Synopsis: A back-sliding atheist journeys through Japanese hostess bars in search of her estranged husband Gottlieb.
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“Alexander’s subtly threaded explorations of love and hope, her sensuous, distilled prose and her incisive wit make this a sophisticated, resonant debut.” –Publishers Weekly
“A dark comedy with cunning observations.” –The Dallas Morning News
“A stunning first novel.” –San Antonio Express-News
“A solid, moving and funny work.” –The Met (Cover Story)
“Introspective and intellectual.” –Paper Magazine
“Few narrators … have been presented with such uncompromising honesty, such deep and deliberate introspection.” –The Dallas Morning News
“A wonderful read.” — Pif Magazine
Published by The Permanent Press.
Winner, Washington Prize for Fiction.
Now available as an ebook.
reviews
excerpt
December 16, 2009 at 10:31 am
I know that the first edition of this book featured a nude author photo that got a lot of press. How come you don’t have the photo on your website?
December 17, 2009 at 8:26 am
If a writer wants to get press these days, he or she can date a celebrity, commit a crime or pose nude. I’ve done all three and found the last by far the most effective. It’s amazing how something so irrelevant to one’s skill or talent as a writer can attract the attention of serious literary critics and reviewers. The danger with this type of stunt, however, is that it prejudices readers against you and you have to work extra hard to get respect. The Met magazine wrote about this issue and my novel in the article “Naked Ambition: Is Dallas-Born Author Victoria Alexander Exposing Too Much?” The writer, Joe Guinto, answered “no” to his own question. Magazines and newspapers thrive on controversy so it makes sense to seem to offer one thing and deliver another.
August 22, 2010 at 12:20 pm
Sorry to be picky, but what does “back-sliding atheist” mean (in your synopsis)? It’s a rather strange, judgemental phrase. If your protagonist is a former Christian/Muslim/disciple of Zeus – then I suppose I understand why she could be viewed as back-sliding by other disciples. Or do you mean she is an atheist who is back-sliding towards the nonsense of religion?
All babies are born atheists, and most scientists are atheists, and it seems to me to be a very positive, natural condition. I CLIMBED, HAULED myself out of the mire of religion, towards the enlightenment of atheism. PS – I may well read your book, it looks interesting.
August 22, 2010 at 12:40 pm
A joke isn’t very funny if you have to explain it, but yeah, “backsliding atheist” means reverting to Christianity. The “funny” or ironic bit is the idea of an atheist being “tempted” to believe again.
October 10, 2010 at 10:15 pm
The “temptation” would be merely very deep guilt, burned into the subconscious, resurfacing, and this “back-sliding” is quite common. It is the hook by which all religions prosper. I also hauled, clawed my way out of the religious mire, and, through atheism, discovered spirituality, which is actually the opposite of formal religion.
October 15, 2010 at 4:48 am
I still don’t get why Lolita is a work of art as opposed to a piece of filth.
October 15, 2010 at 5:49 am
Why Lolita is a work of art is a big question that I won’t try to tackle here. Look up any of Brian Boyd’s analyses for that. But I can try to explain why Lolita is not “a piece of filth,” which is much easier to do in a few lines. 1. There is no sexually explicit language in Lolita and no place where a sane person might become sexually aroused. The physical descriptions of Dolores Haze make her out to be a regular kid, not at all sexy like the adult actress who played her part in the Kubrick film. 2. Humbert’s descriptions of Lolita play upon Petrarchan traditions and tend to idealize her. (Petrarch’s Laura was also very young.) Nabokov is parodying certain pastoral traditions and Petrarchan literature. He clearly wants readers to think of Humbert as a monster. I’ve written about this here. 3. Have you read Lolita?
October 16, 2010 at 7:35 pm
LO-LEE-TAH belongs on any so-called list of “best” novels written in America. Part of the test is the unique, yet believable characters regardless of the context in which you find them. Nabakov’s singular talent leaps forth in this novel probably more than any of his others. To write this story and maintain a certain drawing-room taste might prove impossible for any other novelist.
April 29, 2011 at 7:19 am
Smoking Hopes rocks!