Matthew Quick – författare

A neglected housewife searches for decency, goodness, and her high school English teacher in this offbeat novel from a New York Times–bestselling author.

“Inspiring. . . . Matthew Quick has a way with wounded characters.” —Boston Globe

Portia Kane is having a meltdown. After escaping her ritzy Florida life and her cheating pornographer husband, she finds herself back in South Jersey, a place that remains largely unchanged from the years of her unhappy youth. Lost and alone, looking to find the goodness in the world she believes still exists, Portia sets off to save herself by saving someone else—a beloved high school English teacher who has retired after a traumatic incident.

Will a sassy nun, an ex-heroin addict, a metal-head little boy, and her hoarder mother help or hurt her chances on this madcap quest to restore a good man’s reputation and find renewed hope in the human race? Love May Fail is a story of the great highs and lows of existence: the heartache and daring choices it takes to become the person you know (deep down) you are meant to be.

“Quick celebrates the power of flawed, ordinary human beings to rescue themselves and each other. His writing is shot through with wit and humanity and an ultimately optimistic view of people, without ever becoming sentimental.” —Graeme Simsion, author of The Rosie Project

“Mr. Quick excels at writing what he knows, and making readers feel intimately connected to his characters. Love May Fail also reflects his mastery of devising humorous dialogue, interlaced with rabid vulgarity.” —Wall Street Journal

“An easy, enjoyable, and thoughtful read with laughs and tears along the way. Quick’s devotees won’t be disappointed.” —Library Journal

The New York Times–bestselling author of The Silver Linings Playbook offers a timely novel featuring his most fascinating character yet, a Vietnam vet embarking on a quixotic crusade to track down his nemesis from the war.

After sixty-eight-year-old David Granger crashes his BMW, medical tests reveal a brain tumor that he readily attributes to his wartime Agent Orange exposure. He wakes up from surgery repeating a name no one in his civilian life has ever heard—that of a Native American soldier whom he was once ordered to discipline. David decides to return something precious he long ago stole from the man he now calls Clayton Fire Bear. It may be the only way to find closure in a world increasingly at odds with the one he served to protect. It may also help him to finally recover from his wife’s untimely demise.

As David confronts his past to salvage his present, a poignant portrait emerges: that of an opinionated and good-hearted American patriot fighting like hell to stay true to his red, white, and blue heart, even as the country he loves rapidly changes in ways he doesn’t always like or understand. Hanging in the balance are Granger’s distant art-dealing son, Hank; his adoring seven-year-old granddaughter, Ella; and his best friend, Sue, a Vietnamese American who respects David’s fearless sincerity.

Through the controversial, wrenching, and wildly honest David Granger, Matthew Quick offers a no-nonsense but ultimately hopeful view of America’s polarized psyche. By turns irascible and hilarious, insightful and inconvenient, David is a complex, wounded, honorable, and loving man. The Reason You’re Alive examines how the secrets and debts we carry from our past define us; it also challenges us to look beyond our own prejudices and search for the good in us all.

A New York Times bestseller, The Silver Linings Playbook was adapted into the Oscar-winning movie starring Bradley Cooper and Jennifer Lawrence. It tells the riotous and poignant story of how one man regains his memory and comes to terms with the magnitude of his wife''s betrayal. During the years he spends in a neural health facility, Pat Peoples formulates a theory about silver linings: he believes his life is a movie produced by God, his mission is to become physically fit and emotionally supportive, and his happy ending will be the return of his estranged wife, Nikki. When Pat goes to live with his parents, everything seems changed: no one will talk to him about Nikki; his old friends are saddled with families; the Philadelphia Eagles keep losing, making his father moody; and his new therapist seems to be recommending adultery as a form of therapy. When Pat meets the tragically widowed and clinically depressed Tiffany, she offers to act as a liaison between him and his wife, if only he will give up watching football, agree to perform in this year''s Dance Away Depression competition, and promise not to tell anyone about their "contract." All the while, Pat keeps searching for his silver lining. In this brilliantly written debut novel, Matthew Quick takes us inside Pat''s mind, deftly showing us the world from his distorted yet endearing perspective. The result is a touching and funny story that helps us look at both depression and love in a wonderfully refreshing way.

A powerful and important book for fans of Mark Haddon, THE SILVER LININGS PLAYBOOK and Jay Asher.How would you spend your birthday if you knew it would be your last? Eighteen-year-old Leonard Peacock knows exactly what he''ll do. He''ll say goodbye.Not to his mum - who he calls Linda because it annoys her - who''s moved out and left him to fend for himself. Nor to his former best friend, whose torments have driven him to consider committing the unthinkable. But to his four friends: a Humphrey-Bogart-obsessed neighbour, a teenage violin virtuoso, a pastor''s daughter and a teacher.Most of the time, Leonard believes he''s weird and sad but these friends have made him think that maybe he''s not. He wants to thank them, and say goodbye. In this riveting and heart-breaking book, acclaimed author Matthew Quick introduces Leonard Peacock, a hero as warm and endearing as he is troubled. And he shows how just a glimmer of hope can make the world of difference.

** NOW A NETFLIX FILM STARRING AULI''I CRAVALHO AND CAROL BURNETT **Amber Appleton has a lot to be thankful for.OR Amber Appleton has never had it easy.Both are true. On the one hand, she''s got the best friends a seventeen year old could ask for and a loyal dog, Bobby Big Boy. On the other, her mum frequently has too much to drink, Amber''s never quite sure where her next meal will come from and ever since her mum''s latest boyfriend kicked them out, Amber and her mum have been living in the back of a school bus.Amber has always found it easy to be upbeat, to find the light in the darkest of situations. Until, that is, an unimaginable tragedy occurs. Forced to rethink her way of life, can Amber remain a rock star of hope?This is the story of a very special teenager, whose faith and hope is tested to the limit.

A moving tale of incredible friendship for fans of Jay Asher, THE FAULT IN OUR STARS and David Levithan. It''s never been easy for Finley, particularly at home. But two things keep him going: his place on the basketball team and his girlfriend, Erin - the light in even the darkest of his days. Then Russ arrives. He answers only to Boy21, claims to be from outer space, and also has a past he wants to escape. He''s one of the best high school basketball players in the country and threatens to steal Finley''s starting position. Against all the odds, Russ and Finley become friends. Russ could change everything for Finley, both for better and for worse. But sometimes the person you least expect can give you the courage to face what''s gone before ...and work out where you''re going next.

From Matthew Quick, bestselling author of THE SILVER LININGS PLAYBOOK, comes EVERY EXQUISITE THING, a quirky and deeply moving novel about a teen''s journey through love, rebellion and belonging. For readers who love John Green and Rainbow Rowell.''Books like Quick''s are necessary'' New York TimesNanette O''Hare is an unassuming teen who has played the role of dutiful daughter, hard-working student, and star athlete for as long as she can remember. But when a beloved teacher gives her his worn copy of The Bubblegum Reaper - the mysterious, out-of-print cult-classic - the rebel within Nanette awakens. As she befriends the reclusive author, falls in love with a young but troubled poet, and attempts to insert her true self into the world with wild abandon, Nanette learns the hard way that sometimes rebellion comes at a high price.A celebration of the self and the formidable power of story, Every Exquisite Thing is Matthew Quick at his finest.