Falling Up by Brian Bromberg
Genre: Literary Fiction/Humor
Rating: ***** Five Stars
Estimated word count: 392,000
Availability:
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Author:
“BRIAN J. BROMBERG is a comedic writer living and working in New York City. He has penned several children’s television episodes, a children’s movie, a video game and app, live event scripts, educational materials, and over 13 children’s books. His diverse, often juvenile experience has given him much grist for the mill in his more life-lampooning, adult-oriented work, which has been featured in Lessons from Dad, After Hours and Inked! magazines, and in various stand-up comedy performances in Manhattan. Bromberg is a committed and loving father to a little girl who never fails to inspire him and make him smile on a daily basis.”
Description:
“Gregg Freeman is living the American Dream … in reverse.
For he can’t be the Great American Writer of his dreams unless he feels sufficiently tormented enough to have something to say.
But that’s his problem. He’s too comfortable to have anything to say. Instead, he’s got a high paying corporate day job, a sexy pseudo-girlfriend, a posh New York City apartment, and as such, complete and total Writer’s Block.
So when his best friend Alvaro drunkenly suggests the Muse of Misery best inspires artists, Gregg takes him at his word, embarking upon a systematic campaign to destroy everything in life that has plagued him with stability, comfort, contentedness, or joy. His job? His bank account? Sex? Sobriety? All of it must go. The worse his life, the better his work.
But how far will Gregg allow himself to fall so that his creativity may rise? Pretty damned far, as it turns out. For it’s hard to hit rock bottom when you believe you’re Falling Up.”
My Two Cents:
I was pretty skeptical of this “literary humor” book at first, but the author doesn’t take himself as seriously as I expected. For a tale about wannabe artists in New York, their trials and tribulations were actually relatable to normal folk. Reminds me of the biblical story of Job… just with a little more cocaine and sex!
The hero is so self-involved that he’s his own vicious antagonist. I’m not sure if it was intended or not, but I found myself loathing the main character and loving the sidekicks. Either way, these characters will suck you in. Whether laughing or annoyed, you have no chance of staying emotionally disconnected here!
By the way, loved the twist ending. It’s rare that a book takes me by complete surprise, so well done!
Author R A Peters 