{"product_id":"several-people-are-typing-a-gma-book-club-pick-isbn-9780593313534","title":"Several People Are Typing: A GMA Book Club Pick","description":"\u003cb\u003e\u003cb\u003eA \u003ci\u003eGood Morning America\u003c\/i\u003e Book Club Pick! • A work-from-home comedy where WFH meets WTF.  \u003cb\u003e• \u003c\/b\u003e\"An absurd, hilarious romp through the haunted house of late-stage capitalism.\" —Carmen Maria Machado, author of \u003ci\u003eIn the Dream House\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e \u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003cb\u003eTold entirely through clever and captivating Slack messages, this irresistible, relatable satire of both virtual work and contemporary life is \u003ci\u003eThe Office \u003c\/i\u003efor a new world.\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003eGerald, a mid-level employee of a New York–based public relations firm has been uploaded into the company’s internal Slack channels—at least his consciousness has. His colleagues assume it’s an elaborate gag to exploit the new work-from home policy, but now that Gerald’s productivity is through the roof, his bosses are only too happy to let him work from ... wherever he says he is.\u003cbr\u003e \u003cbr\u003eFaced with the looming abyss of a disembodied life online, Gerald enlists his co-worker Pradeep to help him escape, and to find out what happened to his body. But the longer Gerald stays in the void, the more alluring and absurd his reality becomes. Meanwhile, Gerald’s colleagues have PR catastrophes of their own to handle in the real world. Their biggest client, a high-end dog food company, is in the midst of recalling a bad batch of food that’s allegedly poisoning Pomeranians nationwide. And their CEO suspects someone is sabotaging his office furniture. And if Gerald gets to work from home all the time, why can’t everyone? Is true love possible between two people, when one is just a line of text in an app? And what in the hell does the :dusty-stick: emoji mean?\u003cbr\u003e \u003cbr\u003eIn a time when office paranoia and politics have followed us home, Calvin Kasulke is here to capture the surprising, absurd, and fully-relatable factors attacking our collective sanity ... and give us hope that we can still find a human connection.\u003cb\u003eA Good Morning America Book Club Pick \u003cb\u003e•\u003c\/b\u003e A \u003ci\u003eFinancial Times\u003c\/i\u003e Best Science Fiction Book of 2021 \u003cb\u003e•\u003c\/b\u003e A \u003ci\u003eNew Scientist \u003c\/i\u003eBest Book of 2021 \u003cb\u003e•\u003c\/b\u003e A \u003ci\u003eVox\u003c\/i\u003e Staff Recommendation\u003c\/b\u003e \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\"An absurd, hilarious romp through the haunted house of late-stage capitalism.\" --\u003cb\u003eCarmen Maria Machado, author of \u003ci\u003eIn the Dream House\u003c\/i\u003e and \u003ci\u003eHer Body and Other Parties\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“\u003ci\u003eSeveral People Are Typing\u003c\/i\u003e is fun, funny, addictive, and surreal…I blazed through it in an hour, came up for air, and then immediately blazed through it again.”--\u003ci\u003e\u003cb\u003eThe New Yorker\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“An existential romp with a wicked sense of humor, Calvin Kasulke’s debut novel is a Greek chorus of modern strife, a workplace of woebegone souls. It asks the important questions, like what it means to be a person, but also, what it means to be a gif. \u003ci\u003eSeveral People Are Typing\u003c\/i\u003e is a dirge for bureaucracy told by one of the funniest new writers @here.” --\u003cb\u003eHilary Leichter, author of \u003c\/b\u003e\u003ci\u003eTemporary\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“Truly original.” \u003cb\u003e--\u003ci\u003eEsquire\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\"[An] extremely meta debut novel that feels like just the right amount of triggering after working from home for the last 17 months.\" --\u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003e\u003ci\u003e\u003cb\u003eNylon\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“\u003ci\u003eSeveral People Are Typing\u003c\/i\u003e is the first novel I've read that feels written of, about, and inside the internet. With cursed spreadsheets, pregnant lizards, backchannel smack-talk, :dusty_sticks:, and the creepiest gifs in American literature, Calvin Kasulke doesn't just commit to the bit; the bit commits to him. If you've ever felt imprisoned by work, the internet, or your mortal body, buy this book twice.” --\u003cb\u003eTony Tulathimutte, author of \u003ci\u003ePrivate Citizens\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\"Calvin Kasulke knows what makes a spooky story good. Questions like: Is that thing real? Is he possessed? What otherworldly realm is this? Where are those wolves howling from? And the scariest: Did I reply-all? Finding human connection in disembodied Slack chat, \u003ci\u003eSeveral People Are Typing\u003c\/i\u003e makes the impossible seem possible.\" --\u003cb\u003eHelen Ellis, bestselling author of \u003ci\u003eAmerican Housewife \u003c\/i\u003eand \u003ci\u003eBring Your Baggage and Don’t Pack Light\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\"Rife with office humor, Internet speak, and sharp criticisms of capitalism, Kasulke’s extremely online debut novel is composed entirely of Slack messages.\" --\u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eThe Millions\u003c\/i\u003e, \"Most Anticipated Books of 2021\"\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“A brilliant, laugh-out-loud funny slice of unglued genius about the triumphs and tyranny of the online workplace. Deliciously weird and wonderfully real, \u003ci\u003eSeveral People Are Typing\u003c\/i\u003e is a must-read for anyone who’s ever suspected that the people on the other side of the screen are not all there.” --\u003cb\u003eMax Barry, bestselling author of \u003ci\u003eLexicon\u003c\/i\u003e and \u003ci\u003eProvidence\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\"\u003ci\u003eSeveral People Are Typing\u003c\/i\u003e is a winsome, light-footed book with deceptive staying power. It operates in the scale of the morning meeting, the memo, the brief aside, the ‘are you kidding me’ request for clarification, the of-the-moment decision of where to go for after-work drinks or whether and when to fall in love. Kasulke retains an unerring instinct for callbacks and repetition, never wearing out a single joke's welcome, instead establishing a rich archive of possible pasts to reference. The book runs on those little economies of attention and care that managed to make me miss working in an office.\" --\u003cb\u003eDaniel Lavery, bestselling author of \u003ci\u003eTexts From Jane Eyre \u003c\/i\u003eand \u003ci\u003eSomething That May Shock and Discredit You\u003c\/i\u003e, and writer of Slate’s “Dear Prudence” column\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\"Here it is, folks! \u003ci\u003eThe\u003c\/i\u003e novel about the clusterf$%# that is working from home when the world's on fire (sometimes literally). \u003ci\u003eSeveral People Are Typing\u003c\/i\u003e is dark, witty, and, yes, more than a little Kafka-esque. Guaranteed to cause several people to be typing in your book club group chat.\" --\u003cb\u003eBook Culture, \"Most Anticipated Books of August\"\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\"I loved Calvin Kasulke’s debut novel. It wears weighty themes - surveillance and robot takeovers - so lightly and somehow manages to be touching and funny, as well as eerie and prescient. So easy to read, too. A seriously original book in both form and content.\u003ci\u003e\"\u003c\/i\u003e \u003cb\u003e--Pandora Sykes, author of \u003ci\u003eHow Do We Know We're Doing It Right?