Synopses & Reviews
Robin Hemley's childhood made a wedgie of his memory, leaving him sore and embarrassed for over forty years. He was the most pitiful kindergartner, the least spirited summer camper, and dateless for prom. In fact, there's nary an event from his youth that couldn't use improvement. If only he could do them all over a few decades later, with an adult's wisdom, perspective, and giant-like height...
In the spirit of cult film classics like Billy Madison and Wet Hot American Summer, in DO-OVER! Hemley reencounters paper mache, revisits his childhood home, and finally attends the prom--bringing readers the thrill of recapturing a misspent youth and discovering what's most important: simple pleasures, second chances, and the forgotten joys of recess.
Review
"Robin Hemley may not be able to play Greensleeves on the recorder, but he does know how to write a highly entertaining book."
Review
"An utterly beguiling attempt to recover the past not by remembering it but by physically occupying it, or at least trying to."--David Shields, author of The Thing About Life Is That One Day You'll Be Dead
Review
"Do-Over! is one of the funniest, wisest, most perfectly observed books I've ever read.
Review
"While it is frequently laugh-out-loud funny, what makes this book so absolutely endearing
Review
"Robin Hemley is on my very short list of writers I not only wish to read, not only need to read, but downright can't wait to read.
Synopsis
Hemley reencounters kindergarten, revisits his childhood home, and finally attends the prom--bringing readers the thrill of recapturing a misspent youth and discovering what's most important: simple pleasures, second chances, and the forgotten joys of recess.
About the Author
Robin Hemley is the winner of a Guggenheim Fellowship for his work on DO-OVER!. He has published seven books, and his stories and essays have appeared in the New York Times, New York Magazine, Chicago Tribune, and many literary magazines and anthologies. Robin received his MFA from the Iowa Writers Workshop; he currently directs the Nonfiction Writing Program at the University of Iowa and lives in Iowa City, IA.