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Patrick Ryan
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Jump down to see edition details for: Hardcover
Bibliographic Detail
Publisher
Dial Pr
Publication date
July 5, 2016
Pages
272
Binding
Hardcover
Book category
Adult Fiction
ISBN-13
9780385341387
ISBN-10
0385341385
Dimensions
0.69 by 5.50 by 8.25 in.
Original list price
$26.00
Amazon.com says people who bought this book also bought:
Transit | Homesick for Another World | Signals | When Watched | You Are Having a Good Time | The Virginity of Famous Men | Send Me | The Afterlife of Stars | The Strays
Transit | Homesick for Another World | Signals | When Watched | You Are Having a Good Time | The Virginity of Famous Men | Send Me | The Afterlife of Stars | The Strays
Summaries and Reviews
Amazon.com description: Product Description: For readers of Tom Perrotta and Lorrie Moore, these nine unforgettable stories, all set in and around Cape Canaveral, showcase Patrick Ryanâs masterly understanding of regret and hope, relationships and family, and the universal longing for love.
NAMED ONE OF THE BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR BY
St. Louis Post Dispatch ⢠Refinery 29 ⢠Electric Literature
The Dream Life of Astronauts balances heartbreak with wry humor as its characters try to make sense of the paths they find themselves on. A would-be Miss America auditions for a shady local talent scout over vodka and Sunny D; a NASA engineer begins to wonder if the woman heâs having an affair with is slowly poisoning her husband; a Boy Scout troop leader, recovering from a stroke, tries to protect one of his scouts from being bullied by his own sons; an ex-mobster living in witness protection feuds with the busybody head of his condo board; a grandmother, sentenced to driverâs ed after a traffic accident, surprises herself by falling for her instructor.
Set against landmark momentsâthe first moon launch, Watergate, the Challenger explosionâthese private dramas unfurl in startling ways. The Dream Life of Astronauts ratifies the emergence of an indelible new talent in fiction.
Praise for The Dream Life of Astronauts
â[Ryan] displays a gift for excavating the dashed hopes and yearnings that lie beneath. He is especially adept at capturing the point of view of children, with a Salingeresque understanding of their alienation, their vulnerability, their keen powers of observation.ââMichiko Kakutani, The New York Times
Â
âQuietly commanding . . . A wry and smart collectionâa beam of intelligent life from an author who clearly likes to probe the outer edges of the familiar.ââMaureen Corrigan, NPRâs Fresh Air
âRyan is a master of the old-fashioned, captivating storytelling that deceptively reads as effortless. . . . Ryan never actually sends his characters into space; but his orbits of the human heart are enough.ââThe New York Times Book Review
âRyan brings a wry sense of intimacy to these dreamers who are always searching for a better life, for something new.ââBBC
âPatrick Ryanâs short stories go down lightlyâbut that doesnât mean theyâre lightweight. In the best of them, Ryanâs transparent prose and seemingly casual tone sneakily ensnare you in tough moments and wryly rueful deflations of the heart and spirit.ââThe Seattle Times
âYou donât have to be a rocket scientist to appreciate this funny collection of stories set around Cape Canaveral. Moon missions and shuttle launches take a backseat to the earthly predicaments faced by the eclectic cast of Boy Scouts, gangsters, grandmothers and beauty queens.ââThe Atlanta Journal-Constitution
âThere is humanity and heart in each one of these tales, all rendered with nuance and depth that will leave a mark on your thoughts long past the final pages.ââRefinery29
âPatrick Ryanâs characters are people who are a little more beaten down than they know. They are not introspective by default, and yet, due to circumstances, they are forced to look into themselves and find something that, in his own phrase, feels like life.ââLiterary Hub
âThe author illuminates [his] characters with pitch-perfect dialogue and period references that capture the various decades in which the stories take place.ââPublishers Weekly
NAMED ONE OF THE BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR BY
St. Louis Post Dispatch ⢠Refinery 29 ⢠Electric Literature
The Dream Life of Astronauts balances heartbreak with wry humor as its characters try to make sense of the paths they find themselves on. A would-be Miss America auditions for a shady local talent scout over vodka and Sunny D; a NASA engineer begins to wonder if the woman heâs having an affair with is slowly poisoning her husband; a Boy Scout troop leader, recovering from a stroke, tries to protect one of his scouts from being bullied by his own sons; an ex-mobster living in witness protection feuds with the busybody head of his condo board; a grandmother, sentenced to driverâs ed after a traffic accident, surprises herself by falling for her instructor.
Set against landmark momentsâthe first moon launch, Watergate, the Challenger explosionâthese private dramas unfurl in startling ways. The Dream Life of Astronauts ratifies the emergence of an indelible new talent in fiction.
Praise for The Dream Life of Astronauts
â[Ryan] displays a gift for excavating the dashed hopes and yearnings that lie beneath. He is especially adept at capturing the point of view of children, with a Salingeresque understanding of their alienation, their vulnerability, their keen powers of observation.ââMichiko Kakutani, The New York Times
Â
âQuietly commanding . . . A wry and smart collectionâa beam of intelligent life from an author who clearly likes to probe the outer edges of the familiar.ââMaureen Corrigan, NPRâs Fresh Air
âRyan is a master of the old-fashioned, captivating storytelling that deceptively reads as effortless. . . . Ryan never actually sends his characters into space; but his orbits of the human heart are enough.ââThe New York Times Book Review
âRyan brings a wry sense of intimacy to these dreamers who are always searching for a better life, for something new.ââBBC
âPatrick Ryanâs short stories go down lightlyâbut that doesnât mean theyâre lightweight. In the best of them, Ryanâs transparent prose and seemingly casual tone sneakily ensnare you in tough moments and wryly rueful deflations of the heart and spirit.ââThe Seattle Times
âYou donât have to be a rocket scientist to appreciate this funny collection of stories set around Cape Canaveral. Moon missions and shuttle launches take a backseat to the earthly predicaments faced by the eclectic cast of Boy Scouts, gangsters, grandmothers and beauty queens.ââThe Atlanta Journal-Constitution
âThere is humanity and heart in each one of these tales, all rendered with nuance and depth that will leave a mark on your thoughts long past the final pages.ââRefinery29
âPatrick Ryanâs characters are people who are a little more beaten down than they know. They are not introspective by default, and yet, due to circumstances, they are forced to look into themselves and find something that, in his own phrase, feels like life.ââLiterary Hub
âThe author illuminates [his] characters with pitch-perfect dialogue and period references that capture the various decades in which the stories take place.ââPublishers Weekly
Editions
Hardcover
The price comparison is for this edition
from Dial Pr (July 5, 2016)
9780385341387 | details & prices | 272 pages | 5.50 × 8.25 × 0.69 in. | List price $26.00
About: For readers of Tom Perrotta and Lorrie Moore, these nine unforgettable stories, all set in and around Cape Canaveral, showcase Patrick Ryanâs masterly understanding of regret and hope, relationships and family, and the universal longing for love.
About: For readers of Tom Perrotta and Lorrie Moore, these nine unforgettable stories, all set in and around Cape Canaveral, showcase Patrick Ryanâs masterly understanding of regret and hope, relationships and family, and the universal longing for love.
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