| Sellevision |
Darkly funny and gleefully mean-spirited, Sellevision explores greed, obsession and third tier celebrity, in the world of a fictional home shopping network. Welcome to the troubled world of Sellevision, America's premier retail broadcasting network. When Max Andrews, the much-loved and handsome (lonely and gay) host of "Slumber Sunday Sundown" accidentally exposes himself in front of twenty million kids and their parents during a "Toys for Tots" segment, Sellevision faces its first big scandal. As Max fails to find a job in television, another host, the popular and perky Peggy Jean Smythe is receiving sinister emails about her appearance from a stalker. Popping pills and drinking heavily, she fails to notice that her husband is spending a lot of time with the very young babysitter who lives next door. Then there's Leigh, whose affair with Sellevision boss Howard Toast is going nowhere, until she exposes him on air; and Bebe, Sellevision's star host, who finds Mr. Right through the Internet--if she can just stop her shopping addiction from taking over. Sellevision is currently being developed as a television series for NBC. Universal Media Studios is producing the project; Bryan Fuller, Russell Nuce, Mark Bozek and Bryan Singer are exec producing. For more on Sellevision, visit the publisher's website.
"An absolute howl...wicked fun."
"An over-the-top novel that never goes too far, Sellevision is hysterically funny while ruthlessly skewering America's obsession with television, shopping and third-tier celebrity."
"One of the hoots of this fall..."
"Good company for the beach or plane ...the material sparkles, just like the Diamonelle earrings on the shopping channels."
"A relentless spoof...endlessly loopy... (a) kaleidoscope of gleefully salacious intrigue."
"[A] hilariously dark tale of greed, corruption and Z-list celebrity."
"Possibly the funniest book you'll read this year"
"After his bestselling memoirs Running with Scissors and Dry, plundering respectively his unorthodox upbringing and alcoholic twenties, Augusten Burroughs turns his idiosyncratic dark comedy to the cheap and flashy world of retail television in his first novel, Sellevision. Lonely, gay presenter Max Andrews accidentally exposes himself on a prime-time show and America's premier retail network is thrown into chaos."
"A more fucked up Bret Easton Ellis... Having established himself in bestsellerdom with his extraordinary memoir about his early and extremely dysfunctional life (the film of Running with Scissors, starring Gwyneth Paltrow and Joseph Finnes, is out in the summer), Burroughs has turned his hand to fiction. Sellevision is about a gay TV presenter who accidentally exposes himself on prime-time. Greed, obsession and C-list celebrity are ruthlessly mocked."
"In his first novel, Burroughs reveals a comic voice as sharp as that displayed in the two autobiographical books that made him famous. This, plus a refreshing lack of moral superiority, results in a funny, big-hearted book that makes generous peace with the crapness of the world."
"We loved Augusten Burroughs' insane memoirs, Running with Scissors, Dry and Magical Thinking. This month, while we impatiently wait for the film adaptation, Rob Dawson reviews Burroughs' first novel, finally getting it UK debut publication. Written in seven days, with a damaged liver and hilarious spleen full of invective, Burroughs has produced an unfailingly entertaining, consistently bitchy and touching set of works.
"With the release of his highly acclaimed personal stories, Running with Scissors, Dry and Magical Thinking, Augusten Burroughs' extraordinary life has been thrust into the forefront of contemporary literature. He has quickly become one of America's most successful young writers, and his ability to find humour in times of tragedy has captivated his fans the world over. Sellevision, his first novel, comes as a surprise for those seeking more of the typical Burroughs' magic, but not an unpleasant one. The polar-opposite of his though-provoking memoirs, Sellevision is shallow and mischievous, and it doesn't care - so is life. Skulking beneath the plastic faade of sparkle and glamour lies the grim truth, and no amount of foundation will cover it up. This spoof of C-list celebrity dishes up intrigue and scandal with a sinister smile, and exposes the truth behind America's home shopping channel. All is not well in the presenters' dressing rooms, and behind closed doors their lives are as faux as the items they are selling. It's an ideal snapshot of our modern world, and often the lunacy creeps to close to reality. The initial draft was written in just seven days and acted as a mechanism for survival, motivating Burroughs to live and continue writing while suffering with alcohol poisoning and seesawing on the edge. The pace and the urgency of the writing whisks you, head-on, through this bizarre soap opera. Dripping with satire, the book raises a finger at America's absurdities and perfectly captures its obsession with greed and success. Dark, wicked and hilarious, it's like reading a gossip column on acid."
"A riotous and caustic comedy, it is the perfect anecdote to the sentimentality of the festive season."
"As a tongue-in-cheek guide to the kitschiest corners of American culture, Sellevision doesn't disappoint. Just don't expect to find it for sale on QVC."
"Terrific fun... Burroughs has a sadistic sense of humour, and contrives deliciously ironic punishments for his readers As warnings about the perils of materialism go, this seems as appropriate as any."
"A bruising satire of contemporary mores, particularly unquenchable consumerism and celebrity in its many degraded forms."
"Thoroughly engaging, well written and entertaining."
"A definite winner" |
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