Man Seeking Woman: And Other Love Stories

On stage, standing at the podium in the Stockholm Concert Hall, Simon Rich was elated. When he first received news that he had received the Nobel Prize in Physics he was a little confused, but he figured if Bob Dylan could get the Nobel Prize in Literature, why not? Simon took his prepared speech out of his tuxedo pocket, unfolded it and and began, “It is such an honor and so humbling to receive the Nobel Prize in Physics.” Just then the emcee standing behind and to the right of him stepped forward and shoved Simon aside. Leaning into the microphone the emcee said, “I am sorry, you misunderstanding. You not receive medal in physics, you receive prize OF PHYSIC. You writing so like constipation this days. Always exaggeration so big it absurdness of hilarious. Always people talk bad English like never have no ESL night class. Always same thing. So we want give you prize this giant economic bottle of laxative. You mind need to set free and release out.” The audience bursts into uproarious laughter as Simon takes the bottle in hand, a bit stupefied. If you, the reader of this review wish to find yourself doubled over with laughter equal to or better than this audience, this book is for you!The next thing he knew, Simon was walking down Sveavagen Street in a daze and wondering when they started the Razzy versions of Nobel Prizes. As he neared Lille Vartan Strait he heard the most gorgeous singing he had ever heard, and they were singing his name! “We love you Simon, oh yes we dooooo….” Coming closer to the water’s edge he could see three beautiful topless women on the shore of Helgeansholmen Island. He was thrilled. Of course he knew that they were Gowanus Sirens and that he was doomed. But it had to be better than what happened when, on exiting the awards hall, in a fit of pique, he chugged the entire bottle of laxative and tossed away the empty bottle with a flick of his wrist. Besides, wading into the deep water was just the thing to rinse out, as best as could be expected, his now soiled pants. If you, the reader of this review, would like to be as thrilled and delighted as if etherial, topless sirens were singing seductively right to you, this is the book for you! Highly recommended!

For starters, there's the one whose narrator, believing himself to be a balloon, leaves the factory to move to a drugstore where he comes into the possession of a young boy who carries him in his wallet for a good many years until at last a girl enters the picture and his/its "moment" comes...or does it? And then there's the one that looks into how the game of love would work if its players were subject to being traded, like the pros. And one about God's girlfriend and the role she played in what He did on "the seventh day." And one about the therapist who referred clients to a $40,000-per-visit "girlfriend repair shop." And then there's a story about the Mommy who slept with Santa Claus. And one about what happens when The Invisible Man encounters his girlfriend's new boyfriend. And a story about the guy who started the Occupy movement, who decides to employ that strategy to get the woman he idolizes to go out with him. And the one that delves into that scariest of all days, the day when one's girlfriend demands to know where the relationship is going. Plus 22 more weirdly wild and crazy imaginings from the mind of a twenty-something former Saturday Night Live staff writer, New Yorker contributor and son of former New York Times columnist Frank Rich. If you're looking for witty and wacky short-short stories that raise eyebrows and induce sly smiles of recognition, this collection could be just the thing.

This might possibly be one of the funniest story collections I've ever read. I can't count the number of times I laughed out loud while reading, something that doesn't happen that often for me.The 30 stories in Simon Rich's uniquely creative, sometimes zany, sometimes heartfelt collection are all about relationships--finding them, trying to maintain them, and losing or ending them. And not every relationship is traditional--one story recounts Zeus' frustrations with an alcoholic, hiphop-loving Cupid, while another (one of the funniest in the collection) is narrated by a condom as he makes his journey from the drugstore into someone's wallet. Don't be dismayed by the fact that there are 30 stories--most are quite short; in fact, some only last a page or two.Some of my favorite stories in the collection are: Unprotected, the already-mentioned story narrated by the condom; Occupy Jen's Street, in which an Occupy Wall Street protest is somehow transformed into one trying to get a girl to date one of the protestors; Scared Straight, in which a group of teenagers trying to pursue long-term relationships are dissuaded by those stuck in the reality of those commitments; The Last Girlfriend on Earth, narrated by a man who has the last girlfriend on Earth; Invisible Man, in which a CIA agent using invisibility drugs to hunt down a terrorist gets distracted by spying on his ex-girlfriend; and Present, the story of a scientist who can never quite do right by his girlfriend.I found myself constantly marveling at some of the ideas Rich came up with, and the characters in his stories don't always seem to follow typical behaviors--a man's friends try to set him up with a female troll, characters have no problem dating Mother Teresa or Adolf Hitler. Some stories aren't quite stories--there are a few personal ads, a report about the excavation of a bar by archaeologists, even Jeopardy! questions/answers.As I mentioned earlier, some of the stories are quite short. And while Rich generally has a perfect grasp on how long his stories should run, a few ended so abruptly I can't help but wonder whether part of those stories got lost in the translation from print to e-book. But beyond that, Rich's voice is so creative, fresh, and fun, this was a tremendously fast read for me and an investment I'm glad I made.The funny thing is, I would never have heard of this collection if it weren't for a recommendation from Amazon. And now that I've read it, if Rich's other books are this funny, I'm going to have to read them all.

Hilarious and smart. Loved every story. Laughed loudly more than once. Heard two of the stories on TAL ages ago. So glad to finally read the collection

Most of the stories were just not that funny and felt like rejects from a 90s sitcom. Very "Men are from Mars..." kind of POV which just annoyed me.

Cute n clever little gems

I remembered a few of these from the New Yorker, like Oog and Moog, but it was nice to see them again. I wish I had remembered to listen to the author's radio 4 show but annoyingly I forgot!Anyway, he's very talented and anyone could enjoy this book. It also reminded me to listen to the magnetic fields, I used to like that album!It isn't really stories, more like sketches.

Great read for those who may be interested in the subject.

LOATHED it. It is not funny - it’s misogynistic and full of outdated clichés and stereotypes. Shocked to see so many positive reviews!

Almost every story is witty and contains a few laughs, while the worst are barely more than five pages long so the whole thing is quick and easy to read.

Puerile, misogynist and unfunny. I'm guessing all the male chauvinists will love it ?