In this widely acclaimed story collection, Jim Gavin delivers a hilarious and panoramic vision of California, in which a number of down-on-their-luck men, from young dreamers to old vets, make valiant forays into middle-class respectability. Each of the men in Gavin’s stories is stuck somewhere in the middle, caught halfway between his dreams and the often crushing reality of his life. A work of profound humanity that pairs moments of high comedy with searing truths about life’s missed opportunities, *Middle Men* brings to life unforgettable characters as they learn what it means to love and work and exist in the world as a man.
Hailed as a “modern-day *Dubliners*” (*Time Out* ) and “reminiscent of Tom Perotta’s best work” (*The Boston Globe*), this stellar debut has the *Los Angeles Review of Books* raving, “*Middle Men* deserves its hype and demonstrates a top-shelf talent. . . . A brilliant sense of humor animates each story and creates a state of near-continuous reading pleasure.”
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### Amazon.com Review
**Amazon Best Books of the Month, February 2013****:** What a stunning debut collection-- funny, sad, heartfelt, and wise. Jim Gavin, a writer for the *New Yorker*, has trained his keen eye on the awkward and sobering stages of manhood: the yearning in-between stages; the striving but not-quite-there stages; those aching periods of want. Yet there’s a touching lack of the pathetic in the aspirations of these characters: the self-denying basketball player, the unemployed screenwriter, the widowed plumber. In fact, I found it fascinating to recognize my sons, my father, and my brother in these pages (and, yes, myself). Gavin’s men in the middle may be lazy or naïve, they may be underemployed or a bit lost, but they’re also hopers and dreamers, seeking better, brighter days amid the hazy Southern California warmth. --*Neal Thompson*
### From Booklist
Reading Gavin’s first story collection is like listening to a bunch of guys swapping stories in a bar. The storytellers take hard looks at themselves, softened by a small gloss of nostalgia for better times and brighter dreams. Although Gavin’s characters seem quite similar, the stories they tell, of men searching for ways to bridge where they are and where they want to be, are distinctive and powerful. These “middle men,” all living in California, as evidenced by the recurrent appearance of Del Taco, know what it means to see the goal and know that it can’t be reached. Gavin plumbs the hearts and minds of his men with laserlike accuracy, but he also brings surprising humor to the stories, especially in the relief that his characters often feel when they realize that they won’t be able to live up to their own expectations. --Bridget Thoreson
Description:
In this widely acclaimed story collection, Jim Gavin delivers a hilarious and panoramic vision of California, in which a number of down-on-their-luck men, from young dreamers to old vets, make valiant forays into middle-class respectability. Each of the men in Gavin’s stories is stuck somewhere in the middle, caught halfway between his dreams and the often crushing reality of his life. A work of profound humanity that pairs moments of high comedy with searing truths about life’s missed opportunities, *Middle Men* brings to life unforgettable characters as they learn what it means to love and work and exist in the world as a man. Hailed as a “modern-day *Dubliners*” (*Time Out* ) and “reminiscent of Tom Perotta’s best work” (*The Boston Globe*), this stellar debut has the *Los Angeles Review of Books* raving, “*Middle Men* deserves its hype and demonstrates a top-shelf talent. . . . A brilliant sense of humor animates each story and creates a state of near-continuous reading pleasure.” ** ### Amazon.com Review **Amazon Best Books of the Month, February 2013****:** What a stunning debut collection-- funny, sad, heartfelt, and wise. Jim Gavin, a writer for the *New Yorker*, has trained his keen eye on the awkward and sobering stages of manhood: the yearning in-between stages; the striving but not-quite-there stages; those aching periods of want. Yet there’s a touching lack of the pathetic in the aspirations of these characters: the self-denying basketball player, the unemployed screenwriter, the widowed plumber. In fact, I found it fascinating to recognize my sons, my father, and my brother in these pages (and, yes, myself). Gavin’s men in the middle may be lazy or naïve, they may be underemployed or a bit lost, but they’re also hopers and dreamers, seeking better, brighter days amid the hazy Southern California warmth. --*Neal Thompson* ### From Booklist Reading Gavin’s first story collection is like listening to a bunch of guys swapping stories in a bar. The storytellers take hard looks at themselves, softened by a small gloss of nostalgia for better times and brighter dreams. Although Gavin’s characters seem quite similar, the stories they tell, of men searching for ways to bridge where they are and where they want to be, are distinctive and powerful. These “middle men,” all living in California, as evidenced by the recurrent appearance of Del Taco, know what it means to see the goal and know that it can’t be reached. Gavin plumbs the hearts and minds of his men with laserlike accuracy, but he also brings surprising humor to the stories, especially in the relief that his characters often feel when they realize that they won’t be able to live up to their own expectations. --Bridget Thoreson