The Big Book of Misunderstanding

By: Jim Gladstone

Narrated by: David Akiva Klionsky

"A witty dissection and resurrection of an off-kilter, loopy family" (Bookmarks)

"Gladstone's nuanced characters are utterly believable...it will remind many readers of their own troubled clans." (Time Out, New York)

"Every adult trying to shake the shackles of their upbringing will find a comforting spark of recognition." (The Weekly News (Miami))

"Gladstone's real comedic genius lies in Josh's high school and college recollections...that each pack the punch of today's best short stories. (Think David Sedaris.)" (The Book Reporter)

An entire family comes of age simultaneously in this funny and poignant novel, narrated by a gay 22-year-old son torn between embracing and rejecting his quirky suburban kin. After abandoning a planned suicide, Joshua Royalton returns to his childhood home to unravel the elaborate tales, theories, and neuroses he developed while growing up, including a fictional history of Chinese restaurants, a mortal fear of crows, an obsession with singer Carly Simon, and his parents' addiction to jigsaw puzzles.

Reinvention, reconciliation, and and the power of transforming life into art infuse Josh's stories, ultimately leaving the listener with a sense of hope and optimism.

The critically acclaimed winner of a Foreword Award for independent publishing, The Big Book of Misunderstanding is a hidden gem of contemporary domestic fiction. Author Jim Gladstone's pop culture writing has appeared in The New York Times, Billboard, The Chicago Tribune, and dozens of other publications.

"This book is sweet and true and surprisingly honest in a world of worked-up horseshoe. I related to all the characters in the book. I have met people like them. I've even been a few of them." (Susan Werner, singer-songwriter, The Gospel Truth, Last of the Good Straight Girls)

©2002 Jim Gladstone (P)2021 Jim Gladstone

Great listen

This books seems autobiographical…. That’s the way it’s written. It’s a great coming of age story. It’s about growth within a family. How no matter your childhood you will always see some part of it as fucked up. You will always find things to blame your parents for. None of us are perfect and neither are our parents. You can relate to the awkwardness of being a teen and trying to discover who you are. Of questioning everything even your own existence. The exploration of sexuality and defying your own.
I loved that the character was close in age to me at the time the store takes place. So many 70’s-90’s references.
Narration by David Klionsky was exceptional.
I was given this free review copy audiobook at my request and have voluntarily left this review.

The Big Book of Misunderstanding

This was a very good book.It was a coming of age book for a young man growing up in the suburbs of 1980's Philadelphia.Everything in his life,going to the zoo every year,eating Chinese food family style,everything was done the same way,with the family until his brother bulked.Dad had it all planned out and ran the family with a tight fist until it went wrong.Once one thing fell out of place,everyone could see what was really going on and our young man could find his way out of the closet.There was too much information for me at some points.It was a nice visit home for me. David Akiva Klionsky was a fine narrator.I was given this free review copy audiobook at my request and have voluntarily left this review.'