The Very Nice Box - by Eve Gleichman & Laura Blackett (Hardcover)
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<p/><br></br><p><b> About the Book </b></p></br></br>For fans of <i>Elinor Oliphant Is Completely Fine</i> and <i>Severance</i>: an offbeat, wryly funny debut novel that follows an eccentric product engineer who works for a hip furniture company where sweeping corporate change lands her under the purview of a startlingly charismatic boss who seems determined to get close to her at all costs . . .<p/><br></br><p><b> Book Synopsis </b></p></br></br><b>"Laura Blackett and Eve Gleichman are linguistic magicians, and their sparkling debut manages to expose the hollowness of well-being jargon while exploring, with tender care and precision, how we dare to move on after unspeakable loss . . . [They have] constructed a mirrored fun house, one that leads us down different paths, each masterfully tied up at the end, yet reflecting and refracting our own quirky selves." <br> --<i>New York Times Book Review, </i>An Editors' Choice</b> <p/><b>"A very funny debut -- and perhaps the most original office satire of the year."</b> <br><b>--<i>Washington Post</i></b> <p/><b>For fans of <i>Elinor Oliphant Is Completely Fine</i> and <i>Severance</i>: an offbeat, wryly funny debut novel that follows an eccentric product engineer who works for a hip furniture company where sweeping corporate change lands her under the purview of a startlingly charismatic boss who seems determined to get close to her at all costs . . .</b> <p/> Ava Simon designs storage boxes for STÄDA, a slick Brooklyn-based furniture company. She's hard-working, obsessive, and heartbroken from a tragedy that killed her girlfriend and upended her life. It's been years since she's let anyone in. <p/> But when Ava's new boss--the young and magnetic Mat Putnam--offers Ava a ride home one afternoon, an unlikely relationship blossoms. Ava remembers how rewarding it can be to open up--and, despite her instincts, she becomes enamored. But Mat isn't who he claims to be, and the romance takes a sharp turn. <p/><i>The Very Nice Box</i> is a funny, suspenseful debut--with a shocking twist. It's at once a send-up of male entitlement and a big-hearted account of grief, friendship, and trust.<p/><br></br><p><b> Review Quotes </b></p></br></br><br><p><b>A <i>New York Times</i> Editors' Choice <br> One of Apple Books' Best Books of July <br> A "Read Carolina" Book Club Pick <br> One of <i>Shondaland</i>'s "Best Books of July" <br> One of <i>Bustle</i>'s "Most Anticipated New Books of July 2021" <br> One of <i>LitHub</i>'s "New Books to Keep Your Summer Reading Going Strong" <br> One of <i>Alma</i>'s "Favorite Books for Summer 2021" <br> One of <i>LGBTQ Reads</i>' "Most Anticipated" <br> One of <i>Beyond the Bookends</i>' "Outstanding Reads"</b> <p/> "Laura Blackett and Eve Gleichman are linguistic magicians, and their sparkling debut manages to expose the hollowness of well-being jargon while exploring, with tender care and precision, how we dare to move on after unspeakable loss . . . While themes in <i>The Very Nice Box </i>are clear-cut -- heart versus head, form versus function, creativity versus commerce -- their execution is anything but. The crowded action unfolds through comic set pieces, red herrings, character reveals and story reversals that make us reconsider everything we've just read . . . [The authors have] constructed a mirrored fun house, one that leads us down different paths, each masterfully tied up at the end, yet reflecting and refracting our own quirky selves. Recently, we've seen a spate of dazzling workplace novels featuring sharp-eyed, silver-tongued female millennials. With <i>Severance</i>, <i>Temporary</i>, <i>The Other Black Girl</i> and, now, <i>The Very Nice Box</i> (whose storage metaphors alone could have filled this review), traditional office fiction has been ripped from its white-collar, white-man origins and refashioned into language-twisting, genre-bending, electrifying art." <br><b>--Jillian Medoff, <i>New York Times Book Review</i></b> <p/> "A very funny debut -- and perhaps the most original office satire of the year . . . There's no way to put <i>The Very Nice Box</i> into, well, a box. It's a parody that feels like an extended inside joke; it's a thriller, a romance and a quirky coming-of-age saga. Gleichman and Blackett are trying to make a lot of points: about gender disparities in the workplace; about corporate