Description
Description
Walace Weiss, a famous fantasy novelist struggling with drug addiction, sets himself on a twofold quest: to finish his first book in more than a decade and, like the immortal elves of his stories, to try to remember what, in his long life, he should not have forgotten. While many have come to view Walace as a bad influence on children, literature, and himself, his impact sweeps across worlds both fantastic and real, resulting in the establishment of a new kingdom in his neglected McMansion, Summerheim. The result is a mock-epic in rehabilitation, starring such friends and enemies as Cal, Walace's dealer and private jester; Dragon, a porn star turned guidance counselor; Epiphany, a lunch lady and stripper in recovery; her son, Tuffy, planning everyone's funerals at age nine; Jackal, newly sober and in touch with his emotions for the first time; and Wolf, Walace's socially withdrawn twin brother and reluctant doppelgänger. Brian Bouldrey piles on the laughs and absurdity alongside dollops of humanity and sobriety. With brilliant recklessness, he praises and pokes fun at genres, conventions, fandoms, and critics, offering a Deadpool-like exploration of an upside-down world filled with epic quests, epic mistakes, and epic characters.
Critical Reviews
Critical Reviews
"The deceptively titled The Good Pornographer morphs from being a comedy about campus life and the cliches of fantasy writing into being a deeply moving novel about people wounded by addiction and the limits of love. Bouldrey is a genius, all right, not only of desire, but also its heartbreaking aftermath."--Rebecca Brown, author of You Tell the Stories You Need to Believe
"Bouldrey effortlessly shifts focus among all the assorted personalities. Digressive yet gloriously character-driven, this eccentric narrative will keep the reader's head spinning."
-- "Publishers Weekly" "Bouldrey's The Good Pornographer is the only drug you can smoke, snort, huff, drink, or otherwise consume without the least fear of being visited by the grim specter of death, the crushing menace of shame, or the Purgatorial ennui of rehab. Bouldrey has created here a high you'll never want to come down from, and, thankfully, you don't need to."--Andrew Farkas, author of The Great Indoorsman "Hilariously chaotic, with a wonderful panoply of characters. This novel combines the wild inventiveness of Infinite Jest, the brilliant characterizations of the meth-head Ratliffs in The Little Friend, and the sharp humor and sharper truths at the heart of the Patrick Melrose trilogy. Tumultuous and compulsively readable, with a big and bittersweet heart, it will soon join these books as one of the premier novels about addiction."--Naeem Murr, author of Every Exit Brings You Home "The Good Pornographer is showy and knowing, unexpectedly tender and hilariously rude, pinballing between tones, characters, and genres with a velocity that is thrillingly original."--Patrick McGinty, author of Town College City Road "This brilliant novel of addiction, recovery, and found family matches passages of hilarious wit with moments of piercing sadness--a wise, wild, and utterly beguiling tale, full to brimming with unforgettable characters."--Dan Chaon, author of One of Us "This epic novel--part naughty Tolkien, part Denis Johnson, and set in an eccentric, decrepit mansion worthy of the most beloved gothic novels--is about more than the comforts of fantasy; it's about how fantasy can enable us to build real relationships. It's also about addiction and how you can't compel people to change, but you can give them a warm bed and an unwavering dedication to recognizing their full humanity, which sometimes can do quite a lot. Bouldrey has written a treasure, cast with fascinating characters and delightful metafictional characters, be they elf, dwarf, or sasquatch. I loved spending time in these pages.--Mary South, author of You Will Never Be Forgotten
Publishing Information
Publishing Information
Publisher:
University of Wisconsin Press
Pub date:
2026-03-17
Length:
372 pages
The Allstora Membership
Membership Perks:
- Save 30% on all online store purchases
- Exclusive access to author's content
- You pay less, but authors still earn double
Membership Terms:
First Month:
$0.00
Monthly price:
$5.00
- To access membership discount simply log in and add to cart, discount applied automatically.
- One month free trial, cancel anytime. Membership renews on the 15th of each month.