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    Skipped Parts: A Novel
    Unavailable
    Skipped Parts: A Novel
    Unavailable
    Skipped Parts: A Novel
    Ebook450 pages6 hours

    Skipped Parts: A Novel

    By Tim Sandlin

    4/5

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    Currently unavailable

    Currently unavailable

    About this ebook

    "Skipped Parts is somewhere between The Catcher in the Rye and Even Cowgirls Get the Blues."-Los Angeles Times Book Review

    The novel that inspired the movie starring Mischa Barton and Drew Barrymore

    Banished to the hinterlands of Wyoming, rebellious Lydia Callahan and her thirteen-year-old son Sam have no choice but to cope. But while Lydia drinks and talks to the moose head on the wall, Sam finds a friend in local girl Maurey Pierce.

    Sam and Maurey set out to discover for themselves what happens in the "skipped parts" of the novels they read – between the first kiss and the next morning. With Lydia's support the two teens set out on their sexual exploration, and deal with its consequences.

    One of the wildest, raunchiest, most heartfelt coming-of-age novels of the past thirty years, Skipped Parts puts Tim Sandlin in the upper echelon of contemporary comic novelists.

    This contemporary novel is raunchy, funny, and full of heart, perfect for fans of Nick Hornby, Jack Kerouac, Tom Robbins, Larry McMurtry, Joseph Heller, John Irving, Kurt Vonnegut, Carl Hiaasen.

    Other books in Tim Sandlin's GroVant Trilogy:

    Skipped Parts, Book 1

    Sorrow Floats, Book 2

    Social Blunders, Book 3

    Lydia, Book 4

    What readers are saying about Skipped Parts:

    "deals with coming of age in a humorous and often poignant way"

    "Plot twists that would make J.K. Rowling jealous, humor, beautifully drawn characters, a great sense for the detail of the West"

    "sometimes heartwarming, often heartbreaking"

    "poignant, FUNNY, SHOCKING, and even heartbreaking"

    "the deep humor comes from the extraordinary characters"

    "funny, sad, and full of heart"

    What reviewers are saying about Skipped Parts:

    "DAZZLING...moving...Sam's carapace is humor...He thinks like Holden Caulfield and has Joseph Heller's take on despair. His Walter Mitty–like fantasies are tiny comic gems... In the end you'll find yourself rooting for Sam." -New York Times Book Review

    "A lighthearted, amusing, and tender story of preteen wisdom, adult immaturity, and the fine line between...An offbeat, engaging novel." -Publisher's Weekly

    "This witty, often touching portrayal of a dirt-street-wise youth's coming-of-age sparkles with intelligence." -Booklist

    "Thoughtful, surprising, and delightful entertainment." -St. Louis Post-Dispatch

    What everyone is saying about Tim Sandlin:

    "Tim Sandlin's stuff is as tight and funny as anyone doing this comedy novel thing." -Christopher Moore

    "His prose, his characters, all amazing."

    "A story of grand faux pas and dazzling dysfunction...a wildly satirical look at the absurdities of modern life." -The New York Times Book Review

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherSourcebooks
    Release dateSep 1, 2010
    ISBN9781402257070
    Unavailable
    Skipped Parts: A Novel
    Author

    Tim Sandlin

    Reviewers have variously compared Tim Sandlin to Jack Kerouac, Tom Robbins, Larry McMurtry, John Irving, Kurt Vonnegut, and a few other writers you've probably heard of. He has published nine novels and a book of columns. He wrote eleven screenplays for hire, two of which have been made into movies. He lives with his family in Jackson, Wyoming, where he is director of the Jackson Hole Writers Conference. His “Sandlinistas” follow him at www.timsandlin.com.

    Read more from Tim Sandlin

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    Reviews for Skipped Parts

    4/5

    103 ratings3 reviews

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    • 5/5
      How is it possible I haven't read this author until now? What a treat! This novel is poignant, funny, shocking, and even heart-breaking at some turns. The setting is 1963, and the story revolves around 13 year old Sam Callahan and his nutty, quirky, unabashedly neglectful mother, Lydia. Lydia's father is a wealthy southern businessman who is tired of her tantrums, and sends the two off to Wyoming as punishment. There Sam needs to assimilate into a small-town life unlike anything he has experienced before. Sam befriends Maurey, an equally precocious local 6th grader. The two set off to figure out what happens in the novels they have read between the "kiss" and "the next morning" in the books they are reading... "the skipped parts" as it were. All the while they are dealing with the things that most other 6th graders deal with, as well as the dysfunction in both of their families.Written with Sam as narrator, the adolescent voice is what makes this book feel so authentic. Looking at the small-town cliques and hypocrisy from the eyes of a sixth grader elicits an emotion much different than understanding these same things from an adult point of view. I literally laughed out loud repeatedly, and at one point even broke out the tissues. Tim Sandlin has created some of the most memorable characters ever in this book. Certainly offbeat, and occasionally revolting, it is a truly wild coming-of-age novel, that just keeps you rooting for Sam to triumph over (and sometimes because of) his situation.Highly recommended!
    • 3/5
      Read it and thought it was great for the first half, the second half was NOT good. The only reason I was able to finish was Tim Sandlin can write good. Had looked forward to reading the sequels, but NOT now.
    • 5/5
      Just recently, I was thinking of Tim Sandlin’s novel Skipped Parts. I can’t remember why. I first read the novel years ago, and even though I’ve had the two subsequent novels in the GroVont Trilogy sitting on my book shelf for years, I’ve never read them. It’s a common problem, as I am not one to read books in a series back-to-back no matter how wonderful they are. Then, I wait so long that I’ve forgotten the first.Perhaps it’s an omen that I discovered Skipped Parts available for free on my Kindle today. Snatched that puppy right up! So, I just opened it up and peaked inside for old time’s sake. It was like falling down the rabbit hole. I was sucked in with a tidal pull I did not have the power to resist. Seven or eight hours later, I’ve barely moved. And you know what? It may have been even better the second time around!Y’all know what this is about, right? It’s the coming of age story of two precocious 13-year-olds in GroVont, Wyoming. The novel opens in 1963, shortly before the Kennedy assassination. Sam and his mother are new to town. After a rocky start, he connects with pretty, young Maurey from his class. They’re both readers and full of curiosity, not least of which about the “skipped parts” of novels. In other words, about sex. With the full knowledge and consent of Lydia—a mother unlike any other I’ve seen in all of literature—the two explore their sexuality and deal with the consequences.While certainly drama-filled, the thing to know about this book is that it’s a comedy. And the deep humor comes from the extraordinary characters that Sandlin has created. I defy you to not fall in love with them. They’re all so profoundly flawed and so very, very human. Sure I remembered the plot of the book, but I’d forgotten about warm Dot, the waitress at the diner. And I couldn’t possibly remember all the facets of Lydia and the complexity of her relationship with Sam.A plot-driven novel is a letdown the second time around, but this is the perfect example of a character-driven novel getting richer. Not only with time, but—quite frankly—with the increased maturity and sophistication of the reader. Just imagine how good it will be if I read it again in another 20 years! For now, my intentions to move on to the second book, Sorrow Floats, are reaffirmed. And excellent news, Sandlin fans… Fifteen years after the conclusion of this trilogy, the author has returned to these characters with his latest title, Lydia. I have all sorts of reading to look forward to. * Oh, and if you have an e-reader, rush and snatch this wonderful novel up for free before April 11, 2011.