\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e“An absolute joy—an ensemble-driven existential horror slash comedy consisting entirely of Slack transcripts. . .Kasulke does an incredible job of capturing the voices of each different employee at the PR firm, rendering thoughtful details all the way down to the cadence of their emoji use.” \u003cb\u003e--Boing Boing, \u003cb\u003e“Someone wrote an existential horror comedy set entirely in Slack and it's great”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e“Do you know how weird it looks to (1) read a book on the Philly bus and (2) laugh out loud at the book you are reading on the Philly bus? This book did that to me.” \u003cb\u003e--\u003ci\u003eTechCrunch \u003c\/i\u003e2021 Gift Guide\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e“Calvin Kasulke is a master of the literary stunt. . .In his debut, a novel that could not be more perfect for a year defined by work from home culture, Kasulke sticks the landing of a trick all his own..” \u003cb\u003e--\u003ci\u003eElectric Literature\u003c\/i\u003e, Best Novels of 2021\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\"Gloriously inventive. . .Reminiscent of the perfectly realized drudgery of Joshua Ferris' \u003ci\u003eThen We Came to the End\u003c\/i\u003e (2006) and the gothic happenings of David Foster Wallace's \u003ci\u003eThe Pale Kin\u003c\/i\u003eg (2011), this is a workplace comedy that brilliantly captures the era of remote work. . .A poignant depiction of the always-on nature of the contemporary workplace. Kasulke's ear for dialogue is remarkable as he truly captures the injokes, asides, and odd language of Slack communication. Funny, relatable, and incredibly timely, this is a hugely entertaining debut.\"\u003cb\u003e -\u003c\/b\u003e\u003ci\u003e-\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eBooklist\u003c\/i\u003e, *starred review*\u003c\/b\u003eCALVIN KASULKE is a writer based in Brooklyn, New York. A Lambda Literary Fellow, his writing and reporting have been featured in \u003ci\u003eVICE\u003c\/i\u003e, \u003ci\u003eBuzzFeed,\u003c\/i\u003e and \u003ci\u003eElectric Literature\u003c\/i\u003e. This is his first book.gerald, slackbot\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003egerald\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003ehelp\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eslackbot\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eI can help by answering simple questions about how Slack works. I’m just  a bot, though! If you need more help, try our Help Center for loads of  useful information about Slack.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003egerald\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003euninstall\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eslackbot\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eI searched for that on our Help Center. Perhaps these articles will help:\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e     •    Change your time zone\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e     •    Manage your password\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003egerald\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eplease help me\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eslackbot\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eI can help by answering simple questions about how Slack works. I’m just  a bot, though!\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003egerald\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003euninstall self\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eslackbot\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eI’m sorry, I don’t understand! Sometimes I have an easier time with a  few simple keywords. Or you can head to our wonderful Help Center for  more assistance!\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e#nyc-­office\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003ekerolyn\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eso this spreadsheet\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003egerald\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eyes?\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003ekerolyn\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003ewas it like, special?\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003egerald\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003enot particularly\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003etripp\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003ewhat were the contents of the spreadsheet\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003egerald\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003edoes that really matter\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003ekerolyn\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eit must\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eclearly\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eNikki\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eClearly it must, for all this to have happened.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003egerald\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003ecoats\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003etripp\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eno comprende\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eNikki\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003ehttps:\/\/protect-us.mimecast.com\/s\/d2I8CYEMxVhL6ZplMC0Ji8o?domain=en.wikipedia.org\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eCoats\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eCoats may refer to [read more]\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003etripp\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003ethank you, Nikki\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eunnecessary\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003ebut thank you\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eNikki\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eYou’re welcome.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003ekerolyn\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eexplain the coats, @gerald\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003egerald\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eit was a spreadsheet of different winter coats that I was considering  purchasing\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003ebroken down by price, probable warmth, and other deciding factors\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003etripp\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“other deciding factors”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003esuch as\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003egerald\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003ePredicted Attractiveness In Coat was a factor\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003etripp\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003elol\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003ehuge\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eNikki\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eYou built out a spreadsheet for that?\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003ekerolyn\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eno, I get that\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003egerald\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eit’s a big decision, financially\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003ekerolyn\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eit’s a big purchase\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eexactly\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003ejinx\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003egerald\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eis that what you think it is, maybe? a jinx\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003ekerolyn\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003ethat’s not what I meant\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003egerald\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003emaybe you’re right though\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eNikki, pradeep, Louis C\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eNikki\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eWhy do we have these calls?