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Published Apr 2019
320 pages
Genre: Literary Fiction
Publication Information
From the bestselling author of Lily and the Octopus comes a novel about a struggling writer who gets his big break, with a little help from the most famous woman in America.
After years of trying to make it as a writer in 1990s New York City, James Smale finally sells his novel to an editor at a major publishing house: none other than Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis. Jackie - or Mrs. Onassis, as she's known in the office - has fallen in love with James's candidly autobiographical novel, one that exposes his own dysfunctional family. But when the book's forthcoming publication threatens to unravel already fragile relationships, both within his family and with his partner, James finds that he can't bring himself to finish the manuscript.
Jackie and James develop an unexpected friendship, and she pushes him to write an authentic ending, encouraging him to head home to confront the truth about his relationship with his mother. Then a long-held family secret is revealed, and he realizes his editor may have had a larger plan that goes beyond the page...
From the bestselling author of Lily and the Octopus comes a funny, poignant, and highly original novel about an author whose relationship with his very famous book editor will change him forever - both as a writer and a son.
"Starred Review. A poignant tale...Rowley deliberately mines the sentiment of the mother/son bond, but skillfully saves it from sentimentality; this is a winning dissection of family, forgiveness, and fame." - Publishers Weekly
"While diving deep into questions of identity, loyalty, and absolution within the bonds of family, Rowley, author of the beloved Lily and the Octopus, soars to satisfying heights in this deeply sensitive depiction of the symbiotic relationships at the heart of every good professional, and personal, partnership." - Booklist
"Even if you have Jackie Kennedy - and this is a particularly sensitive and nuanced portrait of her - you still have to have a plot." - Kirkus
"The Editor is a sweet and charming novel, perfect for fans of Jackie O and Rowley's first novel, Lily and the Octopus, alike." - PopSugar
"Steven Rowley has hit a home run. What a stunning portrayal of family this is. At turns equally laugh-out-loud funny and searingly poignant, Rowley has created a truly unforgettable story of a son trying to understand his mother...It took my breath away." - Taylor Jenkins Reid, author of Daisy Jones and the Six
"Told with warmth and humor...The Editor offers a delightful fictional glimpse of an iconic American family - but it is, at heart, a tribute to every family whose last name isn't Kennedy." - Chloe Benjamin, author of The Immortalists
"The Editor is an absolute triumph! By page three, I announced aloud, 'I LOVE THIS BOOK.' Rowley is a master of creating characters you fall in love with and never want to leave." - Julie Klam, author of The Stars In Our Eyes
"The Editor will have you weeping tears of joy when it's not quietly breaking your heart. It's a study of mothers and sons, unlikely friendships, and how we go about collecting the scattered pieces of our pasts. It takes guts, humor, and immense talent to write a book like this. Lucky for us, Rowley has plenty of all three." - Grant Ginder, author of The People We Hate at the Wedding
"What fun! This droll and wonderfully poignant book gives you full access to one of the most fascinating figures of the twentieth century. A delight." - Henry Alford, author of And Then We Danced
"This funny, warm, and thought-provoking novel is the next best thing to having Jackie O. around to make us see how the larger-than-life characters in our own histories - our mothers - are as human, fallible, and as prone to heartbreak as us kids. Keep tissues handy. I had to use a bedsheet." - Julia Claiborne Johnson, author of Be Frank With Me
"The Editor is an absolute delight from start to finish. Steven Rowley writes such evocative, compelling characters, and his ability to buck the cliche in favor of true nuanced emotion is a gift. Rowley's portrayal of the unconventional relationship between a charmingly uncertain James Smale and the one and only Mrs. Onassis made me laugh, nod and eventually, cry. I adored this book!" - Sally Hepworth, author of The Mother-in-Law
This information about The Editor was first featured
in "The BookBrowse Review" - BookBrowse's membership magazine, and in our weekly "Publishing This Week" newsletter. Publication information is for the USA, and (unless stated otherwise) represents the first print edition. The reviews are necessarily limited to those that were available to us ahead of publication. If you are the publisher or author and feel that they do not properly reflect the range of media opinion now available, send us a message with the mainstream reviews that you would like to see added.
Any "Author Information" displayed below reflects the author's biography at the time this particular book was published.
Photo: Malina Saval
Steven Rowley has worked as a freelance writer, newspaper columnist, and screenwriter. Originally from Portland, Maine, he is a graduate of Emerson College. He currently resides in Los Angeles with his boyfriend and their dog. Lily and the Octopus is his first novel, The Editor is his second.
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