The One-Eyed Man
K., the intriguing narrator of Currie's new novel, joins the ranks of other great American literary creations who show us something new about ourselves. Like Jack Gladney from White Noise, K. is possessed of a hyper-articulate exasperation with the world, and like Ignatius J. Reilly in A Confederacy of Dunces, he is a doomed truth teller whom everyone misunderstands. After his wife Sarah dies, K. loses his metaphorical capacity, becoming so wedded to the notion of clarity that he infuriates everyone, friends and strangers alike. When he intervenes in an armed robbery, K. finds himself both an inadvertent hero and the star of a new reality television program. Together with Claire, a grocery store clerk with a sharp tongue and a yen for celebrity, he travels the country, ruffling feathers and gaining fame at the intersection of American politics and entertainment. But soon, through a conflagration of biblical proportions, he discovers that the world will fight viciously to preserve its delusions about itself.
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The One-Eyed Man
K., the intriguing narrator of Currie's new novel, joins the ranks of other great American literary creations who show us something new about ourselves. Like Jack Gladney from White Noise, K. is possessed of a hyper-articulate exasperation with the world, and like Ignatius J. Reilly in A Confederacy of Dunces, he is a doomed truth teller whom everyone misunderstands. After his wife Sarah dies, K. loses his metaphorical capacity, becoming so wedded to the notion of clarity that he infuriates everyone, friends and strangers alike. When he intervenes in an armed robbery, K. finds himself both an inadvertent hero and the star of a new reality television program. Together with Claire, a grocery store clerk with a sharp tongue and a yen for celebrity, he travels the country, ruffling feathers and gaining fame at the intersection of American politics and entertainment. But soon, through a conflagration of biblical proportions, he discovers that the world will fight viciously to preserve its delusions about itself.
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The One-Eyed Man

The One-Eyed Man

by Ron Currie

Narrated by Kevin Pariseau

Unabridged — 11 hours, 25 minutes

The One-Eyed Man

The One-Eyed Man

by Ron Currie

Narrated by Kevin Pariseau

Unabridged — 11 hours, 25 minutes

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Overview

K., the intriguing narrator of Currie's new novel, joins the ranks of other great American literary creations who show us something new about ourselves. Like Jack Gladney from White Noise, K. is possessed of a hyper-articulate exasperation with the world, and like Ignatius J. Reilly in A Confederacy of Dunces, he is a doomed truth teller whom everyone misunderstands. After his wife Sarah dies, K. loses his metaphorical capacity, becoming so wedded to the notion of clarity that he infuriates everyone, friends and strangers alike. When he intervenes in an armed robbery, K. finds himself both an inadvertent hero and the star of a new reality television program. Together with Claire, a grocery store clerk with a sharp tongue and a yen for celebrity, he travels the country, ruffling feathers and gaining fame at the intersection of American politics and entertainment. But soon, through a conflagration of biblical proportions, he discovers that the world will fight viciously to preserve its delusions about itself.

Editorial Reviews

From the Publisher

Praise for The One-Eyed Man:

“Ron Currie has created a character for our times. . .In these latter days of ‘alternative facts,’ the idea of someone fearlessly dedicated to total, literal honesty sounds awfully appealing.” 
—Ron Charles, The Washington Post

“A comically verbose and culturally savvy narration tempered by a bass line of vulnerability. K. may not be the truth-telling hero America wants, but he’s unquestionably the one we deserve.”
 —The Wall Street Journal

“Entertaining . . . a witty, knotty novel of ‘truth’”
– The Los Angeles Times

“When George Saunders wrote ‘humor is what happens when we’re told the truth quicker and more directly than we’re used to,’ he was talking about the fiction of Kurt Vonnegut – but the line applies perfectly to Ron Currie’s new novel . . . The One Eyed-Man manages to offer readers humor, truth, and something else: the weird, uncomfortable way that life reveals its plans for us.”
 —Nick Ripatrazone, Google Play Books

“Currie navigates the funny-sad axis of human relations as well as anyone writing today. . . He’s a consummate performer – engaging and generous, filled with provocative ideas and gorgeous language to express them.”
 —Portland Press Herald

 “Currie is a talented storyteller . . . he explores the pain of loss and the possibility of redemption with aplomb, humor, and an empathetic hand in this heartbreaking tale.”
—Publishers Weekly
 

"Nobody writing today walks the knife edge of cynicism and sentiment more bravely, intelligently and confidently than Ron Currie. By turns hilarious and heartfelt, The One-Eyed Man is a revelation, a wonder."
—Richard Russo, author of Everybody’s Fool

"The One-Eyed Man delivers blistering, hilarious social satire and apocalyptic hijinks with the best of them, but what you have after the smoke clears is a deep, moving novel about love and grief. Ron Currie is a many-eyed and many-hearted wonder."
– Sam Lipsyte, author of The Ask
 
"Dead-on timely satire. Currie is as readable as he is brilliant."
 —Matthew Quick, author of The Silver Linings Playbook

“A Swift-ian morality tale about a land of ‘hysteria and half-truths’ . . . Currie’s caustic humor and deadly sarcastic bite win out.”
Kirkus Reviews


Library Journal

★ 03/01/2017
Reminiscent of David Gates's Jernigan mixed with the edgy incisiveness and humor of Sacha Baron Cohen, this compulsively readable novel intrigues with its complexity and scope. Highly recommended, [See Prepub Alert, 9/12/16.]--Henry Bankhead, San Rafael P.L., CA

Kirkus Reviews

2016-12-27
A Swift-ian morality tale about a land of "hysteria and half-truths." Currie's (Flimsy Little Plastic Miracles, 2013, etc.) fourth and most conventional novel has an epigraph from Erasmus: "In the land of the blind, the one-eyed man is king." K., our 44-year-old narrator, is a common, honest man in a contemporary America where people are all too ready to twist the truth. K.'s beloved wife, Sarah, died from cancer seven months ago. He isn't taking it well; in fact, he has become "completely unhinged." K.'s friend Tony tells him he has turned into "Mr. Roboto...you're so goddam literal." K. suffers from a heightened sense of hyperfactuality. He argues with Tony about the wording on a bottle of hand wash and ends up throwing it through Tony's window. He gets into an argument over what someone's bumper sticker actually means. At Total Foods, he gets into an argument with a clerk, Claire, about how fruits are incorrectly labeled, but, he tells her, he's "not dangerous or anything." He "just needs things to be true....Actual. Clear." Off to get his usual Grande Americano he sees a young woman in a store being held up. He knocks on the window and gets shot, saving her. To K.'s befuddlement, he's proclaimed a hero, given an award. A newsman from Fox visits him in the hospital and wants to do a reality TV show with him. America, You Stoopid follows K. and Claire (now his manager) around America. They talk with people about many issues: abortion, gun control, immigration. But the "dominant mode of national discourse"—things are either entirely right or wrong—brings about nasty arguments, and K. becomes a major star. Tomfoolery and shenanigans abound in this wicked indictment of our divided land. Even though the over-the-top ending sputters into a wild tailspin, Currie's caustic humor and deadly sarcastic bite win out.

Product Details

BN ID: 2940170127719
Publisher: HighBridge Company
Publication date: 03/07/2017
Edition description: Unabridged

Read an Excerpt

Don’t Walk
(Continues…)



Excerpted from "The One-Eyed Man"
by .
Copyright © 2018 Ron Currie.
Excerpted by permission of Penguin Publishing Group.
All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.
Excerpts are provided by Dial-A-Book Inc. solely for the personal use of visitors to this web site.

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