\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eWhat is he even saying?\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003epradeep\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eI have no idea\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eI tune out whenever this dude talks\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003ewhat’s his role over there again?\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eLouis C\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eHe’s their comms director.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003epradeep\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eif they have a comms director then why did they hire us?\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eLouis C\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eBecause he isn’t a very good comms director.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eNikki\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eYou’re both missing my point.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eI mean, *what is he actually saying*?\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eIt sounds like he’s taking this call from the bottom of a well.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003epradeep\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eif he’s been stuck in a well for a while, that might explain his grasp  of like\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003ethe entire internet\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eLouis C\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eI believe their offices are located in the greater Tampa area.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eNikki\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eIs this what Tampa sounds like?\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003epradeep\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eplease tell me this dude didn’t just say “myspace”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eplease tell me I did not just hear him say that\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eLouis C\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eYes. This is what Tampa sounds like.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e#nyc-­office\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003ekerolyn\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003ewhich channel were you going to upload a spreadsheet about coats into?\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003egerald\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e#gents-­only\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eNikki\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eYou’re joking.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003egerald\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eyou guys made a women-­only one!!\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003ekerolyn\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003enot the same\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eNikki\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eNot the same.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003etripp\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003ewhy was I not invited??\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003egerald\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003ewe’re getting off-­topic\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003epoint is that’s the spreadsheet I was trying to upload when I got stuck\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eand now I’m just kinda, in here\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003etripp\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e@gerald invite me to #gents-­only\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003egerald\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eI’m trying to explain why I’m not in the office rn\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003etripp\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e@gerald invite me to #gents-­only, you coward\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003edoug smorin\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003edone\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003etripp\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003ebless u\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003edoug smorin\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003emissed a lot of messages\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003esomeone recap for me?\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003ekerolyn\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003egerald says he can’t come in to work today because he uploaded a  spreadsheet wrong, somehow, and now he’s stuck inside slack\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eor smth\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003edoug smorin\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003ewhat\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003ekerolyn\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003ethat’s what we were investigating\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003egerald\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eI know it sounds like bullshit\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003etripp\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eshould file a ticket with google suite maybe\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003ewould be a real significant bug\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eI’m checking their troubleshooting page rn and it doesn’t look like  there’s a section dedicated to users getting Tron’d\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003egerald\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eI don’t know how to get un-­stuck\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003etripp\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eweird that they wouldn’t include that! if it was a real thing that happened!\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003edoug smorin\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eokay, Gerald, just work from home\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003egerald\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eor like, back into my body\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003edoug smorin\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003ebut send an email next time\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e@here FYI please send me or kerolyn an email if you need to call out\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eI don’t usually look at slack if I have calls\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003ekerolyn\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e:thumbsup:\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003elydia\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eomg Gerald!! sry I’m so late to this!!\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eget well soon!!!\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003egerald\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003ehelp\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e#gents-­only\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003erob\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eshe had too many teeth\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003epradeep\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e???\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003ewhat does that mean.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003erob\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eexactly what it sounds like?","brand":"Vintage","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":46302565040357,"sku":"NP9780593313534","price":18.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/1842\/7735\/files\/9780593313534.jpg?v=1767736395","url":"https:\/\/k12savings.com\/es\/products\/several-people-are-typing-a-gma-book-club-pick-isbn-9780593313534","provider":"K12savings","version":"1.0","type":"link"}