The Year Marjorie Moore Learned to Live - by Christie Grotheim (Paperback)

Book Synopsis

Marjorie Moore always wants more--and often feels she ends up with less. Forever searching elsewhere, she is consumed with wanting, or in her opinion, needing. Feeling trapped by her town and her family, she escapes through shopping, pill popping, and fantasizing about a possible affair with a friend from high school. Her growing credit card debt "forces" her to sell prescription drugs--which she secures at her receptionist job at the local hospital--to her dysfunctional friends. As her web of lies at home and work unravels, Margie struggles to become present in her own life.

Astute and provocative, Grotheim's prose captures many of life's dichotomies--duplicity versus authenticity, recklessness versus stability, and searching versus finding--in this moving debut novel.

Review Quotes

"Grotheim has penned a wonderful debut, a first novel full of compassion and insight, comedy and love. Beautifully and honestly observed, this tale is a cautionary one, exhorting us to wake up from our distractions and addictions before it is too late, before we let our precious lives slip away."

--Jonathan Ames, author of Wake Up, Sir! and The Extra Man

"I was thrilled to discover this engaging and original new voice. The writing is powerful, and the story hooked me from beginning to end, as Margie embarks on a relentless quest to feel fulfilled. Tragic and also humorous at times, the story is on many levels a brilliant exploration of the self."

--Andrea Rothman, author of The DNA of You and Me

"Captivating, compulsive, darkly comedic, a portrait of American consumption, our driving desires for more--and where they lead us."

--Royal Young, author of Fame Shark

"Grotheim's lyrical writing sets readers on a wild ride through the Texas heat to meet Marjorie Moore, an endearing character we love in spite of her flaws. Margie wants a perfect life that doesn't exist. In Grotheim's deft hands, this touching novel shows us magic can happen when we stop searching for it."

--Kim Masson, best-selling Amazon author of Craig's List Chronicles byte-size tales

"Grotheim writes unflinchingly about life's letdowns--and how we come back from them--with infectious humor. She has crafted a character to whom we can all relate, and whom we love not only in spite of her imperfections, but because of them."

--Kera Yonker, founder of Final Word

"Grotheim's sharp writing had me guffawing out loud at times at Margie's witty internal monologue, wholeheartedly rooting for her wanderlust, then in the next breath feeling compelled to grab Margie by the shoulders and shake her. Deeply observational, the novel unpeels layers of addiction--to spending, to substances, to risk, to attention from others--making the reader ponder how to extract more joy, spark, light, and color from our everyday lives. Grotheim is a fresh voice in contemporary fiction."

--Heidi K. Brown, author of The Introverted Lawyer

"A riveting, modern-day House of Mirth. Marjorie Moore, our lovable Texas screw-up, makes one bad decision after another. The book is merciless: scathingly funny, achingly full of heart--and impossible to put down."

--Olivia Dunn, English Professor at Skimore College

"Grotheim is a promising young talent whose characters come alive on the page. Her portrayal of Margie's mid-life crisis is perfectly captured in thoughtful prose, and the building tensions and well-paced storytelling make it a compelling read."

--Scott Weeks, author of A Familiar Face and Purgatory NY

"The Year Marjorie Moore Learned to Live is a book that can teach us all how to live and remind us that what we experience is, in many ways, up to us. While taking us on a laugh-out-loud fun but cringe-worthy ride of a life about to implode, Grotheim brings us to a point of our own decision about what we value."

--Lisa Kohn, author of To The Moon And Back