Allan Gurganus writes the funniest books possible about the worst things that can happen to people. Fearless in his treatment of sexuality, race relations, the lies of human history and the scope of human grief, he is still considered "one of our essential comic writers." Gurganus's fiction---as meditative as hilarious---goes on inspiring strong criticism and an even fiercer loyalty.

"Gurganus writes without a safety net: no precautions are taken against pathos, bathos, authorial intervention. As a result, his best stories... locate the dangerous glamour in ordinariness... Gurganus can do anything he likes as a writer."
- Henry Louis Gates, Jr. The Nation