Overview

Set during a doom-fated vacation to the Oregon coast, The Disappointment follows a couple trying to hold close to one another while a bent reality—warped by personal losses and an ever-increasing drift toward the surreal—threatens to unravel them It’s the night before a much-needed vacation, and Jack—a former playwright mourning his failed career—catches his husband, Randy, packing his mother’s urn. They had agreed: no mother on this trip. Parents, living or otherwise, aren’t the ideal guests for romantic getaways. But Randy has been carrying his mother’s remains everywhere since her death, and he isn’t ready to let go now. Despite its natural beauty and kitschy charm, the Oregon coast does not provide the respite the couple seeks. Instead, their surroundings and encounters with locals grow increasingly surreal as the days pass. An overly -dedicated Method actor, tantra-obsessed neighbors, and a child environmentalist who may be able to communicate with the dead are but a few of the characters whose presence exposes long-simmering tensions that threaten to undo Jack and Randy’s marriage—to say nothing of their hold on reality. Told with sly, irreverent humor, and shot through with dark currents of envy and longing for something other than what one has, The Disappointment explores the mutual exhilaration and terror of being placed center stage in one’'s own life.

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9781646222858

Table of Contents

Reviews

""[An] offbeat and emotive debut . . . Broker packs a wallop in his depiction of Jack’s hamfisted attempts to fix things, and he threads clever dialogue throughout . . . Readers will expect good things from Broker to come."" —Publishers Weekly ""A deeply-felt study of the powerful undertow of art making and life making, and how they both affirm and undo the sense of who we are, what we are worth, and who is afforded redemption. Compassionate, finely-tuned, and dexterous, Broker's sentences feel wrought from decades of hard earned love and labor. An unforgettable achievement."" —Ocean Vuong ""The Disappointment is a startlingly acute portrayal of the joys and heartbreak of loving someone over time. I can't remember when I've read a debut novel stitched with such humane insight. The Disappointment's fraying couple is so vulnerable, smart, funny, and real, I never wanted to leave their company. Scott Broker is a writer to watch."" —Marie-Helene Bertino, author of Beautyland ""The Disappointment is about the cost of making art, and how the unknowability of those closest to us can erode our own sense of self. Genuinely haunting and genuinely moving, it has some of the most strangely arresting moments in a novel I’ve read in years. Broker writes as if he’s been waiting to tell this story, and the results are remarkable."" —Gabe Habash, author of Stephen Florida ""Emotionally complex and satisfyingly forthcoming, The Disappointment tells an intricate story of grief, desire, disconnection, and love. A novel about what it means to fall away for a while—from oneself or another—but not apart."" —Amina Cain, author of Indelicacy and A Horse at Night

Kirkus Reviews, A Best Book of the Month The Orange County Register, A Most Anticipated Book LGBTQ Reads, A Most Anticipated Book of the Year ""A beautiful portrait of a long-term relationship and the hazards that come from assuming that understanding improves over time . . . A masterful understanding of human nature distinguishes this sexy debut."" —Kirkus Reviews (starred review) ""Broker’s sensitive portrayal of a couple growing apart and finding their way back to each other will resonate with fans of Bryan Washington’s Memorial."" —Booklist ""[An] offbeat and emotive debut . . . Broker packs a wallop in his depiction of Jack’s hamfisted attempts to fix things, and he threads clever dialogue throughout . . . Readers will expect good things from Broker to come."" —Publishers Weekly ""A deeply-felt study of the powerful undertow of art making and life making, and how they both affirm and undo the sense of who we are, what we are worth, and who is afforded redemption. Compassionate, finely-tuned, and dexterous, Broker's sentences feel wrought from decades of hard earned love and labor. An unforgettable achievement."" —Ocean Vuong ""The Disappointment is a startlingly acute portrayal of the joys and heartbreak of loving someone over time. I can't remember when I've read a debut novel stitched with such humane insight. The Disappointment's fraying couple is so vulnerable, smart, funny, and real, I never wanted to leave their company. Scott Broker is a writer to watch."" —Marie-Helene Bertino, author of Beautyland ""The Disappointment is about the cost of making art, and how the unknowability of those closest to us can erode our own sense of self. Genuinely haunting and genuinely moving, it has some of the most strangely arresting moments in a novel I’ve read in years. Broker writes as if he’s been waiting to tell this story, and the results are remarkable."" —Gabe Habash, author of Stephen Florida ""Emotionally complex and satisfyingly forthcoming, The Disappointment tells an intricate story of grief, desire, disconnection, and love. A novel about what it means to fall away for a while—from oneself or another—but not apart."" —Amina Cain, author of Indelicacy and A Horse at Night

""A deeply-felt study of the powerful undertow of art making and life making, and how they both affirm and undo the sense of who we are, what we are worth, and who is afforded redemption. Compassionate, finely-tuned, and dexterous, Broker's sentences feel wrought from decades of hard earned love and labor. An unforgettable achievement."" —Ocean Vuong ""The Disappointment is a startlingly acute portrayal of the joys and heartbreak of loving someone over time. I can't remember when I've read a debut novel stitched with such humane insight. The Disappointment's fraying couple is so vulnerable, smart, funny, and real, I never wanted to leave their company. Scott Broker is a writer to watch."" —Marie-Helene Bertino, author of Beautyland ""The Disappointment is about the cost of making art, and how the unknowability of those closest to us can erode our own sense of self. Genuinely haunting and genuinely moving, it has some of the most strangely arresting moments in a novel I’ve read in years. Broker writes as if he’s been waiting to tell this story, and the results are remarkable."" —Gabe Habash, author of Stephen Florida ""Emotionally complex and satisfyingly forthcoming, The Disappointment tells an intricate story of grief, desire, disconnection, and love. A novel about what it means to fall away for a while—from oneself or another—but not apart."" —Amina Cain, author of Indelicacy and A Horse at Night

Author Information

SCOTT BROKER is a queer writer, bookseller, and teacher based in Los Angeles. His work has appeared in New England Review, Guernica, Fence, Ecotone, and The Idaho Review, among other publications, and he has received fellowships from Tin House and Lambda Literary.

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