Synopses & Reviews
“Eisenberg is truly a talented writer. . . Hilarious and poignant.”—Entertainment Weekly
Bream Gives Me Hiccups: And Other Stories
is the whip-smart fiction debut of Academy Award-nominated actor Jesse
Eisenberg. Known for his iconic film roles but also for his regular
pieces in the New Yorker and his two critically acclaimed plays, Eisenberg is an emerging literary voice.
Taking its title from a group of stories that begin the book, Bream Gives Me Hiccups
moves from contemporary L.A. to the dorm rooms of an American college
to ancient Pompeii, throwing the reader into a universe of social
misfits, reimagined scenes from history, and ridiculous overreactions.
In one piece, a tense email exchange between a young man and his
girlfriend is taken over by his sister, who is obsessed with the Bosnian
genocide (The situation reminds me of a little historical blip called the Karadordevo agreement); in another, a college freshman forced to live with a roommate is stunned when one of her ramen packets goes missing (she didn’t have “one” of my ramens. She had a chicken ramen); in another piece, Alexander Graham Bell has teething problems with his invention (I’ve been calling Mabel all day, she doesn’t pick up! Yes, of course I dialed the right number – 2!).
United
by Eisenberg’s gift for humor and character, and grouped into chapters
that open with illustrations by award-winning cartoonist Jean Jullien,
the witty pieces collected in Bream Gives Me Hiccups explore the
various insanities of the modern world, and mark the arrival of a
fantastically funny, self-ironic, and original voice.
Review
“Jesse Eisenberg is as unpredictable on the page as he is on screen....Eisenberg's perversely dark sense of humor gives stories bite, and the
collection’s loose structure—split into nine sections, some lasting only
a few pages—makes it a brisk, approachable read . . . It’s a confident
step forward for Eisenberg as a writer and should pave the way for a
more formal novel, with any luck.” USA Today
Review
“Eisenberg’s strength is in dialogue and monologue, and in writing
miserable characters who alternately compel (like a 9-year-old from a
broken home who writes restaurant reviews) and repel (like Harper, the
footnote-obsessed freshman Eisenberg lovingly describes as
‘maladjusted’)....Eisenberg is uncannily good at capturing a specific
breed of insincere teen girl.” Entertainment Weekly
Review
“Eisenberg has a terrific ear, especially for adolescent inflections,
absurdity, self-delusion, and insecurity. He also has a flair for
off-the-wall ideas....With its panoply of neurotics and narcissists
and its smart mix of stinging satire and surprising moments of
sweetness, Bream Gives Me Hiccups brings to mind fellow comic
actor/writers Woody Allen, Steve Martin and B.J. Novak. It also offers a
youthful new twist on what one of Eisenberg’s hopeless dreamers refers
to—ironically, of course—as the cruel ‘irony of life.’” NPR Books
Synopsis
"Eisenberg is truly a talented writer. . . Hilarious and poignant."--Entertainment Weekly Bream Gives Me Hiccups: And Other Stories is the whip-smart fiction debut of Academy Award-nominated actor Jesse Eisenberg. Known for his iconic film roles but also for his regular pieces in the New Yorker and his two critically acclaimed plays, Eisenberg is an emerging literary voice.
Taking its title from a group of stories that begin the book, Bream Gives Me Hiccups moves from contemporary L.A. to the dorm rooms of an American college to ancient Pompeii, throwing the reader into a universe of social misfits, reimagined scenes from history, and ridiculous overreactions. In one piece, a tense email exchange between a young man and his girlfriend is taken over by his sister, who is obsessed with the Bosnian genocide (The situation reminds me of a little historical blip called the Karadordevo agreement); in another, a college freshman forced to live with a roommate is stunned when one of her ramen packets goes missing (she didn't have "one" of my ramens. She had a chicken ramen); in another piece, Alexander Graham Bell has teething problems with his invention (I've been calling Mabel all day, she doesn't pick up Yes, of course I dialed the right number - 2 ).
United by Eisenberg's gift for humor and character, and grouped into chapters that open with illustrations by award-winning cartoonist Jean Jullien, the witty pieces collected in Bream Gives Me Hiccups explore the various insanities of the modern world, and mark the arrival of a fantastically funny, self-ironic, and original voice.
About the Author
Jesse Eisenberg is an Academy Award-nominated actor, playwright, and contributor for the New Yorker and McSweeney's. He is the author of three plays, Asuncion, The Revisionist, and The Spoils, which won the Theater Visions Fund Award. Eisenberg's acting credits include The Social Network, Now You See Me, Adventureland, The Squid and the Whale, The Double, and The End of the Tour. Forthcoming acting credits include Batman v. Superman.