Synopses & Reviews
Synopsis
"Purkert's writing is a gift and it shines through these pages."--HANIF ABDURRAQIB A rollicking debut novel that tackles a haunting question: What do our jobs do to our souls?
Seth is a junior copywriter whose latest tagline just went viral. But this professional triumph won't fix his personal life--his coworker crush won't be seen with him, and his only comfort is in pills.
When his job lets him go, he can't let go of his job. Thankfully, one former colleague can't let him go either: Robert "Moon" McCloone, a skeezy on-the-rise exec better suited to a dorm room than a boardroom. When Seth gets taken in by an overeager Orthodox rabbi, he tries to forget Moon and replace his professional ambitions with higher purpose--but is he only digging himself deeper?
In his debut novel, Purkert incisively explores two kinds of toxic masculinity: The guys who see no problem with their bad behavior, and those who don't see it as bad at all. Brimming with wit, irreverence, and soul-searching, The Men Can't Be Saved is a startlingly original examination of work, religion, sex, drugs, and ourselves.
Synopsis
* A MOST ANTICIPATED BOOK OF SUMMER 2023 * THE MILLIONS * LITHUB *DEBUTIFUL * AND MORE * "I laughed more times than I can count . . . A phenomenal debut novel by one of my favorite writers."
--CLINT SMITH, #1 New York Times bestselling author of How the Word Is Passed
"Nails down the hypocrisies of modern masculinity and capitalism with the graceful hand of a poet."
--ALEXANDRA KLEEMAN, author of Something New Under the Sun
"Purkert's writing is a gift and it shines through these pages."
--HANIF ABDURRAQIB, author of A Little Devil in America
A knockout debut novel that tackles a haunting question: What do our jobs do to our souls?
Seth is a junior copywriter whose latest tagline just went viral. He's the agency's hottest new star, or at least he wants his coworker crush to think so. But while he's busy drooling over his future corner office, the walls crumble around him.
When his job lets him go, he can't let go of his job. Unfortunately, one former colleague can't let him go either: Robert "Moon" McCloone, a skeezy on-the-rise exec better suited to a frat house than a boardroom. Seth tries to forget Moon and rediscover his spiritual self; he studies Kabbalah with an Orthodox rabbi by day while popping illegal prescription pills by night. But with each misstep, Seth strays farther from salvation--though he might get there, if he could only get out of his own way.
In his debut novel, Purkert incisively peels back the layers of the male ego, revealing what's rotten and what might be redeemed. Brimming with wit, irreverence, and soul-searching, Men Can't Be Saved is a startlingly original examination of work, sex, addiction, religion, branding, and ourselves.
Synopsis
* A MOST ANTICIPATED BOOK OF SUMMER 2023 * NYLON * THE MILLIONS * LITHUB * DEBUTIFUL * AND MORE *
" Purkert is] a sharply funny observer of male foibles, 20-something angst, and the modern workplace." --WASHINGTON POST "A 21st-Century Catcher in the Rye that examines the 'genius' worship and toxic masculinity still dominating the advertising world today. A] muscular novel . . . startlingly funny thanks to an unforgettable narrator with a] Jupiter-sized ego." --ESQUIRE
"I laughed more times than I can count . . . A phenomenal debut novel by one of my favorite writers." --CLINT SMITH, #1 New York Times bestselling author of How the Word Is Passed
A knockout debut novel that tackles a haunting question: What do our jobs do to our souls?
Seth is a junior copywriter whose latest tagline just went viral. He's the agency's hottest new star, or at least he wants his coworker crush to think so. But while he's busy drooling over his future corner office, the walls crumble around him.
When his job lets him go, he can't let go of his job. Unfortunately, one former colleague can't let him go either: Robert "Moon" McCloone, a skeezy on-the-rise exec better suited to a frat house than a boardroom. Seth tries to forget Moon and rediscover his spiritual self; he studies Kabbalah with an Orthodox rabbi by day while popping illegal prescription pills by night. But with each misstep, Seth strays farther from salvation--though he might get there, if he could only get out of his own way.
In his debut novel, Purkert incisively peels back the layers of the male ego, revealing what's rotten and what might be redeemed. Brimming with wit, irreverence, and soul-searching, The Men Can't Be Saved is a startlingly original examination of work, sex, addiction, religion, branding, and ourselves.
Synopsis
* A MOST ANTICIPATED BOOK OF SUMMER 2023 * NYLON * THE MILLIONS * LITHUB * DEBUTIFUL * AND MORE *
"Blistering . . . Mad Men ambition meets an epic, existential meltdown." --VANITY FAIR, 20 Best Books of 2023 " Purkert is] a sharply funny observer of male foibles, 20-something angst, and the modern workplace." --WASHINGTON POST "A 21st-Century Catcher in the Rye . . . startlingly funny." --ESQUIRE "I laughed more times than I can count . . . A phenomenal debut novel by one of my favorite writers." --CLINT SMITH, #1 New York Times bestselling author of How the Word Is Passed
A knockout debut novel that tackles a haunting question: What do our jobs do to our souls? Seth is a junior copywriter whose latest tagline just went viral. He's the agency's hottest new star, or at least he wants his coworker crush to think so. But while he's busy drooling over his future corner office, the walls crumble around him.
When his job lets him go, he can't let go of his job. Unfortunately, one former colleague can't let him go either: Robert "Moon" McCloone, a skeezy on-the-rise exec better suited to a frat house than a boardroom. Seth tries to forget Moon and rediscover his spiritual self; he studies Kabbalah with an Orthodox rabbi by day while popping illegal prescription pills by night. But with each misstep, Seth strays farther from salvation--though he might get there, if he could only get out of his own way.
In his debut novel, Purkert incisively peels back the layers of the male ego, revealing what's rotten and what might be redeemed. Brimming with wit, irreverence, and soul-searching, The Men Can't Be Saved is a startlingly original examination of work, sex, addiction, religion, branding, and ourselves.