The Book of Life

Bound by issues of faith and doubt, the characters in Stuart Nadler's unforgettable stories cannot be reduced to such problems alone. Instead they confront universal concerns such as what it means to be an insider or an outsider in contemporary American life.

At a Rosh Hashanah party where the host serves dates wrapped in bacon, an arrogant businessman begins an affair with his best friend's daughter. Unwittingly thrust into an open marriage, a man struggles to reconnect with his wife and his newly devout son. A pure-hearted painter has his devotion cruelly tested, while his true love tries to repent for the biggest mistake of her life. Forced together on a trip from Manhattan to Rhode Island, a father and son attempt to reconnect over lobster, cigarettes, and a buried secret.

These stories present men and women dealing with their sins and failings, their infidelities, their griefs, their missed opportunities at love, and, ultimately, their hopes for redemption. Like the debut collections of Nathan Englander, Adam Haslett, and Julie Orringer, THE BOOK OF LIFE signals the arrival of an exciting and bold new voice.Bound by issues of faith and doubt, the characters in Stuart Nadler's unforgettable stories cannot be reduced to such problems alone. Instead they confront universal concerns such as what it means to be an insider or an outsider in contemporary American life.

At a Rosh Hashanah party where the host serves dates wrapped in bacon, an arrogant businessman begins an affair with his best friend's daughter. Unwittingly thrust into an open marriage, a man struggles to reconnect with his wife and his newly devout son. A pure-hearted painter has his devotion cruelly tested, while his true love tries to repent for the biggest mistake of her life. Forced together on a trip from Manhattan to Rhode Island, a father and son attempt to reconnect over lobster, cigarettes, and a buried secret.

These stories present men and women dealing with their sins and failings, their infidelities, their griefs, their missed opportunities at love, and, ultimately, their hopes for redemption. Like the debut collections of Nathan Englander, Adam Haslett, and Julie Orringer, THE BOOK OF LIFE signals the arrival of an exciting and bold new voice.

Stuart Nadler is a graduate of the Iowa Writers' Workshop, where he was awarded a Truman Capote Fellowship and a Teaching-Writing Fellowship. Recently, he was the Carol Houck Smith Fiction Fellow at the University of Wisconsin. His fiction has appeared in The Atlantic.Stuart Nadler is a graduate of the Iowa Writers' Workshop, where he was awarded a Truman Capote Fellowship and a Teaching-Writing Fellowship. Recently, he was the Carol Houck Smith Fiction Fellow at the University of Wisconsin. His fiction has appeared in The Atlantic.