing — like a blind taste test — but potentially frustrating: the fun of the blind taste test, after all, is when you learn the name of your favorite flavor. And though many pieces deal with dark subjects, it's difficult to feel that anonymity has encouraged much authorial risk. A man falls in love with a women who's killed her parents; a father-to-be unleashes a ghost into the world; two young travelers are caught in a West African war. The finest story in the collection, 'Wonderland,' centers on a fashion magazine editor — 'a fash-mag hag' — recalling a college affair with a custodian that led to unexpected consequences. The quality of the stories varies, but overall is high: why doesn't everyone just slap their names on what they wrote? Maybe because then it'd be just another anthology. Publishers Weekly (Copyright Reed Business Information, Inc.)
Review:"Much more than a charming literary experiment, this is, indeed, literature at its most compelling and fearless. Enthusiastically recommended." Library Journal
Synopsis:What would you write if no one knew who you were? In the spirit of the demolition derby, where drivers take heedless risks with reckless abandon, welcome to the first convocation of the Secret Society of Demolition Writers. Here is a one-of-a-kind collection by famous authors writing anonymously-and dangerously. With the usual concerns about reputations and renowned cast aside, these twelve daredevils have each contributed an extreme, no-holds-barred unsigned story, each shining as brightly and urgently as hazard lights. Synopsis:What would you write if no one knew who you were?In the spirit of the demolition derby, where drivers take heedless risks with reckless abandon, welcome to the first convocation of the Secret Society of Demolition Writers. Here is a one-of-a-kind collection by famous authors writing anonymously-and dangerously. With the usual concerns about reputations and renown cast aside, these twelve daredevils have each contributed an extreme, no-holds-barred unsigned story, each shining as brightly and urgently as hazard lights.Unconventional and unapologetic, this publishing equivalent of a whodunit features an eclectic group of fictional characters, including a delusional schizophrenic narrator, an egg donor with second thoughts about her decision, a pharmacist who forms a weird crush on a woman who beat both of her parents to death, and a little girl who understands that an old safe is the threshold to another, ghostly, world. Equally diverse and surprising are the authors themselves: Aimee Bender, Benjamin Cheever, Michael Connelly, Sebastian Junger, Elizabeth McCracken, Rosie O'Donnell, Chris Offutt, Anna Quindlen, John Burnham Schwartz, Alice Sebold, Lauren Slater, and Marc Parent, the editor of the collection. Never before has such a wide-ranging and talented group of authors been assembled to such explosive and entertaining effect.The Secret Society of Demolition Writers is an intriguing puzzle in itself, but it's also an important addition to the careers of some of our finest storytellers-even if we never really know who wrote what. Its boundary-smashing fiction offers exhilarating proof that for an artist, withholding your identity can mean gaining your freedom. About the AuthorMarc Parent is the author of Turning Stones: My Days and Nights with Children at Risk, a finalist for the Los Angeles Times Book Prize as well as a New Visions nominee and a NEBA Honorary Selection, and Believing It All: What My Children Taught Me About Trout Fishing, Jelly Toast, and Life. He has written for The New York Times and USA Today, among other publications. He lives in Pennsylvania with his wife and three sons.
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Related SubjectsFiction and Poetry » Anthologies » General
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