The Means
Description
"The Means is such a fast-paced, breezy comedic novel that you may find yourself surprised that Fusselman deftly and directly leads you to existential dilemmas and the absurdity of capitalism and striving for more." - The Millions
Shelly Means, a stay-at-home mom and disgraced former PTA president, is poised to get the one thing in life she really wants: a beach house in the Hamptons. Surely, once she has her beach house, Shelly will at last feel at peace, in control, and content. It might be a very small house, and it might be in the least-fancy part of the Hamptons, but Shelly is hell-bent on achieving this idea of paradise.
But what should be a simple real estate transaction quickly goes awry as Shelly's new neighbors disapprove of her proposed shipping container house at the same time that her spouse George's lucrative work as a VoiceOver artist dries up. When George wants to cancel the beach house, Shelly goes deeper down the rabbit hole of capitalism: it's an investment property! It's a community! It's a place for their children to thrive! And, for a woman whose labor has buoyed her family for years, this beach house might just be Shelly's last stand.
The debut novel from "one of our best interrogators of how we live now, and how we should live" (Dave Eggers), The Means is a comedy about the suffering inherent in desire, capitalist delusion, and the value of unpaid labor.
"With its deadpan absurdity, pithy prose and moral je ne sais quoi, Fusselman's latest will appeal to fans of Marcy Dermansky....With its satire of the particular hypocrisy of the Hamptons, including homeowners associations, graft, and garbage and recycling practices, Maria Semple....We may be entering a golden age of the comic novel, surely one of the best possible outcomes of this desperate moment in history." - Kirkus Reviews (starred review)
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About the Author
Amy Fusselman is the author of four nonfiction books: Idiophone; Savage Park: A Meditation on Play, Space, and Risk for Americans Who Are Nervous, Distracted, and Afraid to Die; 8; and The Pharmacist's Mate. Her writing has appeared in the Washington Post, the New York Times, the Atlantic, McSweeney's, and many other outlets. She lives with her family in New York City where she teaches creative writing at New York University.
Reviews
This charming novel bears the Fusselman touch that makes all of her books so brilliant: touching, uncanny, and deceptively simple observations that dismantle complex assumptions about the world. -- Sarah Manguso, author of Very Cold People
"This book, about ballet and beauty, philosophy and family, reinforces Amy Fusselman's status as one of our best interrogators of how we live now, and how we should live. As always, Fusselman asks tough questions and answers them with rare lyricism and candor." -- Dave Eggers on Idiophone
"Amy Fusselman is a genius with language, every sentence manages to surprise; they wend themselves into your brain--your everything, really. -- Nylon Magazine on Idiophone
"Fusselman's writing feels like a scroll unfurling page by page, and the connections she makes here are surprising and delightful. This book is a place where anything can happen." -- Village Voice on Idiophone
Fusselman's conversational, intimate voice and heartfelt musings charm the reader. In less than 100 pages she movingly conjures an impressive emotional depth and range, making The Pharmacist's Mate seem like a much longer work. -- San Francisco Chronicle
Ms. Fusselman's book affected me deeply. The talent displayed therein was unnerving. -- Zadie Smith on The Pharmacist's Mate
