{"product_id":"9780743223249","title":"Spectacular Happiness : A Novel","description":"\u003cstrong\u003eSpectacular Happiness\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eAuthor(s): Peter D. Kramer\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eA daring, controversial novel that \u003ci\u003eThe New York Times\u003c\/i\u003e hailed as \"good fun\" and full of \"rewarding surprises,\" \u003ci\u003eSpectacular Happiness\u003c\/i\u003e entertains while raising challenging questions about what constitutes the good life.\u003c\/b\u003e Booklist calls it a \"stunning first novel.\" \u003cbr\u003e Chip Samuels is an English teacher, part-time handyman, and devoted husband and father. He is also a one-man protest movement. Egged on by an ex-girlfriend, Chip has been blowing up trophy homes along the beaches of Cape Cod. The fastidiously crafted explosions capture the public's imagination -- and rather than being reviled as a terrorist, he finds himself the idealized center of a media circus. \u003cbr\u003e Darkly intelligent, provocative, and compelling, \u003ci\u003eSpectacular Happiness\u003c\/i\u003e has been praised both as riveting storytelling and as masterful social criticism by one of the most respected observers of contemporary American culture.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eReview(s):\u003cbr\u003e\u003ci\u003eThe Boston Globe\u003c\/i\u003e The author of \u003ci\u003eListening to Prozac\u003c\/i\u003e makes a fine novelist, telling a gripping story while at the same time commenting on the rich, radicals, politics, corruption, and the media.\u003cbr\u003e\u003ci\u003eNewsweek\u003c\/i\u003e A serious novel of ideas.\u003cbr\u003e\u003ci\u003eChicago Tribune\u003c\/i\u003e A terrific thriller plot...Kramer has a perceptive eye...in the small, telling details he chooses for his portraits.\u003cbr\u003e\u003ci\u003eThe Seattle Times\u003c\/i\u003e This novel is a feast of big ideas, memorable characters, and heroic actions. It is a phenomenal fiction debut.\u003cbr\u003e\u003ci\u003eThe Christian Science Monitor\u003c\/i\u003e The effect is something like reading \u003ci\u003eJaws\u003c\/i\u003e from the shark's point of view....It's wacky and wicked and brilliant.\u003cbr\u003e\u003ci\u003eTalk\u003c\/i\u003e Deeply moving.\u003cbr\u003e\u003ci\u003eProvidence Journal\u003c\/i\u003e An elegantly lyrical and provocative first novel.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eISBN:  9780743223249\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e ","brand":"Scribner","offers":[{"title":"Paperback \/ softback","offer_id":40590806581454,"sku":"9780743223249","price":21.95,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0600\/7029\/7806\/products\/O_523d478e-eb36-4b8c-bc83-2251e2214347.jpg?v=1646516567","url":"https:\/\/pickwickbookshop.com\/products\/9780743223249","provider":"Pickwick Bookshop","version":"1.0","type":"link"}