I went to Borders on Michigan Ave after work tonight to hear a guy I didn't know named Joshua Ferris read from his novel, Then We Came to the End. I'd never been to a real book reading before (the launch of the UTS student anthology doesn't count) and I imagined a room crowded with people sitting and people standing with tape recorders and microphones. Lots of those people wore reading glasses and scarves. But in reality, there were only about 20 people. And amongst those 20 people were the author's father, two of his old colleagues and three Borders employees. It was pitifully intimate.
The good news though, was Joshua Ferris read for about ten minutes and I swooned the entire time. The entire time, I tell you. First, his story is a satire set in a Chicago ad agency. Sold. Second, there's an annoying office co-ordinator character called Kathy. Hey, I'm a Kathy. Sold again. Third, he said in the Q&A session that he was a copywriter for three years. Well, whaddyaknow, I'm a copywriter. So. Seriously. Sold.
I lined up for 15 minutes after the Q&A to get a signed copy and happily paid $13.99 plus tax. I started reading it on the way home and I love it. So clever and hilarious and same-as-my-life. This totally makes up for the time I made the stupid decision to skip a lunchtime George Saunders reading because I was worried about the time crunch. George Saunders deserves better than that.
dang, thats a famous person's signature if I've ever seen one!
Posted by: jp | Apr 08, 2008 at 18:34