Latest news with #Puchner
The Guardian
05-05-2025
- Entertainment
- The Guardian
Dream State by Eric Puchner review – an epic tale of paradise lost
American author Eric Puchner's latest novel is a colossus: a vast, bright behemoth of a book, panoramic as the Montana skyline. Dream State opens in 2004 with the image of a young woman, a month before her wedding, diving into a perfect lake whose 'blue expanse of water' reflects the 'overlapping peaks of the Salish range'. From this Edenic outset, it traverses decades, barrelling through our present day into a projected future: dipping in and out of the lives of a tight cast of characters as they succeed and fail; love and fall out of love; change and stay the same. The young woman is Cece. She has stepped out of the lakeshore family home of Charlie Margolis, a cardiac anaesthesiologist to whom she's engaged. Route 30 traffic noise aside, the place is a bucolic idyll, marked by abundance and continuity: orchards filled with 'ancient apple trees', 'raspberry bushes, magically replenishing', mountain slopes 'bristling with pines'. Cece 'loves it more than any place on the earth'. She's come to Montana early to put the finishing touches to the wedding plans before the guests, or even Charlie, arrive. In his absence, Charlie has deputed his best friend, Garrett, to lend a hand. Garrett appears on the lakeshore as Cece is swimming – and from there, events unfold more or less as we'd expect. Cece and Garrett move rapidly through antagonism into fascination; the wedding looms; and decisions taken in the heat of the moment profoundly shape the lives of all three characters from that point on. Puchner carries off his novel's first act with aplomb, deploying the elements of the love triangle as the formula demands, but deftly, and with humour: light relief comes in the shape of a recalcitrant mountain goat, and a norovirus outbreak that topples the wedding party like dominoes. But it's in the second act – and all the acts thereafter – that Puchner really flexes his muscles. His interest, it turns out, is not in the resolution of his love triangle, but in the idea that any such resolution is a chimera. Cece, Charlie and Garrett become parents, move through careers that wax and wane, grow old. Far from being finalised in the first act, their feelings about and for one another continue to shift and complicate as the decades unfold. This absence of resolution is most visible in the lives of the trio's children, via whom Puchner presents us with a dichotomy: they're at once actors in their own right, and vessels carrying forward a queasy inheritance. The relationship between two of them, Jasper and Lana, is the subject of a perfectly formed chapter at the heart of the book, in which Puchner makes it clear that their own feelings are at once deeply personal, and at the same time inflected by their odd, slanting glimpses into the relationship between their parents. By following his characters over the course of years, Puchner shows us that we're not fixed at the point of early adulthood; that change remains not just possible but inevitable. Yet in revealing how profoundly the children's lives are shaped by the actions of their parents, he simultaneously calls the whole idea of free will into question. And free will means something different for those born in the 21st century. In its scope and plenitude, Dream State feels, at times, like a Victorian novel: an unhurried depiction of a rich, full world, in which actions have consequences that ripple across generations. But where the great novelists of the Victorian age tended to set their players' foibles and insecurities against stable, knowable landscapes, these characters' journeys take place amid a landscape that is slipping and changing, year by year, degree by terrifying degree. Puchner measures the passage of time by the disappearance of wildlife, the recession of the snowline and, most poignantly, by the retreat of the lake from the shore, leaving behind a 'dry lake bottom … bleached grey as the moon'. Lana and Jasper's summers are hotter and less bounteous than their parents', and their choices, as a result, are curtailed. As the years pass, the book itself evolves, from romantic drama into elegy: for the characters' lost youth, but more profoundly for the loss of a version of youth that is carefree and filled with potential. In his wrenching final chapter, Puchner takes us back to the beginning, and shows us the events that set his central characters' feet on the path to their endings. We feel, in an instant, both the loss of the promise their own lives contained and the collective loss of a steadily unfolding future that once we took for granted. In Dream State, Puchner seduces us with a familiar and deeply secure narrative structure, only to undermine that structure, to force it to tell a tale of profound and fatal insecurity. But he tells his tale so compellingly, so engagingly, with such warmth and humour, that it's not until you set the book down that you can appreciate the breadth and brilliance of what he's done. Dream State by Eric Puchner is published by Sceptre, £18.99. To support the Guardian, order your copy at Delivery charges may apply.
CBS News
18-02-2025
- Entertainment
- CBS News
Why Oprah Winfrey picked "Dream State" by Eric Puchner as her newest book club pick
Oprah Winfrey unveiled her newest book club pick, "Dream State," by Eric Puchner. The novel, set in rural Montana over the course of 50 years, tells the story of a young bride who leaves her "picture-perfect" husband after falling in love with his best friend. Despite the betrayal, the three characters remain intertwined throughout their lives. Winfrey told "CBS Mornings" on Tuesday that "Dream State" resonated deeply with her because it explores the pivotal moments when life-changing decisions are made. "What if you had made the other decision?" Winfrey asked, reflecting on the central themes of the book. She further explained that at some point, everyone wonders whether they made the right choice in life, especially regarding marriage or relationships. For Puchner, the book addresses the "trap door of regret," a concept he introduced during the conversation. He explained that it's seductive to imagine that life could have been better elsewhere, but ultimately, "You may have been just as happy or you may have been less happy." Puchner said the book stresses that happiness comes from accepting the decisions we make. The discussion also touched on the story's portrayal of male friendship. Puchner said that he was intrigued by the relationship between the two main male characters, Charlie and Garrett, who had been best friends since college. After a profound betrayal, Puchner delves into how their friendship endures over 50 years. Puchner revealed that the house featured in the story is inspired by a home his family has visited for 25 years, and it holds a special place in his heart. Puchner, who is married to novelist Katharine Noel, said that the story was not based on his own experiences but did reflect his interest in the complexities of human relationships. While the story may seem to focus on betrayal, Puchner said that it's also about finding peace with life's choices. "This is the decision I made," he said, "and not dwelling on the other possibility."
