"The While" now available at Amazon.com!

Buy The While from Amazon.com

My new novel, "The While" is now available from amazon.com. More so than holding the finished book in my hand, seeing my name on Amazon.com made the whole process of publishing The While seem that much more real. (Unless that other Ryan Tressel who is the Athletic Director of High Point University writes one of those coaches' books...)

For those of you who have been waiting to purchase the book from Amazon, now's your chance. And since my book is eligible for Super Saving Free Shipping (on orders over $25) here are a few books that I would recommend purchasing along with my book if you would rather spend your money on two new books instead of one new book and shipping costs.

"Where I'm Calling From"- Raymond Carver. Carver is the master of the short story, and this collection, which assembles some of his best in one place, is the best place to start reading the work on this man, who taught me the benefit of writing sentences that are less than 400 words long.

"The New Kings of Non-Fiction"- Ira Glass. I'm a huge fan of Glass's radio program This American Life, and this Glass-selected collection of non-fiction articles captures the strange beauty of people sharing their stories just as well as the radio program does.

"The Giant's House" Elizabeth McCracken. It's been a decade since I read this book, but I can still remember how moved I was by this quiet tale of the giant and the woman who loved him.

"We3" Grant Morrison and Frank Quitely.
I love comic books as much as anybody, and there is probably no better example of the power of the medium than this heartbreaking tale of Pirate, Tinker and Bandit's attempt to go home. For those of you who scoff at the phrase "graphic novel" I suggest you give this a chance.

"Easy to Keep, Hard to Keep In"- David R. Surette. Dave is a friend of mine, so I hope he'll appreciate the plug here. But besides being one of the best book titles of all time, "Easy to Keep..." contains some truly great poetry, each more surprising and powerful than the last.

"God Bless You Eliot Rosewater"- Kurt Vonnegut. I think it is nearly impossible to underestimate the importance of Vonnegut on American fiction in the 20th century, but it sadly seems possible to underestimate this beautiful novel, one of his more straight forward. The eponymous hero's advice to the newborn babies in the local maternity ward-- "There's only one rule: goddamn it, you've got to be kind"--should be the motto on our currency. This is a terrific and underrated book.



You may decide to only purchase my novel or you might have another book you've been eying that you want to pair up with "The While" (or you may not want to order any books at all) but if you're looking for something to bump your Amazon tally up to that magic $25-free-shipping, give any one of these a try.

Thanks for stopping by.