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Less

The delightful, hilarious Pulitzer Prize-winning bestseller

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Less

By: Andrew Sean Greer
Narrated by: Robert Petkoff
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*** Pre-order Andrew Sean Greer's brilliant new novel Villa Coco, coming in June ***

WINNER OF THE PULITZER PRIZE FOR FICTION 2018

'You will sob little tears of joy' Nell Zink

'I recommend it with my whole heart' Ann Patchett

'This book is basically perfect' Dolly Alderton

'Charming, languid and incredibly funny, I absolutely adored Arthur' Jenny Colgan

'Marvellously, endearingly, unexpectedly funny' Gary Shteyngart

'I adore this book' Armistead Maupin

'Bedazzling, bewitching and be-wonderful' New York Times Book Review

'A fast and rocketing read . . . a wonderful, wonderful book!' Karen Joy Fowler

'Hilarious, and wise, and abundantly funny' Adam Haslett

WHO SAYS YOU CAN'T RUN AWAY FROM YOUR PROBLEMS?

Arthur Less is a failed novelist about to turn fifty. A wedding invitation arrives in the post: it is from an ex-boyfriend of nine years who is engaged to someone else. Arthur can't say yes - it would be too awkward; he can't say no - it would look like defeat. So, he begins to accept the invitations on his desk to half-baked literary events around the world.

From France to India, Germany to Japan, Arthur almost falls in love, almost falls to his death, and puts miles between him and the plight he refuses to face. Less is a novel about mishaps, misunderstandings and the depths of the human heart.©2017 Andrew Sean Greer Fiction Genre Fiction Humorous Literary Fiction Literature & Fiction Romantic Comedy Heartfelt Feel-Good Funny Witty
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Critic reviews

I adore this book (Armistead Maupin)
Greer is one of the most talented writers around (Michael Chabon)
A really smart, funny book that pulls you up instead of down . . . It's hysterical, and the writing is fantastic (Ann Patchett)
The most deftly funny romantic comedy I've read in years. If you have a sentimental bone in your body (I have 206),the ending will make you sob little tears of joy (Nell Zink)
One of my favourite books (Elizabeth Day)
Marvelously, unexpectedly, endearingly funny. A love story focused on the erroneous belief that the second half of life will pale in comparison to the first. Guess what? It won't!
Less is the funniest, smartest, and most humane novel I've read since The Imperfectionists . . . Greer writes sentences of arresting lyricism and beauty. His metaphors come at you like fireflies . . . Like Arthur, Andrew Sean Greer's Less is excellent company. It's no less than bedazzling, bewitching and be-wonderful
A generous book, musical in its prose and expansive in its structure and range, about growing older and the essential nature of love
I am re-reading Less by Andrew Sean Greer. It is a hilarious, heart-warming story about an imperfect, optimistic and utterly loveable protagonist Arthur Less, stumbling towards a milestone of middle-age on a geographical and personal odyssey while reflecting on his life so far. It is my idea of perfect comfort reading - heroically hopeful, laugh-out-loud funny and overflowing with love (Dolly Alderton)
A fast and rocketing read with everything I want from a story - moments of high humor, moments of genuine wisdom, sharp insights, and gorgeous images. A wonderful, wonderful book!
Greer is an exceptionally lovely writer, capable of mingling humor with sharp poignancy . . . Brilliantly funny . . . Greer's narration, so elegantly laced with wit, cradles the story of a man who loses everything: his lover, his suitcase, his beard, his dignity
Less is philosophical, poignant, funny and wise, filled with unexpected turns . . . Although Greer is gifted and subtle in comic moments, he's just as adept at ruminating on the deeper stuff. His protagonist grapples with aging,loneliness, creativity, grief, self-pity and more
Greer elevates Less' picaresque journey into a wise and witty novel. This is no Eat, Pray Love story of touristic uplift, but rather a grand travelogue of foibles, humiliations and self-deprecation, ending in joy, and a dollop of self-knowledge
Greer, the author of wonderful, heartfelt novels including The Confessions of Max Tivoli, The Impossible Lives of Greta Wells and The Story of a Marriage, shows he has another powerful weapon in his arsenal: comedy. And who doesn't need a laugh right about now?
All stars
Most relevant
I think that being the Pulitzer Prize winner means that you go into this book with very high expectations but I am not sure that it lived up to the, probably, uninvited hype. Don't get me wrong its a nice story about a man named Arthur Less who travels the world to avoid dealing with his ex boyfriends wedding and meets strangers and friends along the way . It is well written, the characters enjoyable and a very good narrator, but I am not sure this book had the impact that I expected it to. Its a nice book, I'm afraid that is all I can say. I didn't laugh, I didn't cry, but I did listen to the whole book through and was left thinking 'yeah that was ok.'

A nice book - thats all I can say

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It took me a while to warm to Arthur Less, but there are some very funny parts which are worth holding out for. Is it a love story? Probably.

Gets better

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Witty, moving, laugh-out loud, intricate and profound. A wonderful novel, brilliantly read. Highly recommend.

Wonderful

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This novel is quite clever in that it intentionally makes you fall in love with the protagonist and find him completely frustrating at the same time. He bumbles through life, able to go and do whatever he pleases with every blessing in the world all the while complaining that his life is terrible and hard. Yet he is still somehow charming.

The writing is witty (I loved the turns of phrase 'Less-ian this and Less-ian that') and engaging, but for me the conclusion didn't quite pay off and sometimes it was hard to care about what happened to Less. However, overall I liked it quite a lot.

Engaging

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Oh how I fell in love with our hero. So imperfect. The misfit. The mobile mishap.

I was taken on a journey. Details so clear to transport without drowning you.

Charmingly written. So full of heart.

I loved it.

Touchingly Funny

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