Details

ISBN-10: 0060924349
ISBN-13: 9780060924348
Publisher: Harper Perennial
Publish Date: 08/04/1993
Dimensions: 8.01" L, 5.29" W, 0.80" H

Maybe the Moon

Paperback

Price: $18.99

Overview

“Maybe the Moon, ” Armistead Maupin’s first novel since ending his bestselling “Tales of the City” series, is the audaciously original chronicle of Cadence Roth — Hollywood actress, singer, iconoclast and former “Guiness Book” record holder as the world’s shortest woman.

All of 31 inches tall, Cady is a true survivor in a town where — as she says — “you can die of encouragement.” Her early starring role as a lovable elf in an immensely popular American film proved a major disappointment, since moviegoers never saw the face behind the stifling rubber suit she was required to wear. Now, after a decade of hollow promises from the Industry, she is reduced to performing at birthday parties and bat mitzvahs as she waits for the miracle that will finally make her a star.

In a series of mordantly funny journal entries, Maupin tracks his spunky heroine across the saffron-hazed wasteland of Los Angeles — from her all-too-infrequent meetings with agents and studio moguls to her regular harrowing encounters with small children, large dogs and human ignorance. Then one day a lanky piano player saunters into Cady’s life, unleashing heady new emotions, and she finds herself going for broke, shooting the moon with a scheme so harebrained and daring that it just might succeed. Her accomplice in the venture is her best friend, Jeff, a gay waiter who sees Cady’s struggle for visibility as a natural extension of his own war against the Hollywood Closet.

As clear-eyed as it is charming, “Maybe the Moon” is a modern parable about the mythology of the movies and the toll it exacts from it participants on both sides of the screen. It is a work that speaks to the resilience of the humanspirit from a perspective rarely found in literature.

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Reviews
One of the ten best books of the year."–Entertainment Weekly"Wonderful, funny, poignant and gutsy. . . If you are already a fan of Maupin's Tales of the City, you'll like this new book just as much and maybe even more. If you've never read his work. . .you, like a lot of us, may find it an actual relief that such a tender and old-fashioned voice still exists in the literary world."–Annie Lamott, Mademoiselle"A kinder, gentler Day of the Locust. . .marked by solid craft, superb dialogue, and what used to be called heart. Maybe the Moon has all of that, plus a remarkable narrative ventriloquism. Chatty and self-promoting, tender and occasionally brusque, Cady's voice is perfectly pitched. And heartbreaking. There hasn't been a funnier, or sadder, novel this year."–Tom De Haven, Entertainment Weekly"Though Cadence Roth, the heroine of Maupin's captivating novel, is only 31 inches tall, her impact on the reader's emotions is enormous. . .A suspenseful story whose subtly foreshadowed ending delivers a dramatic clout."–Publishers Weekly"Highly funny and deeply poignant. . .Maupin sounds the feminine side of his psyche with a heartfelt resonance that few male writers ever accomplish."–Judith Wynn, Boston Herald"Scathingly funny, haunting. . . .Maupin enlightens, entertains and perhaps even empowers his readers."–Pam Perry, Atlanta Journal Constitution"Armistead Maupin is a first rate-world-class novelist, creating characters so vivid, complicated, tender, and true as to seem utterly timeless. . . .I'm willing to bet that fifty years from now Maupin's work will be read for its detailed descriptions of late twentieth century America, its rollicking humor and kind heart, its Chekoviancompassion, its Wildean wit, its intricate. . .sometimes unbelievablle but always utterly irresistible plotlines."–Stephen McCauley
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Details

ISBN-10: 0060924349
ISBN-13: 9780060924348
Publisher: Harper Perennial
Publish Date: 08/04/1993
Dimensions: 8.01" L, 5.29" W, 0.80" H
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