The Independent
18-02-2025
- Entertainment
- The Independent
'Hello, Eric, it's Oprah.' Author Eric Puchner is latest member of Winfrey book club
Eric Puchner is a well-regarded fiction writer whose new novel, 'Dream State,' tells a story about life's unexpected and improbable twists. Weeks before the book's release, Puchner himself received some very surprising news, from Oprah Winfrey, who told him that she had chosen 'Dream State' for her book club. 'I got a phone call from a number I didn't recognize," the author said during a recent interview. 'When the caller said she was Oprah Winfrey I nearly dropped the phone I was so baffled. I was expecting to talk to my publicist, and at first, I didn't believe her. But then she started to talk in that inimitable way.' The 54-year-old author is an associate professor at Johns Hopkins University who hopes the Winfrey endorsement might mark a shift from years 'toiling in obscurity,' wishing only that he could attract enough readers to keep writing. 'Dream State' is the fourth book from Puchner, whose previous works include the story collections 'Music Through the Floor' and 'Last Day on Earth' and the novel 'Model Home,' a finalist for the PEN/Faulkner Award in 2011. Puchner's latest work, published Tuesday, is a love triangle among two old college friends and the woman they both have wished to marry. Set mostly in Montana and California, the 432-page narrative extends half a century from his characters' early years to approaching old age as all contend with their feelings for each other and how they imagine they might otherwise have turned out. 'This is the kind of book you won't want to put down written by a brilliant storyteller,' Winfrey said in a statement. 'Spanning fifty years, 'Dream State' is an exquisite examination of the important relationships we have in our lives — love, marriage, friendship — and how life can turn out so differently than we expected.' Puchner is a Baltimore resident who says the book was inspired in part by a disastrous wedding he once attended that he re-imagined for 'Dream State' and by a house in Montana that he and his wife and two children stay at in the summer. The book touches upon the damages caused by climate change that he has witnessed over the years in Montana, whether drought or hotter temperatures. 'I know that I wanted to write about this place that I love and what was happening to it,' he says. Winfrey established her book club in 1996 and currently presents it in partnership with Starbucks. Her conversation with Puchner took place in a Starbucks in the Empire State Building and the video podcast can be seen on Winfrey's YouTube channel.
Associated Press
18-02-2025
- Entertainment
- Associated Press
‘Hello, Eric, it's Oprah.' Author Eric Puchner is latest member of Winfrey book club
NEW YORK (AP) — Eric Puchner is a well-regarded fiction writer whose new novel, 'Dream State,' tells a story about life's unexpected and improbable twists. Weeks before the book's release, Puchner himself received some very surprising news, from Oprah Winfrey, who told him that she had chosen 'Dream State' for her book club. 'I got a phone call from a number I didn't recognize,' the author said during a recent interview. 'When the caller said she was Oprah Winfrey I nearly dropped the phone I was so baffled. I was expecting to talk to my publicist, and at first, I didn't believe her. But then she started to talk in that inimitable way.' The 54-year-old author is an associate professor at Johns Hopkins University who hopes the Winfrey endorsement might mark a shift from years 'toiling in obscurity,' wishing only that he could attract enough readers to keep writing. 'Dream State' is the fourth book from Puchner, whose previous works include the story collections 'Music Through the Floor' and 'Last Day on Earth' and the novel 'Model Home,' a finalist for the PEN/Faulkner Award in 2011. Puchner's latest work, published Tuesday, is a love triangle among two old college friends and the woman they both have wished to marry. Set mostly in Montana and California, the 432-page narrative extends half a century from his characters' early years to approaching old age as all contend with their feelings for each other and how they imagine they might otherwise have turned out. 'This is the kind of book you won't want to put down written by a brilliant storyteller,' Winfrey said in a statement. 'Spanning fifty years, 'Dream State' is an exquisite examination of the important relationships we have in our lives — love, marriage, friendship — and how life can turn out so differently than we expected.' Puchner is a Baltimore resident who says the book was inspired in part by a disastrous wedding he once attended that he re-imagined for 'Dream State' and by a house in Montana that he and his wife and two children stay at in the summer. The book touches upon the damages caused by climate change that he has witnessed over the years in Montana, whether drought or hotter temperatures. 'I know that I wanted to write about this place that I love and what was happening to it,' he says. Winfrey established her book club in 1996 and currently presents it in partnership with Starbucks. Her conversation with Puchner took place in a Starbucks in the Empire State Building and the video podcast can be seen on Winfrey's YouTube channel.
Yahoo
14-02-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Luke Puchner Commits To Minnesota Duluth
Shattuck St. Mary's 18U Prep forward Luke Puchner has committed to Minnesota Duluth, it was reported earlier this week. Puchner, a product of New Germany, Minn., has spent the entire season at Shattuck St. Mary's where he has collected 16 goals and 21 assists for 37 points in 43 games. Drafted by the Lincoln Stars in the seventh round of the 2024 USHL Futures Draft, Puchner spent his draft year last season playing for Shattuck's 16U team. In 56 games, he scored 17 goals and added 23 assists for 40 points. Prior to moving over to play at Shattuck's, Puchner played his minor hockey for the MN Lakers. As Puchner gets set to join the Bulldogs in 2027, he will likely make the jump to the USHL next season. As someone who has proven to be dangerous with the puck, he has the talents needed to make the transition to the junior game and eventually the NCAA. Make sure you bookmark The Hockey News' NCAA Page for the latest news, exclusive interviews, breakdowns and so much more.
