Ben Tanzer's Blog, page 94

"A harrowing cautionary tale." Orphans gets Publishers Weekly'd. And likes it. A lot.

For real. Publishers Weekly. Excerpt? Word.

"Channeling Orwell and Melville, with a nod to popular American culture, Tanzer creates a template for human disaffection and passivity in the face of incomprehensible and omnipotent forces."

At the risk of repeating ourselves, we very much dug this shit. So very much.

Damn. Finished @BenTanzer's ORPHANS. So unlike him yet so familiarly him. Very much dug this shit. So very much.
— TNBBC (@TNBBC) September 21, 2013

The Hillmann.

We are digging this Tweet pretty bad. Very bad. A lot. All of it. Thank you.

Been reading @BenTanzer's ORPHANS and man, it's so different than his other stuff but still so much the same. Digging this pretty bad.
— TNBBC (@TNBBC) September 21, 2013

I am digging this Tweet pretty bad. Very bad. A lot. All of it. Thank you.

Been reading @BenTanzer's ORPHANS and man, it's so different than his other stuff but still so much the same. Digging this pretty bad.
— TNBBC (@TNBBC) September 21, 2013

Wherein Taking Flight and Friend. Follow. Text. are Nathan Burgoine Red Room shout-out.

And much appreciated that is. Excerpt? Word.

"Speaking of a different sort of click, the difference a few keystrokes can make is explored in the next story in Friend. Follow. Text. #storiesFromLivingOnline, which is a kind of stream of consciousness aimed at the reader birthed in the paling of a long-term relationship. Here, a woman is wondering if she – like her father – has it in her to be unfaithful, or if she – like her mother – can handle just smiling and faking happiness for the rest of her life, when what she really has is a kind of contentment and comfortable routine.

Facebook brings a new outlet for these thoughts that is – at least on the surface – somewhat safe. After all, Facebook is the epitome of the brief and casual connection, is it not? A window into the lives of others, easily enjoyable, and then – simply – removed. Except when you go looking for something you know you shouldn’t be seeking, the odds are good you’ll find it.

And can you really just click and make it all go away?"

"An imaginative interpretation of a futile future." This Orphans Book Blurb Will Change Your Life, Part Five. Lavinia Ludlow.

“Tanzer combines contemporary issues such as debt, desperation for work, marital strain, and a man’s desire for family and normalcy with an imaginative interpretation of a futile future, where the United States is a wasteland and the only hope is moving the wealthy to another planet.” 
—Lavinia Ludlow, author of alt.punk and Single Stroke Seven

"Vibrant and propulsive." You Can Make Him Like You gets some Goodreads love. And likes it. A lot.

It really does. And from the author Giano Cromley no less. Quite appreciated that, and drinks on us brother, many, somewhere, somehow, on us, for sure. Excerpt? Cool.

"Author Ben Tanzer pulls no punches when it comes to depicting his character's feelings, giving this book a welcome dose of honesty. Sure, it would be easy to impugn Keith for not wising up and being a better husband, employee, friend, and son, but that's not always how life works. Therein lies the true beauty of what Tanzer has pulled off, and it's what also makes this book so unique: It's a story about growing up that actually feels like real life."

We are Pungent Parlor tomorrow yes.

So yes. At the Black Rock Pub. Lineup most stellar. More here. Join us. Cool.

This Book Will Change Your Life - Goodnight Nobody by Ethel Rohan.

You exchange messages on Twitter. They are lively and interesting. You are a fan and this writer speaks to you as a reader. Now, there has been contact though, and the person is not just a writer you admire from afar, but a writer you speak to as a writer. You agree to exchange books, and that is what leads to Goodnight Nobody by Ethel Rohan showing-up in your mailbox. It is a beacon and a symbol of a connection made. Which is interesting in a book that is so literate about the subject of just how hard it is to build and maintain connections. With ex-spouses and dead spouses, new lovers and old, siblings, friends, and parents. Now, is it also true, that when we are drawn to an author and their work, we filter that work through what we want it to mean to us? We think so, and if that is true, it is no surprise to us, that this struggle to connect reads as a consequence of Rohan's characters' feeling trapped and unable to see their way clear of past pains and slights. We are drawn to these stories and struggles, just as we are drawn to Rohan and her work. And so it goes full circle. We would add, that we expect any collection titled Goodnight Nobody to draw on Goodnight Moon at some point along the way, and Rohan does so in the title story, a moment so beautifully captured, we had to pause for a moment and let the emotions wash over us before we could continue. It changed our lives, just as it is sure to change yours.