The Future for Curious People: A Novel

by Gregory Sherl

Overview

“Comic and Exuberant . . . A fine and tender tale for anyone who has tried to let go of the past and envision the future while falling in love.” —Rhonda Riley, author of The Enchanted Life of Adam Hope

What if you could know your romantic future? What if an envisionist could enter the name of your prospective mate into a computer that would show you a film of your future life together?

In The Future for Curious People, a young librarian named Evelyn becomes obsessed with this new technology: she can’t stop visiting Dr. Chin’s office because she needs to know that she’ll meet someone and be happy one day. Godfrey, another client, ends up at the envisionist’s office only because his fiancée insisted they know their fate before taking the plunge. But when Godfrey meets Evelyn in the waiting room, true love may be right in front of them, but they are too preoccupied—and too burdened by their pasts—to recognize it.

This smart, fresh love story, with its quirky twists and turns, ponders life’s big questions—about happiness, fate, and our very existence—as it follows Evelyn and Godfrey’s quest for the elusive answers.

“A love story about love stories . . . The pages burst with laugh-out-loud scenes and crisply original set-ups. I loved it!” —Lydia Netzer, author of Shine Shine Shine

“Somewhere between Jorge Luis Borge’s ‘The Garden of Forking Paths’ and The Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind you will find Gregory Sherl’s warm, intelligent debut novel.” —Roxane Gay, author of An Untamed State

“Enormously appealing . . . Evelyn and Godfrey are two unforgettable characters you’ll root for and remember long after you’ve read the last page of this wildly  original, deeply moving novel.” —Mindy Friddle, author of Secret Keepers

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781616203696
Publisher:	Algonquin Books of Chapel Hill
Publication date:	09/02/2014
Pages:	336
Product dimensions:	8.10(w) x 5.40(h) x 1.00(d)

About the Author

Gregory Sherl is the author of three collections of poetry, including The Oregon Trail Is the Oregon Trail, shortlisted for the Believer magazine’s 2012 poetry award. He currently lives in Oxford, Mississippi. Find him at www.gregorysherl.net.

Editorial Reviews

06/23/2014
Poet Sherl’s fiction debut, this comic novel is an intriguing but sometimes frustrating look at the difficulties of finding a soulmate. In a slightly alternative contemporary Baltimore, a thriving industry exists for “envisionists,” who administer drug cocktails to clients and clamp virtual reality helmets on their heads, thereby allowing them a glimpse of their possible futures. Godfrey Burkes proposes marriage to his domineering girlfriend, Madge, but she wants to see an envisionist before accepting. Meanwhile, Evelyn Shriner, who has a volunteer job recording classics for the blind at which she changes the books’ endings to be more uplifting, is breaking up with her musician boyfriend, Adrian. After Godfrey and Evelyn meet cute in an envisionist’s office, it becomes immediately clear to the reader, if not to them, that their future lies with each other. Readers may find themselves getting ahead of the characters too often. Sherl offers some beautiful moments, both in the visions and in exchanges between Godfrey and Evelyn. Unfortunately, the light-hearted tone of his writing tends to come across as more smug and self-impressed than comic. Agent: Nat Sobel, Sobel-Weber Associates. (Sept.)

Publishers Weekly

A love story about love stories . . . The pages burst with laugh-out-loud scenes and crisply original set-ups. I loved it!” —Lydia Netzer, author of Shine Shine Shine

“This sci-fi meets romance novel has the perfect balance of quirky and feel-good . . . Smart, sweet, and funny.” —First for Women

“Offbeat . . .  [The Future for Curious People] ponders life’s complexity with wide-eyed, youthful earnestness.” —The Washington Post

“[Sherl’s novel] plays with our idea of true love, remixing it and even slightly mocking it, but always with a nostalgia that makes the story more sweet than sour. It gently reminds us that knowing the future isn’t the answer, but never judges us for wishing we knew more. Is destiny real? Do soul mates exist? The Future for Curious People toys with these questions without drawing crystal-clear conclusions. In that way, it’s a lot like love itself.” —BookPage

