The Practical Navigator
No. of pages 320
Published: 2016
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There are 320 pages in this book. This book was published in 2016 by St Martin's Press .
STEPHEN METCALFE wrote the production drafts for Pretty Woman, Dangerous Minds and Mr. Holland's Opus , among others. His stage plays have been produced in New York and at theaters throughout the US, Europe and Japan. He is an Associate Artist at The Old Globe Theatre in San Diego and has been an adjunct professor in dramatic writing at University of California at San Diego, University of San Diego and San Diego State University.
"Metcalfe (The Tragic Age) deftly tells the story of a man struggling to cope with a life out of control." --Library Journal (Starred Review)
"This is Metcalfe's first adult novel, and his talent as a screenwriter is evident in every suspenseful scene and exchange of witty dialogue. Fans of Jonathan Tropper and Matthew Norman will enjoy this delightful and sympathetic story of a nontraditional family making its way in the world." --Booklist
"Metcalfe's experience writing movies and plays is on full display in this novel [with] its powerful short scenes...an engaging read." --Kirkus Reviews
"The scenes in The Practical Navigator don't meander, they detonate. In their sadness and joy, and in their small victories, the vividly rendered and deeply sympathetic characters of this emotionally resonant novel lingered with me long after I finished reading their story." --Seth Greenland, author of I Regret Everything: A Love Story?
"Stephen Metcalfe brings the screenwriter's eye for scene and the playwright's ear for dialogue to the story of a contemporary family struggling to find a way to love one another. Their challenges, and those of their friends, colleagues, and lovers, form a portrait of a small Southern California town in the present day; autism, overdevelopment, divorce, the cultural dynamics of immigration and economic inequality are all handled with skill and heart. