Sunnyside - Readings

Description

From the author of CARTER BEATS THE DEVIL comes a panoramic tale of power and stardom, ambition and dreams that reaches from California in 1916 to the battlefields of France and the icy wastes of northern Russia. At the heart of its enthralling cast of characters - which includes a thieving Girl Scout, Mary Pickford, a charismatic British general and even the dog Rin Tin Tin - lies the troubled genius that was Charlie Chaplin. Here America debuts on the world stage in the Great War, Hollywood blossoms into a global phenomenon, and the cult of celebrity is born. Here, in a novel as darkly comic as it is thrilling, the modern age dawns.

About the Author

Glen David Gold is the author ofCarter Beats the Devil(Hyperion, 2001), a historical novel about Charles Carter, a real-life San Francisco stage magician who performs for President Warren Harding on the evening of Harding's mysterious death. It has been translated into 14 languages.His next novel,Sunnyside(Knopf, 2009), is a dark romp concerning Charlie Chaplin's rise to fame during World War I and its parallels with America's embrace of its part on the world stage.His most recent book is a memoir,I Will Be Complete(Knopf, 2018). About it, Darin Strauss (Half a Life, Chang and Eng) writes, "“I Will Be Completeis the best memoir I’ve read in years. It’s likely the best memoir published in years."Gold's short stories have appeared in a number of issues ofMcSweeney's. He has also published fiction, essays, memoir and reviews inThe New York Times Sunday Magazine, Playboy, WiredandZyzzyva.Gold wrote a single 1997 episode of the cartoon showHey Arnold. He has also ventured into comic books, including The Spirit, featuring artwork by Eduardo Risso, and The Escapist, with artwork by Gene Colan. He has written extensively about comics creator Jack Kirby, most notably for theMasters of American ComicsandComic Book Apocalypsemuseum show catalogues.More recently, Gold co-wrote episodes of the stage showThe Thrilling Adventure Hourand the podcastWelcome to Night Vale. He lives in Los Angeles not with but adjacent to his girlfriend, in a duplex, the logistics of which are addressed in a 2018 Modern Love column for The New York Times.