responsibility; about gentrification. About insidious male toxicity and queer representation . . . The novel's witticisms and smart takes help it shine, and its empathetic commentary on grief humanizes it. Ava has closed herself off for years, and watching her open back up is satisfying. Plus, who can resist a novel that takes down an entitled man-child in absurdly grand fashion? Very Nice, indeed." <br><b>--Angela Haupt, <i>Washington Post</i></b></p><p>"Rather than boxing in queerness, the authors suggest queerness as a lens for seeing, reading, and, arguably, for their own storytelling, which refuses trite or stereotypical generic moments. The story charms, it entices, and it keeps the reader in their hands, wanting more." <br><b>--<i>Los Angeles Review of Books</i></b></p><p>"If you are looking for something compelling, quirky, and different, this novel is your July pick . . . In a darkly funny, thought-provoking, and twisty novel, readers will be entertained and root for Ava, and for a life where grief and hope can coexist." <br><b>--<i>Shondaland</i>, "The 5 Best Books of July"</b> <p/> "<i>The Very Nice Box </i>is highly readable, full of twists and irony--inspiring deep belly-laughs with every sentence." <br><b>--Vanessa Chan, <i> BOMB</i></b> <p/> "In this bitingly funny thriller, a heartbroken woman takes a chance on love and gets more than she bargained for . . . This debut novel by the writing duo Eve Gleichman and Laura Blackett takes on hipster corporate culture with biting wit while also balancing breezy romance and pulse-pounding suspense. <i>The Very Nice Box</i> will have you laughing and nodding along right up to the final shocking twist." <br><b>--Apple Books, Best Books of July</b> <p/> "Blackett and Gleichman are particularly good at describing the cultish nature of millennial workplace culture by exposing the hollow roots of toxic wellness jargon . . . [The] book's uncanny nature is what makes it so damn smart and also more than a little terrifying . . . The novel isn't a dystopia, a romance, a satire, a tragedy, or perhaps even a suspense. (Though it most definitely provides incisive social commentary on queerness, toxic masculinity, and workplace culture.) But it does all of these things very well, a literary accomplishment that some might call genre-bending, but I'm choosing to simply call it fantastic engineering." <br><b>--Nylah Burton, <i>Bitch </i></b> <p/> "A dazzling and hilarious debut seeped in the ills of corporate culture and male entitlement . . . <i>The Very Nice Box</i> offers a little bit for everyone--blending rom-com, satire, and thriller . . . Witty and sharp." <br><b>--<i>Catapult</i></b> <p/> "A quirky, deeply satisfying, whip-smart debut that critiques corporate culture and male entitlement while also offering a heartfelt look at how to work through grief. Meticulously constructed and truly original--I inhaled it." <br><b>--Jami Attenberg, author of <i>All This Could Be Yours</i></b> <p/> "<i>The Very Nice Box</i> is a fascinating look at the ways people choose to compartmentalize grief. The writing is sharp and dynamic, the plot wonderfully compelling. It's a very fun read, but it's also a timely one: how does toxic masculinity in corporate culture restructure and rebrand itself in order to appear innocuous?<i> The Very Nice Box</i> is a very nice book, and Blackett and Gleichman have created something stellar here." <br><b>--Kristen Arnett, author of <i>With Teeth</i></b> <p/> "This debut has everything I crave in a novel: emotional intelligence, humor both subtle and satirical, pathos galore, and sentences that you could bounce a quarter off. Eve Gleichman and Laura Blackett have managed to write a literary page-turner that is full of heart and scathing social critique, not to mention a surprise ending to rival those of my favorite mysteries. I absolutely devoured it." <br><b>--Melissa Febos, author of <i>Girlhood</i></b> <p/> "A satire of contemporary corporate culture. An exploration of how vulnerable we become in grief. A surprising romance. A cautionary tale. Somehow <i>The Very Nice Box</i> manages to be all of the above. Eve Gleichman and Laura Blackett have a wicked sense of humor and a keen view on our current moment. This is a delightful and propulsive read." <br><b>--Helen Phillips, author of <i>The Need</i></b> <p/> "What kind of box is this book? Is it a giftbox, or a memory box, or a coffin? It's all of the above, a deftly packaged story that hinges