Biblio File
T.C. Boyle: Where to Begin
This post is part of a series in which Readers Services librarians suggest a good starting place for authors appearing in our LIVE from the NYPL series this fall.
T.C. Boyle comes to LIVE from the NYPL on Wednesday, Oct. 26, at 7 p.m. Get tickets now!
World's End (1988)
World’s End is a sweeping epic, spanning hundreds of years and a massive cast of characters, all centered on the Hudson River Valley. Much of the book is set in “Peterskill,” a fictional town based on Boyle’s hometown of Peekskill, about an hour north of New York City. It’s a witty page-turner, tinged with the funny/bleak satire that characterizes Boyle’s writing — so, if you’re into this book, you’ll probably like more of his work. It won the PEN/Faulkner Award in 1988; nearly three decades later, it still feels relevant and fresh. (One character’s battle cry, “America for Americans!,” echoed by a frothing crowd, resonates uncomfortably today.) —Gwen Glazer
"The Lie" from Wild Child and Other Stories (2011)
Suburban – an adjective meaning contemptibly dull and ordinary. Malaise – a noun meaning a general feeling of discomfort, illness, or uneasiness whose exact cause is difficult to identify.
T.C. Boyle is one of those writers like Richard Yates, Tom Perrotta, and Raymond Carver who examine the everyday using dark humor or satire to reveal a moral or spiritual void, numbness, isolation. I often find these writers are fond of the short story or interconnected stories made into novels. The genre works well with their spare style. I would point a reader who wanted a taste of T.C. Boyle to his short story “The Lie” from his collection entitled Wild Child. (Or listen to Stephen Colbert read it here.) It is the story of Jim, bored with his job, bored with his family. “I used to be in a band.” This, in my opinion, is T.C. Boyle at his finest. —Lynn Lobash
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Have other ideas about the best place to start or your favorite book by these authors? Let us know in the comments, and check out more of Boyle’s work from NYPL!
Want to know what T.C. Boyle himself reads? Check out our Ask the Author feature.
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