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Published Oct 2021
224 pages
Genre: Literary Fiction
Publication Information
From the incomparable New York Times and New Yorker illustrator Tamara Shopsin, a debut novel about a NYC printer repair technician who comes of age alongside the Apple computer―featuring original artistic designs by the author.
LaserWriter II is a coming-of-age tale set in the legendary 90s indie NYC Mac repair shop TekServe―a voyage back in time to when the internet was new, when New York City was gritty, and when Apple made off-beat computers for weirdos. Our guide is Claire, a 19-year-old who barely speaks to her bohemian co-workers, but knows when it's time to snap on an antistatic bracelet.
Tamara Shopsin brings us a classically New York novel that couldn't feel more timely. Interweaving the history of digital technology with a tale both touchingly human and delightfully technical, Shopsin brings an idiosyncratic cast of characters to life with a light touch, a sharp eye, and an unmistakable voice.
Filled with pixelated philosophy and lots of printers, LaserWriter II is, at its heart, a parable about an apple.
"Illustrator, cook, and memoirist Shopsin mixes the stories of a scrappy Mac repair shop's employees with a history of digital technology in her unconventional and captivating debut novel...This singular project brilliantly captures the spirit of individuality, innovation, and change." - Publishers Weekly (starred review)
"Illustrated with Shopsin's whimsical chapter icons and punctuated with animated—and admittedly silly—conversations between parts of computers and printers, the novel bounces through the history of digital technology, the fey atmosphere of geekdom, and Claire's shrewd, serene observations. Fresh and charmingly quirky." - Kirkus Reviews
"Look, you either love the idea of a coming of age novel set in Tekserve (written by an honest-to-goodness ex-Tek), or you have no idea what I'm talking about and also probably don't need eye cream yet. Either way, Tamara Shopsin is always worth a read." - Lit Hub
"At turns wistful and playful, a novel of appreciation for computers' dust and guts. Like its heroine, LaserWriter II is charming, inventive, and weirdly magnetic." - Anna Wiener, author of Uncanny Valley
"Tamara Shopsin's love for idiosyncratic New York City's institutions is as shimmery as the Empire State Building, as confident as a jaywalker, and as timeless as a bottle of Coca-Cola. I loved this precise and funny novel about a corner of local history that will delight anyone who touches a computer on a daily basis." - Emma Straub, author of All Adults Here
This information about LaserWriter II 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.
Tamara Shopsin is an illustrator, graphic designer, writer, part-time cook, and a co-owner of the New York City eatery Shopsin's. She is the author of Mumbai New York Scranton, What Is This?, and Arbitrary Stupid Goal; and coauthor, with Jason Fulford, of the books This Equals That and Offline Activities.
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