Description: Peter is looking for inspiration for his novel. He meets Leslie, who gives him a glimpse of what he imagines himself to be: a writer of talent and nerve.
Brief description: Andrew Martin is the author of the novel Early Work, a New York Times Notable book of 2018, and the story collection Cool for America, longlisted for the 2020 Story Prize. His essays and stories have appeared frequently in The Paris Review, The New York Review of Books, and Harper's, as well as in The Yale Review, The Atlantic, McSweeney's, The Times Book Review and elsewhere. He teaches in Brooklyn and New Hampshire, and lives in New York City with his family.
Review Quotes:
"You know when you're like, 'I need a new book, but nothing's right. Nothing's funny enough, brave enough, interesting enough. Nothing scares me. I've seen it all'? Early Work is the book for you. It will shut you up with its perfect depiction of what it's like to be a flawed human, and better, it will make you forget why you despaired in the first place." --Rebecca Schiff, author of The Bed Moved
"Early Work by Andrew Martin . . . is really dirty . . . It's a book about young graduate students who drink a lot, read a lot, have a lot of sex, and somehow, it's just mesmerizing . . . terrific." --Ann Patchett, PBS NewsHour "Marvelous . . . Read [Early Work] on a beach for the refreshment of a classic boy-meets-girl plot, or turn the pages more slowly to soak in some truly salty koans and morally insolvent characters . . . It's an accomplished and delightful book, but there's no hashtag for that." --Molly Young, The New York Times "[Andrew] Martin introduces characters in sharp, funny flash-portraits that declare the book's intention to perch, vape in hand, on the border of earnestness and satire . . . Early Work is a gift for those readers who like being flirted with by thoughtful and interesting people, and who like observing such people as they flirt with each other." --Katy Waldman, The New Yorker"Funny and trenchant . . . Martin takes on the boozy world of writers with the panache of J. P. Donleavy's classic bawdy tale of intellectual debauchery The Ginger Man. . . . [Early Work] cleverly dramatizes writers who overcome early indulgences to hone their skills and master their craft." --Bruce Jacobs, Shelf Awareness "Compulsively readable . . . [Early Work] asks big questions about ambition and success and art and love, but it's also a story of a love affair, delicious and horrible in equal measure." --Emily Temple, Literary Hub
"Stunning . . . whip-smart and rather disturbing . . . [Andrew] Martin has a remarkable ear for natural dialogue and pitch-perfect, witty banter . . ." --Dana Hansen, Chicago Review of Books "A wry and pitch-perfect novel about late-twentysomething writers and lazy-progressive creatives in varying stages of existential crisis . . . Early Work is a cautionary tale; it reveals, with damning irony, that one who romanticizes the agonized and drug-addled artist, prioritizing the lifestyle over any actual output, does so at his peril. Because, eventually, the people around him will have created some early work of their own--if only for the opportunity to move beyond it." --Arianna Rebolini, BuzzFeed "A well-written . . . amusing debut about what it takes to succeed or fail in love or art." --Kirkus Reviews "That moment in early adulthood when life seems full of possibilities but is also incredibly scary forms the sweet spot of [Andrew] Martin's astute debut ... A smart and beautifully observed story about fallible people." --Publishers Weekly