Yesterday I went to sign a bunch of books at the Mysterious Bookshop in Tribeca, which of course (and even though I <3 Washington Heights) filled me with real-estate envy.
Rather awesomely, the book was featured on a table located front and center of the one-room shop; even though The Metropolis Case stretches the definition of 'mystery' by almost any reckoning, the manager said that it was 'close enough' for his purposes, which I thought was very nice of him.
Here's a close-up: I apologize for the less-than-stellar quality, but all I had with me was my phone.
There's something very soothing (to me at least) about being in a big, lofty space filled with books. I felt like I could have easily spent a few years there just milling around and reading. But alas, work called, and I had to return to the office.
In midtown -- back on 34th Street -- the crowds flowed back and forth through the watery sun and long shadows.
In other book news, here's an excerpt from a very nice review that was posted today by Rundpinne, a book blogger who reviewed the book as part of the 'virtual tour' this month: "The Metropolis Case is a rather deep, and at times, disturbing book, yet one of beauty, fluidity of movement, and exquisite prose, all quite promising for Gallaway’s future in literature. Gallaway seamlessly moves through time, with elaborately detailed descriptions and realistic characters, both major and minor, and a well-choreographed set of plots, which come together as one single movement keeping the reader actively engaged. I look forward to reading future books by Matthew Gallaway, as I believe he could go quite far. I would recommend The Metropolis Case to anyone who enjoys literary fiction."
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01/14/2011
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ORDER HERE
A RADICAL NEW MYTH ABOUT SEX, FAITH, AND THOSE OF US WHO WILL NEVER DIE
A young boy wanders into the woods of Harlem and witnesses the abduction of his sister by a glowing creature. Forty years later, now working as a New York City homicide detective, Gus is assigned to a case in which he unexpectedly succumbs to a vision that Helen is still alive. To find her, he embarks on an uorthodox investigation that leads to an ancient civilization of gods and the people determined to bring them back.
In this colossal new novel from the author of The Metropolis Case, the myth of Orpheus and Eurydice collides with a new religion founded by three corporate office workers, creating something beautiful, illogical, and overwhelming. Part sex manifesto, part religious text, part Manhattan noir—with a dose of deadly serious, internet inspired satire—#gods is a sprawling inquest into the nature of faith and resistance in the modern world. With each turn of the page, #gods will leave you increasingly reborn.
Praise for #gods
“#gods is a mystery, an excavation of myths, an index of modern life, a gay coming-of-age story, an office satire, a lyrical fever dream, a conspiracy. One of the most ambitious novels in recent memory—and a wild, possibly transformative addition to the canon of gay literature—it contains multitudes, and seethes with brilliance.” —Mark Doten, author of The Infernal
“Matthew Gallaway’s #gods is a novel so brilliant, so funny, so full of strange and marvelous things, I couldn’t stop writing OMG WTF I <3 THIS SO MUCH in its margins. It’s rare to find a novel that so dazzlingly reinvigorates age-old meditations on faith and f&!*ing, art and eros. Luminous, enterprising, and sublimely cheeky, #gods tells the story, the myth, the dream of the human soul in all its glorious complexity.” —Suzanne Morrison, author of Yoga Bitch
“Matthew Gallaway’s storytelling manages to be both dreamy and serious; lean and luxurious. His words carry an incantatory power of mythic storytelling where beauty and savagery wrap around each other like bright threads in a gorgeous tapestry.” —Natasha Vargas-Cooper, author of Mad Men Unbuttoned: A Romp Through 1960s America
“If the ancient gods were just like us, only more so, then the same could be said for this strange, wonderful book, in which the mundane sorrows and small triumphs of very ordinary lives glow ever so slightly around the edges, sometimes quite literally. At once an oddly romantic send-up of dead-end office culture and an offbeat supernatural procedural, #gods is terrifically weird, melancholy, sexy, and charming.” —Jacob Bacharach, author of The Bend of the World
'It’s to the credit of Matthew Gallaway’s enchanting, often funny first novel that it doesn’t require a corresponding degree of obsession from readers, but may leave them similarly transported: the book is so well written — there’s hardly a lazy sentence here — and filled with such memorable lead and supporting players that it quickly absorbs you into its worlds.'
-- The New York Times
Music: Death Culture at Sea and Saturnine
Listen or download songs and records from my indie-rock past with Saturnine here and Death Culture at Sea here.
Music Video: Remembrance of Things Past
Watch the rock opera Remembrance of Things Past written and performed by Saturnine and Frances Gibson, starring Bennett Madison and Sheila McClear.
Video: The Chaos Detective
The Chaos Detective is a series about a man searching for 'identity' as he completes assignments from a mysterious organization. Watch the first episode (five parts) on YouTube.
Very nice promo for your book, and also great review too. Thanks for the post. I love bookshops like this one too. KH
Posted by: Kay Hart | 01/14/2011 at 08:05 PM
Thanks, Kay!
Posted by: Matthew Gallaway | 01/14/2011 at 10:11 PM
I love the Mysterious Bookshop. Any plans to come out to Brooklyn's Greenlight Bookstore for a reading/signing? And if not, should I get on that and start petitioning them?
Posted by: Michelle | 01/15/2011 at 08:47 AM
Hey Michelle -- I dont have anything planned in Brooklyn yet, but am certainly open to ideas lol!
Posted by: Matthew Gallaway | 01/15/2011 at 12:46 PM