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The Men Can't Be Saved: A Novel Hardcover – August 1, 2023

by Ben Purkert (Author)
3.7 3.7 out of 5 stars 70 ratings
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* A MOST ANTICIPATED BOOK OF SUMMER 2023 * NYLON * THE MILLIONS * LITHUB * DEBUTIFUL * AND MORE! *

“Blistering . . . Mad Men ambition meets an epic, existential meltdown.” —VANITY FAIR, 20 Best Books of 2023
“[Purkert is] a sharply funny observer of male foibles, 20-something angst, and the modern workplace.” —WASHINGTON POST
“A 21st-Century Catcher in the Rye . . . startlingly funny.” —ESQUIRE
“I laughed more times than I can count . . . A phenomenal debut novel by one of my favorite writers.” —CLINT SMITH, #1 New York Times bestselling author of How the Word Is Passed

A knockout debut novel that tackles a haunting question: What do our jobs do to our souls?

Seth is a junior copywriter whose latest tagline just went viral. He’s the agency’s hottest new star, or at least he wants his coworker crush to think so. But while he’s busy drooling over his future corner office, the walls crumble around him.

When his job lets him go, he can’t let go of his job. Unfortunately, one former colleague can’t let him go either: Robert “Moon” McCloone, a skeezy on-the-rise exec better suited to a frat house than a boardroom. Seth tries to forget Moon and rediscover his spiritual self; he studies Kabbalah with an Orthodox rabbi by day while popping illegal prescription pills by night. But with each misstep, Seth strays farther from salvation—though he might get there, if he could only get out of his own way.

In his debut novel, Purkert incisively peels back the layers of the male ego, revealing what’s rotten and what might be redeemed. Brimming with wit, irreverence, and soul-searching, The Men Can’t Be Saved is a startlingly original examination of work, sex, addiction, religion, branding, and ourselves.
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  1. Print length
    304 pages
  2. Language
    English
  3. Publisher
    Harry N. Abrams
  4. Publication date
    August 1, 2023
  5. Dimensions
    5.85 x 1.25 x 8.55 inches
  6. ISBN-10
    1419767135
  7. ISBN-13
    978-1419767135
  8. See all details
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Editorial Reviews

Review

"In his blistering... debut novel, Ben Purkert paints a compelling portrait of the gallingly hubristic and increasingly frustrating Seth Taranoff, an amateur copywriter who treats his burgeoning career as though it were life and death….In Purkert’s hands, Seth... is equal parts funny and pathetic, engendering sympathy and pity from the reader sometimes within the very same sentence. The Men Can’t Be Saved sits right at the intersection where Mad Men ambition meets an epic, existential meltdown."―VANITY FAIR, 20 Best Books of 2023

“[Purkert's] forebears are the likes of Teddy Wayne, Joshua Ferris, Sam Lipsyte and Gary Shteyngart, all of whom have written brash and funny satires of family, workplaces and masculinity gone off the rails. That crowd of Gen X writers were in turn inspired by the schlemiel-like heroes of Saul Bellow and Philip Roth....[Purkert is]a sharply funny observer of male foibles, 20-something angst, and the modern workplace.”―WASHINGTON POST

“A 21st-century Catcher in the Rye that examines the ‘genius’ worship and toxic masculinity still dominating the advertising world today. [A] muscular novel . . . startlingly funny thanks to an unforgettable narrator [with a] Jupiter-sized ego.”―ESQUIRE

“Purkert immerses his reader in the colorful advertising industry while posing questions about masculinity, work culture, and addiction.”―THE BOSTON GLOBE

“The flash and sizzle of [Purkert’s] wit really deliver."―KIRKUS REVIEWS

“A smart satire…[with] finely wrought prose and spot-on descriptions…This is great fun.”―PUBLISHERS WEEKLY

“[The Men Can’t Be Saved] is incred­i­bly plea­sur­able to read. In a cul­ture of omnipresent tox­ic mas­culin­i­ty, per­haps there is some­thing cathar­tic about it. Yet Purkert’s depic­tion of these men is unset­tling, prompt­ing some impor­tant ques­tions: What do we do with the tox­ic men in our own lives? How do we help them help themselves?... The men, in oth­er words, are not alright. Whether or not this is a fix­able prob­lem is pre­cise­ly the ques­tion Purk­ert rais­es — and it’s up to us to find answers.” ―Joshua Kruchten, JEWISH BOOK COUNCIL

