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Published Nov 2019
336 pages
Genre: Literary Fiction
Publication Information
The author of Denton Little's Deathdate gives us a tragicomic story of bad dates, bad news, bad performances, and one girl's determination to find the funny in high school.
Winnie Friedman has been waiting for the world to catch on to what she already knows: she's hilarious.
It might be a long wait, though. After bombing a stand-up set at her own bat mitzvah, Winnie has kept her jokes to herself. Well, to herself and her dad, a former comedian and her inspiration.
Then, on the second day of tenth grade, the funniest guy in school actually laughs at a comment she makes in the lunch line and asks her to join the improv troupe. Maybe he's even...flirting?
Just when Winnie's ready to say yes to comedy again, her father reveals that he's been diagnosed with ALS. That is...not funny. Her dad's still making jokes, though, which feels like a good thing. And Winnie's prepared to be his straight man if that's what he wants. But is it what he needs?
Caught up in a spiral of epically bad dates, bad news, and bad performances, Winnie's struggling to see the humor in it all. But finding a way to laugh is exactly what will see her through.
"This is a touching look into one girl's high school experience as she seeks the funny moments even in the midst of tragedy and challenging relationships ... Charming and affecting." - Kirkus Reviews
"The deft movement between laughter and tears will appeal to fans of John Green. Grab a box of tissues and be prepared for the awkward stares when laughing out loud." - Carrie Finberg, Student Library Journal
"Rubin again handles mortality with a light touch and humor, realistically capturing a father-daughter relationship in the face of a serious illness. Charming, heartbreaking, and ultimately life-affirming, Rubin captures Winnie's verve and heart with honesty and wit." - Publishers Weekly
"A refreshingly diverse cast of characters…This book is for anyone who's ever attended high school, had a crush, gotten news they weren't prepared to deal with, or learned that someone close to them isn't quite who they thought they were—in short, for everyone." - Booklist
"Crying Laughing walks the delicate line between comedy and tragedy without faltering once; a sharp-witted take on how humor can exist—and be a source of strength—even in the saddest moments." - Ariel Kaplan, author of We Are the Perfect Girl and We Regret to Inform You
"A must-read for comedy fans, aspiring artists, and anybody who's feeling like life's just not fair sometimes. Cause it isn't, but that's okay—and it's even sometimes hilarious." - Naomi Ekperigin, stand-up comedian/writer, 2 Dope Queens and Broad City
This information about Crying Laughing 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.
Lance Rubin is the author of Denton Little's Deathdate and Denton Little's Still Not Dead. He's worked as an actor, written and performed sketch comedy (like The Lance and Ray Show at the Upright Citizens Brigade Theatre), and done a lot of improv. He's also the co-writer, along with Joe Iconis and Jason SweetTooth Williams, of the musical Broadway Bounty Hunter. Lance lives in Brooklyn with his wife and two sons.
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