The Good Luck of Right Now

Matthew Quick

• Publisher: Harper
• Year: 2024
• Print ISBN: 9780062285614
• eBook ISBN: 9780062285553
• Topic: Literature
• Subtopic: Literature General
• Index: Literature

A "funny and devastating" ( Boston Globe ) story about family, friendship, grief, acceptance & Richard Gere from a New York Times –bestselling author.

"Funny, touching, wise, and ultimately life-affirming." —Garth Stein, author of The Art of Racing in the Rain

"Quirky, feel-good fiction. . . . A whimsical, clever narrative." — Kirkus Reviews (starred review)

For thirty-eight years, Bartholomew Neil has lived with his mother. When she gets sick and dies, he has no idea how to be on his own. He thinks he's found a clue when he discovers a "Free Tibet" letter from Richard Gere hidden in his mother's underwear drawer. In her final days, Mom called him Richard—there must be a cosmic connection.

Bartholomew awkwardly starts his new life, writing Gere a series of letters—Jung and the Dalai Lama, philosophy and faith, alien abduction and cat telepathy are all explored in his soul-baring epistles. But mostly the letters reveal one man's desire to assemble a family of his own.

A struggling priest, a "Girlbrarian," her feline-loving, foul-mouthed brother, and the spirit of Richard Gere all join the quest to help Bartholomew. In a rented Ford Focus, they travel to Canada to see the Cat Parliament and find his biological father . . .and discover so much more.

"It's impossible not to love each of these deeply flawed characters. . . . As funny as it is touching, Quick's latest effort is on par with Silver Linings ." — USA Today

"Compelling and important prose. . . . Fans of Wally Lamb, Mark Haddon, or Winston Groom will appreciate." — Library Journal

Table of contents

• Dedication
• Epigraphs
• Contents
• 1. The You-Me Richard Gere of Pretending
• 2. That Guy Hung Out with Prostitutes
• 3. Sadly, I Do Not Think I Am Telepathic
• 4. I Would Eventually Have to Go Inside of Father McNamee and Take Inventory
• 5. Charles J. Guiteau’s Dissected Brain
• 6. “A Situation Complicated Because of His Oppressive Tendency to Over-Analyse”
• 7. His Use of the Plural Pronoun Made Me Very Suspicious
• 8. “To the Point Where We Are Unable to Bear the Sight of Their Misery”
• 9. There Were Indeed Patterns to the Universe
• 10. Did Your Mother Tell You About Her Theory?
• 11. I Didn’t Understand What Type of Math Max Was Using Here, but He Seemed So Excited That I Didn’t Interrupt Him
• 12. Tektite Formed When Larger Meteorites Crashed into Earth’s Surface Millions of Years Ago, According to Scientists
• 13. They Loved Lettuce More Than Carrots
• 14. That Is the Most Rational Thing to Do at This Moment, Given the Unfortunate Circumstances You Have Inherited
• 15. Poor, Obedient, Humble Servant
• 16. I Understood Our Fortune Cookie Messages Better Than I Had Originally Thought
• 17. The Stray Cats of Parliament Hill
• An Excerpt from Love May Fail
• Tell Your Friends!
• Acknowledgments
• About the Author
• Also by Matthew Quick
• Credits
• Copyright
• About the Publisher