Simplify [Hardcover]

Tod Goldberg (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 3, 2005

From the author of the acclaimed novel Living Dead Girl, a finalist for the Los Angeles Times Book Prize, come twelve haunting stories about people caught somewhere between love and madness. Simplify mines the often surreal terrain of people on the margins of life: from the man with a photo of Elvis bleeding on his wall in "Comeback Special," to the profoundly troubled boy genius of the title story "Simplify," to the family that must traverse "The Distance Between Us" to finally get to the truth about their son the murderer, each story hums with sharp drama, mystery, wonder, and startling humour. Simplify, the first collection of short fiction by Tod Goldberg, portrays a world where redemption, hope, and violence are never too far apart. It is the inaugural volume in the Other Voices Book Series.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"Each story in this collection is pulled off with brilliance and confidence." -- Bookslut.com

"Energized, engaging, highly readable-- each one of Tod Goldberg's stories is a nugget of originality. A terrific collection." -- Aimee Bender, author of Willful Creatures

"Goldberg's work is an eclectic collection of realist and surrealist storytelling...startling and shuddersome..." -- TimeOut Chicago

"Goldberg’s creepy, strangely sardonic, definitely disturbing version of Middle America...And that, of course, is where the fun begins." -- LA Weekly

"Hilarious and unnerving, charming, creepy & dusted with a strange, ineffable melancholy." -- Dan Chaon, author of You Remind Me Of Me

"Simplify is ruthless and tender, truthful, full of heart and scary in all the right ways." -- Pam Houston, author of Sight Hound

"With Simplify, Goldberg places himself in the company of such masters of short fiction as Dan Chaon & Thom Jones." -- Scott Phillips, author of The Ice Harvest

A keen voice, profound insight...[E]ach story excites on its own...SIMPLIFY is devilishly entertaining. -- Los Angeles Times

Book Description

From the author of the acclaimed novel Living Dead Girl, a finalist for the Los Angeles Times Book Prize, come twelve haunting stories about people caught somewhere between love and madness. Simplify mines the often surreal terrain of people on the margins of life: from the man with a photo of Elvis bleeding on his wall in "Comeback Special," to the profoundly troubled boy genius of the title story "Simplify," to the family that must traverse "The Distance Between Us" to finally get to the truth about their son the murderer, each story hums with sharp drama, mystery, wonder, and startling humor. Simplify, the first collection of short fiction by Tod Goldberg, portrays a world where redemption, hope, and violence are never too far apart. It is the inaugural volume in the Other Voices Book Series.

--This text refers to the Paperback edition.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 184 pages
• Publisher: Other Voices Inc (October 3, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0976717700
• ISBN-13: 978-0976717706
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 5.5 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 13.6 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (8 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #6,581,869 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Tod Goldberg is the author of several books of fiction, including the novels Living Dead Girl, a finalist for the Los Angeles Times Book Prize, Fake Liar Cheat and the popular Burn Notice series, as well as two collections of short stories, Simplify and Other Resort Cities. He holds an MFA in Creative Writing and Literature from Bennington College and lives in La Quinta, CA where he directs the Low Residency MFA program in Creative Writing & Writing for the Performing Arts at the University of California, Riverside's Palm Desert campus. His latest book, Where You Lived, is available exclusively as an ebook. For more information, visit todgoldberg.typepad.com.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A superb collection from a rising star, November 4, 2005

By 

David Montgomery "Book Critic" (davidjmontgomery.com) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Simplify (Paperback)

Short story collections are nearly impossible to review, especially in anything under several hundred words. (How do you comment generally on a book that contains twelve different stories that vary in plot, theme, quality, etc.?) Still, there are a few observations that one can make about Tod Goldberg's Simplify. The stories are sharp and insightful, many of them dealing with issues emerging from childhood. The writing is often funny, even when it's painful, and always to the point, with keen dialogue and a strong voice. Finally, the stories on the whole are powerful, provocative and a pleasure to read. The title entry, in particular, is a minor masterpiece.

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Haunting and Funny--Like Tod Himself!, September 17, 2005

By 

Karen Dinino (Woodland Hills, CA USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Simplify (Paperback)

This collection of short stories will keep you awake thinking, or fearing your dreams, for days. Filled with characters you just might know, Simplify is precisely deep enough to still be fun. A great combination of humor and insight runs through these varied glimpses into the contradictions, chaos, and slapstick of life.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars I am amazed at how well the author is able to portray other people's thoughts and feelings., June 24, 2007

By 

Cindy Callinsky (Wa) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Simplify (Paperback)

This is a collection of twelve short stories.

*Each story is dark and the majority of them revolve around death.
*Each story delivers either a deep life lesson or a view of another person's life that will leave you pondering things that you have probably never thought of.

I am amazed at how well the author, Tod Goldberg, understands and is able to portray other people's thoughts and feelings. He tells the story of a messed up child, a suicidal man, a wealthy man with an empty life, a child growing into an adult, a dead child, and the brother of a killer. These are just some of the people that Mr. Goldberg takes the shape of.

Each story is written in a unique fashion. Within the first page, you will be sucked in by the unfolding of a foreign life that each story promises.

Some of the other reviews label it as sinister or evil. I didn't see it as either. Sorrowful? Maybe. Dark? Definitely. Sinister or evil? Not so much.

I'm not a big short story fan. I like stories that I can sink my teeth into for a period of time. I am the kind of person that never wants a good story to end. That being said, I loved this book. The stories allowed me to step into someone else's existence.

The stories make you dig deep and think.