“Ben Purkert sure knows what he’s doing. One of many novels grappling with the alienating forces of the attention economy, it’s also a cathartic workplace read.”―LITHUB, Most Anticipated Summer 2023 Reads

“A knockout . . . . Purkert chips away at the ugly, entwined hearts of masculinity and capitalism.”―THE MILLIONS, Most Anticipated Books of 2023

“A laugh-out-loud romp about masculinity, sex, and obsession. This is a hilarious expose about how society views working hard. Purkert cuts deep and his prose leaps off the praise.”―DEBUTIFUL, Most Anticipated Books of 2023

"A hilarious existential journey."―Hilary Leichter, THE MILLIONS

“Ben Purkert is a magician with the pen. This is one of those unique novels that has you laughing on one page and wrestling with some of life’s biggest questions on the next. A phenomenal debut novel.”―CLINT SMITH, #1 New York Times bestselling author of How the Word Is Passed

“The Men Can't Be Saved is an experience that transcends the act of reading fiction. It is an indictment, a call to self-examine, and ask questions, but it manages this while still being playful, lighthearted, and generous. What I love most about Purkert's writing—across genres—is that it finds a perfect line between a voice that is confident, but also grounding itself in the realities of uncertain living. That is a gift, and it shines through these pages.”―HANIF ABDURRAQIB, author of A Little Devil in America

“A witty, warm, riotously timely debut of young men (mis)behaving... Philip Roth would have loved this novel.”―JOYCE CAROL OATES, award-winning author of Zero Sum: Stories

“Ben Purkert's The Men Can't Be Saved is a work of wit and timely power. Faith and modernity, capitalism and masculinity, sex and identity—this novel has it all, and gets away with it. The style and the intellect herein mark the coming of a major new talent.”―DARIN STRAUSS, author of The Queen of Tuesday

“Funny, witty, and incisor-sharp, Purkert nails down the hypocrisies of modern masculinity and capitalism with the graceful hand of a poet. This novel says so much so well about the absurd moment in which we, grudgingly, live.”―ALEXANDRA KLEEMAN, author of Something New Under the Sun

“A brilliant skewering of modern-day masculinity. Wildly gripping, charmingly funny, bone-hard, and real. Purkert is the kind of writer whose work I’ll follow anywhere.”―KAVEH AKBAR, author of Martyr!

“In this very funny, whip-smart novel, Purkert wields his narrator’s ingenuous derangement like a scalpel, dissecting our current moment with masterful precision.” ―ANTOINE WILSON, author of Mouth to Mouth

About the Author

Ben Purkert is the author of the poetry collection For the Love of Endings. His work appears in The New Yorker, the Nation, and the Kenyon Review, among others. He is the founder of Back Draft, a Guernica interview series focused on revision and the creative process. He holds degrees from Harvard and New York University, and he currently teaches at Rutgers. Men Can’t Be Saved is his first novel.

Product details

  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Harry N. Abrams (August 1, 2023)
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • Hardcover ‏ : ‎ 304 pages
  • ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 1419767135
  • ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1419767135
  • Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 14.7 ounces
  • Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 5.85 x 1.25 x 8.55 inches
  • Customer Reviews:
    3.7 3.7 out of 5 stars 70 ratings

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Ben Purkert

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Customer reviews

3.7 out of 5 stars
3.7 out of 5
70 global ratings
Brilliant Debut
5 Stars
Brilliant Debut
An insightful and witty take on the male ego as it relates to work, relationships and the communities in which Seth (the protagonist) dips in and out of. The debate on whether or not to root for Seth or a series of secondary characters remains long after you finish but this book is well worth the read. Purkert is an excellent writer, providing depth to the characters and thought provoking commentary on life and also Judaism.
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Top reviews from the United States