on the way we organize our days, our work, and our love. I relished living in its perfect compartments. Gleichman and Blackett have engineered a narrative not only very nice, but exceptional." <br><b>--Hilary Leichter, author of <i>Temporary</i></b> <p/> "This sharp page-turner is as well-constructed and pleasing as the titular Box, with a heroine whose affecting quirks lend heart and consequence to the headlong plot." <br><b>--Emily Gould, author of <i>Perfect Tunes</i></b> <p/> "<i>The Very Nice Box</i> is a thrill ride, an enthralling tale of love and vengeance. It's a rare novel that both sparkles with humor and pulses with deep emotion. At once a transgressive love story and an exploration of how to bring back life's meaning after loss, the plot builds in twist after twist to a shocking ending." <br><b>--Molly Dektar, author of <i>The Ash Family</i></b> <p/> "Smart, witty, wonderfully queer, <i>The Very Nice Box</i> is a moving novel about love and grief, a satire on corporate culture and thriller with a brilliant twist, all at once. Utterly original, warm-hearted and addictive." <br><b>--Kate Davies, author of <i>In at the Deep End</i></b> <p/> "This book is fantastic . . . It's a heartbreaking novel about grief and trauma. It's a maddening look at male entitlement. It's an examination of love and sexuality . . . [with] dry, dark humor . . . I absolutely loved it." <br><b>--Liberty Hardy, <i>BookRiot</i>, "All the Books!"</b> <p/> "This nicely hard-to-define joint debut combines workplace satire, steamy romance, and genuine suspense . . . Gleichman and Blackett irresistibly and unpredictably entertain with surprising plot twists and lots of diverting scenery." <br><b>--<i>Booklist</i></b> <p/> "At once a compulsively readable satire of white men in tech and a loving look at the power of friendship . . . [And the] ending absolutely delivers." <br><b>--<i>Alma</i>, "Favorite Books for Summer 2021"</b> <p/> "Years after the unexpected death of her girlfriend, Ava spends her days working at STÄDA. Her job at the Brooklyn furniture store provides her with a much-needed distraction from her lingering pain, but everything changes when she meets Mat. Her new boss is handsome and charming, and as they strike up an unanticipated relationship, things seem to be looking up for Ava. When she finds out the secret Mat's been keeping from her, however, Ava's life jerks into another surprise twist<i>."</i> <br><b>--<i>Bustle</i>, "Most Anticipated Books of July 2021"</b> <p/> "The limits of self-preservation and the giddiness of new attraction collide in Blackett and Gleichman's sharp debut . . . The authors play their cards carefully, balancing the buoyancy of infatuation with subtle red flags and red herrings. Blending comedy, thriller, and romance to great and surprising effect, this should have wide appeal." <br><b>--<i>Publishers Weekly</i></b> <p/> "<i>The Very Nice Box</i> is a gleeful satire of relationships and start-up culture, as well as an incisive examination of grief and male entitlement." <br><b>--<i>Public Libraries Online</i></b> <p/> "Set in a unique, fun and exciting workplace environment, everything from Ava's character arc, to the slow unraveling of the real story, were all very well developed and executed." <br><b>--<i>WFXB</i>, "Read Carolina" Book Club Pick for August </b> <p/> "<i>The Very Nice Box </i>is a surprising blend of romance, thriller, and satire that you won't want to put down." <br><b>--<i>Sit Down & Write</i></b> <p/> "A book filled to the brim with social commentary [and] sharp humor." <br><b>--<i>The Nerd Daily</i></b> <p/> "The quirky personality of Ava, the protagonist in this tale, is reminiscent of Eleanor Oliphant. Being inside Ava's unique brain was a real treat . . . As her backstory unfolds, this books goes from romance to thriller in the most delightful way. One of the most original vacation books of 2021. It's a must-read for laughs and suspense." <br><b>--<i>Beyond the Bookends</i>, "7 Vacation Books to Devour in Summer 2021"</b></p><p> <br> </p> <p></p></p> <p></p></p><br><p/><br></br><p><b> About the Author </b></p></br></br><b>LAURA BLACKETT</b> is a woodworker and writer based in Brooklyn. <p/><b>EVE GLEICHMAN</b>'s short stories have appeared in <i>The Kenyon Review</i>, <i>The Harvard Review</i>, BOMB Daily, and elsewhere. Eve is a graduate of Brooklyn College's Fiction MFA Program and lives in Brooklyn.
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