Uncommon Type
Some Stories
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3.8 • 36 Ratings
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- £2.99
Publisher Description
WITH AN INTRODUCTION FROM THE AUTHOR
'Impressive' The Times
'Funny and pitch perfect' Sunday Express
'I blink, bubble and boggle in amazed admiration' Stephen Fry
'These stories are a hit' Financial Times
A small-town newspaper columnist with old-fashioned views of the modern world. A World War II veteran grappling with his emotional and physical scars. A second-rate actor plunged into sudden stardom and a whirlwind press junket. Four friends travelling to the moon in a rocket ship built in the backyard. These are just some of the stories that Tom Hanks captures with great affection, humour and insight - the human condition in all its foibles.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Oscar-winner Hanks's debut collection is a wide-ranging affair of 17 stories threaded together by the recurring image of typewriters some stories, like the intriguing "These Are the Meditations of My Heart," build entire narratives around the machines, while others mention them in passing. In "Alan Bean Plus Four," one of the collection's best entries, four friends decide to build a backyard rocket and orbit the moon. These same characters star in two more stories, the enjoyable bowling yarn "Steve Wong Is Perfect," and the less noteworthy "Three Exhausting Weeks," which uses standard romantic comedy tropes in recollecting a wacky and doomed relationship. Hanks's stories sometimes lead to pat, happy endings, but not always "Christmas Eve 1953" develops a simple holiday story into a rumination on war. Similarly, "The Past Is Important to Us" employs a sharp, unexpected conclusion to elevate a story of time travel and romance at the 1939 World's Fair. Hanks's narrators speak with similar verbal tics multiple narrators say "Noo Yawk," for example but the stories they tell generally charm. The only true misfires come when Hanks breaks away from traditional structure: the story-as-screenplay "Stay With Us" drags, and faux newspaper columns by man of the people Hank Fiset start clever but turn grating. 250,000-copy announced first printing.
Customer Reviews
This man can do no wrong
Wonderful book
Not for me
I was disappointed because I really wanted to like this book, as Tom is one of my favourite actors and I was excited about having the opportunity to review it. What I got was a collection of short stories, with an old fashioned feel about them. Unfortunately they didn’t hold my interest and I struggled to finish the book.
I received a complimentary copy of this book from NetGalley. I was not compensated for my review, and I was not required to write a positive review. The opinion expressed here is my own.
More Hanks
Sublime short story’s by the Hanks. He more than delivers. Please let there be more!