The Good Pornographer

"Bouldrey effortlessly shifts focus among all the assorted personalities. Digressive yet gloriously character-driven, this eccentric narrative will keep the reader's head spinning." (Publishers Weekly)

“Hilariously chaotic, with a wonderful panoply of characters. This novel combines the wild inventiveness of Infinite Jest, the brilliant characterizations of the meth-head Ratliffs in The Little Friend, and the sharp humor and sharper truths at the heart of the Patrick Melrose trilogy. Tumultuous and compulsively readable, with a big and bittersweet heart, it will soon join these books as one of the premier novels about addiction.” - Naeem Murr, author of Every Exit Brings You Home

“This brilliant novel of addiction, recovery, and found family matches passages of hilarious wit with moments of piercing sadness—a wise, wild, and utterly beguiling tale, full to brimming with unforgettable characters.” - Dan Chaon, author of One of Us

“Bouldrey’s The Good Pornographer is the only drug you can smoke, snort, huff, drink, or otherwise consume without the least fear of being visited by the grim specter of death, the crushing menace of shame, or the Purgatorial ennui of rehab. Bouldrey has created here a high you’ll never want to come down from, and, thankfully, you don’t need to.” - Andrew Farkas, author of The Great Indoorsman

“The Good Pornographer is showy and knowing, unexpectedly tender and hilariously rude, pinballing between tones, characters, and genres with a velocity that is thrillingly original.” - Patrick McGinty, author of Town College City Road

“The deceptively titled The Good Pornographer morphs from being a comedy about campus life and the cliches of fantasy writing into being a deeply moving novel about people wounded by addiction and the limits of love. Bouldrey is a genius, all right, not only of desire, but also its heartbreaking aftermath.” - Rebecca Brown, author of You Tell the Stories You Need to Believe

“This epic novel—part naughty Tolkien, part Denis Johnson, and set in an eccentric, decrepit mansion worthy of the most beloved gothic novels—is about more than the comforts of fantasy; it’s about how fantasy can enable us to build real relationships. It’s also about addiction and how you can’t compel people to change, but you can give them a warm bed and an unwavering dedication to recognizing their full humanity, which sometimes can do quite a lot. Bouldrey has written a treasure, cast with fascinating characters and delightful metafictional characters, be they elf, dwarf, or sasquatch. I loved spending time in these pages." - Mary South, author of You Will Never Be Forgotten