From Publishers Weekly
The latest lark by the master manipulator of absurdities zips off with the first sentence: " 'The last place to have a ball, my dear Mrs. DelBelly, is at a formal dance.' " Capitalizing on his unequaled eye and ear for paradoxes, De Vries chronicles the adventures of Earl Peckham, an intellectual author whose new book sells only three copies. Earl tries to woo rich Mrs. DelBelly, opting for security rather than literary success, but his arty repartee makes the lady think he has lost his marbles. Hearing that signed novels can't be returned, Earl abandons the wooing and travels to the Midwest to autograph his three books. He meets Poppy McCloud, whose piffling romances are bestsellers, and the extremely odd couple fall in love. Throwing their joint publisher into fears of bankruptcy, Earl vets Poppy's works-in-progress, and her newly refined stories gain critical plaudits while losing a million-dollar audience. Throughout this novel, De Vries advances from one lovely lunacy to the next, keeping the reader marveling at his linguistic genius.
Copyright 1986 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
Copyright 1986 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
From Library Journal
De Vries's fans will welcome his latest effort as a long-awaited letter from a wacky friend. Earl Peckham finds himself ignominiously checked into Dappled Shade, a stopping place for the happily troubled, where he awaits recovery from alcohol-induced hepatitis. A failed college professor and singularly unsuccessful fiction writer, Peckham sets his sights on Nell DelBelly, Dappled Shade's widowed, wealthy ownerMargaret Dumont to his Groucho, as Earl sees them. She isn't buying, so upon being sprung, Peckham sets out on a cross-country jaunt, meets up and settles down with a hugely successful novelist, and finally comes back full circle, sort of. This is De Vries in top forma tonic, guaranteed to tickle funnybones no matter how hidden. "Oh, the insanely fine line between the O.K. and the de trop!" Highly recommended. Mary K. Prokop, CEL Regional Lib., Savannah, Ga.
Copyright 1986 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
Copyright 1986 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
