The Relive Box and Other Stories

While T.C. Boyle is known as one of our greatest American novelists, he is also an acknowledged master of the short story and is perhaps at his funniest, his most moving, and his most surprising in the short form. In The Relive Box, Boyle's sharp wit and rich imagination combine with a penetrating social consciousness to produce raucous, poignant, and expansive short stories defined by an inimitable voice. From the collection's title story, featuring a Halcom X1520 Relive Box that allows users to experience anew almost any moment from their past to "The Five-Pound Burrito," the tale of a man aiming to build the biggest burrito in town, the twelve stories in this collection speak to the humor, the pathos, and the struggle that is part of being human while relishing the whimsy of wordplay and the power of a story well told. In stories that span a variety of styles and genres, Boyle addresses the enduring concerns of the human mind and heart while taking on timely social concerns. The Relive Box is an exuberant, linguistically dazzling effort from a "vibrant sensibility fully engaged with American society." (The New York Times) |

In The Relive Box and Other Stories, T.C. Boyle’s first collection since he published two hugely influential collected volumes, his crackling wit and thematic range combine with a penetrating social consciousness to produce his trademark “inventive and often crushingly comic” (NPR) short fiction.

The Relive Box and Other Stories is an exuberant, linguistically dazzling book from someone the Boston Globe has said is “such a good storyteller it will probably take, as in Alice Munro’s case, the Nobel Prize or retirement for us to realize what tremendous talent has laid right in front of our noses.”

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“Fans and new readers alike will appreciate Boyle’s droll humor, eye for detail, and seemingly inexhaustible imagination.” - Kirkus Reviews (starred review)

“Boyle makes the incredible credible through detail, and his narrative voices convincing through rhythm and attitude. He can be funny, touching, or both.” - Publishers Weekly

“Boyle’s substantial collection is funny, disarming, and crushing, haunting and beautiful.” - Booklist (starred review)

“...A timely collection that explores the decline of nature and the takeover of technology. . . . Boyle is a master mood-mixer, and this funny-scary-sad collection is filled with stories to be savored.” - BookPage