Fred L
5.0 out of 5 stars A Great Read on Many Levels
Reviewed in the United States on November 1, 2023
Verified Purchase
As a post-surgery prostate cancer survivor, with a firsthand knowledge of humor's healing powers, Ben Purkert's debut novel was, for me, a divinely timed dose of belly laughter, wry humor, and more. Set initially in the corporate offices of a branding ad agency (think, "Mad Men"), Purkert takes his main character, Seth Tarranoff, beyond the land of "water cooler" quips. This is an intricately woven journey for Seth, one in which he must confront his lack of identity beyond work, an uncertain faith with little connection to community, and his longing for meaningful relationships, while being unable to mourn and get past their loss. Spoiler Alert: While I was drawn into Purkert's novel in the first few pages for reasons which I hope you'll see, his skill as a storyteller propelled me to the end, and back again. Five stars
2 people found this helpful
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Peter
3.0 out of 5 stars It may be a bit over my head
Reviewed in the United States on November 6, 2023
Verified Purchase
My primary observation is that this is a book intended for very specific generation. I'm older and very much divorced from the current corporate and/or “gig” work environments.
In the plus side, I thought the writing was crisp, that the character development was excellent and that there were both humorous and profound aspects to the story.
However, there was nothing about the central character of the book (or any of his peers) that captured my interest. If the point was that he was irredeemable, I concur (my sympathies to the parents).
I simply did not care whether he persevered or succeeded or not. Still, the writing was good enough that I hung in there till the end hoping for a positive outcome.
I would encourage the author to give it another shot but to choose a more upbeat storyline and a more sympathetic character.
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Amazon Customer
5.0 out of 5 stars Brilliant Debut
Reviewed in the United States on October 8, 2023
Verified Purchase
An insightful and witty take on the male ego as it relates to work, relationships and the communities in which Seth (the protagonist) dips in and out of. The debate on whether or not to root for Seth or a series of secondary characters remains long after you finish but this book is well worth the read. Purkert is an excellent writer, providing depth to the characters and thought provoking commentary on life and also Judaism.
Customer image
Amazon Customer
5.0 out of 5 stars Brilliant Debut
Reviewed in the United States on October 8, 2023
An insightful and witty take on the male ego as it relates to work, relationships and the communities in which Seth (the protagonist) dips in and out of. The debate on whether or not to root for Seth or a series of secondary characters remains long after you finish but this book is well worth the read. Purkert is an excellent writer, providing depth to the characters and thought provoking commentary on life and also Judaism.
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3 people found this helpful
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Sharon Fox
5.0 out of 5 stars This is a very well-written novel by a young new, talented author
Reviewed in the United States on November 25, 2023
Verified Purchase
The story was interesting and the characters were unique. There were many themes for discussion. I especially appreciated the author's use of vocabulary and figurative language.
One person found this helpful
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Freeman Gunter
2.0 out of 5 stars Disappointing Book
Reviewed in the United States on August 6, 2023
Verified Purchase
I can hardly reconcile this pretentious and completely unconvincing book with the raves and blurbs that induced me to buy it. I sensed that the author was striving for some universal profundity, but this silly, badly motivated story and the broadly-drawn character types did not connect with me as humor, philosophy or a study of real, human behavior. It was an infuriatingly hollow reading experience that filled me with regret for the time I wasted plowing through it.
10 people found this helpful
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Lary schiller
1.0 out of 5 stars Good start and downhill from there.
Reviewed in the United States on August 17, 2023
Verified Purchase
The main character has no character; he is a simpleton, a loser and a schlemiel. I found nothing redeeming in him. The other characters: Moon,Rayma, Nadav,Josie, are all adolescents and not worth Seth’s time as well as the reader’s. I got so tired of the pills and the alcohol that everyone seemed to rely on, especially the author who was bereft of any ideas. Hard to believe this was published and that the author is actually teaching writing.
2 people found this helpful
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Bookfan
3.0 out of 5 stars Started strong but lost its punch
Reviewed in the United States on October 22, 2023
I was pulled into this book from the very first sentence, and laughed out loud many times throughout the first quarter of the book. I’m fascinated by the advertising / branding world and the author obviously knows that world well. It was a hilarious look at the creative process and the characters involved. Seth is a huge jerk but a very smart and entertaining one. And the author is truly a terrific writer.

And then … Seth loses his job and the novel loses its focus. He sets off on an array of random quests and road trips looking to save, or be saved by, the people he runs into. He stops being funny and so does the novel. I slogged through it because I was curious how it ended, but I was glad to be finished. I wish the novel had remained focused within the world of the branding agency and explored its topics of capitalism, masculinity, sex, and faith within that sphere.
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Amazon Customer
5.0 out of 5 stars Who knows
Reviewed in the United States on October 8, 2023
Verified Purchase
Loved the intertwining of and thought behind the deep themes of the book with ties to transactional vs intimate relationship as well as faith. The whole world of branding is news to me.
Who knows what might have happened if the Yugo had been branded the Ultimate Driving Machine!
2 people found this helpful
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