“The novel has the feel of an indie rom-com . . . [and] reveals some absurd truths about relationships in a society fully geared toward self-improvement and couples therapy . . . Entertaining.” —Kirkus Reviews

“Somewhere between Jorge Luis Borges’s ‘The Garden of Forking Paths’ and Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, you will find Gregory Sherl’s warm, intelligent debut novel . . . The Future for Curious People is as charming as it is wise and Sherl’s words will find their way into the hearts of many.” —Roxane Gay, author of An Untamed State

“Comic and exuberant . . . A fine and tender tale for anyone who has tried to let go of the past and envision the future while falling in love.” —Rhonda Riley, author of The Enchanted Life of Adam Hope

“A whip-smart novel about the obsession of love and the love of obsession. Sherl writes prose with a poet’s grace; his future could not be brighter.” —Aaron Gwyn, author of Wynne’s War

—Review quotes

From the Publisher

A love story about love stories . . . The pages burst with laugh-out-loud scenes and crisply original set-ups. I loved it!” —Lydia Netzer, author of Shine Shine Shine

“This sci-fi meets romance novel has the perfect balance of quirky and feel-good . . . Smart, sweet, and funny.” —First for Women

“Offbeat . . .  [The Future for Curious People] ponders life’s complexity with wide-eyed, youthful earnestness.” —The Washington Post

“[Sherl’s novel] plays with our idea of true love, remixing it and even slightly mocking it, but always with a nostalgia that makes the story more sweet than sour. It gently reminds us that knowing the future isn’t the answer, but never judges us for wishing we knew more. Is destiny real? Do soul mates exist? The Future for Curious People toys with these questions without drawing crystal-clear conclusions. In that way, it’s a lot like love itself.” —BookPage

“The novel has the feel of an indie rom-com . . . [and] reveals some absurd truths about relationships in a society fully geared toward self-improvement and couples therapy . . . Entertaining.” —Kirkus Reviews

“Somewhere between Jorge Luis Borges’s ‘The Garden of Forking Paths’ and Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, you will find Gregory Sherl’s warm, intelligent debut novel . . . The Future for Curious People is as charming as it is wise and Sherl’s words will find their way into the hearts of many.” —Roxane Gay, author of An Untamed State

“Comic and exuberant . . . A fine and tender tale for anyone who has tried to let go of the past and envision the future while falling in love.” —Rhonda Riley, author of The Enchanted Life of Adam Hope

“A whip-smart novel about the obsession of love and the love of obsession. Sherl writes prose with a poet’s grace; his future could not be brighter.” —Aaron Gwyn, author of Wynne’s War

Review quotes

2014-07-17
Sherl's debut novel wonders what would happen if we could see the future—at least where relationships are concerned. In Baltimore, doctors—called "envisionists"—have found a way to show people willing to spend the time (and having adequate insurance coverage) what their future with any one person will be like. Evelyn Shriner, a 25-year-old librarian, is a firm believer in envisioning; she may even be addicted to it. She breaks up with her current boyfriend after seeing their future—not awful but not great either—and becomes obsessed with finding her ideal mate. Godfrey Burkes is skeptical of envisioning as a process, but he goes because Madge, his almost fiancee, makes it a condition of their engagement. Godfrey and Evelyn meet in the waiting room, and the rest, with a few twists, is more or less history. The novel has the feel of an indie rom-com: boy meets girl, etc. The dialogue, while clever, is not especially realistic or emotionally resonant, and quirky clothing (mitten clips, a vintage 1976 bicentennial bikini) abounds. But the book does reveal some absurd truths about relationships in a society fully geared toward self-improvement and couples therapy, such as Madge's constant insistence that she and Godfrey work to fix their relationship while Godfrey isn't sure it's actually broken. Both Evelyn and Godfrey are shadowed by elements of their parents' lives that leave them questioning their own identities, but the severity of their struggle gets a bit lost among the witty exchanges and eccentric minor characters. An entertaining and well-meaning novel, but by the end, we're wishing everyone in it would just grow up already.

Kirkus Reviews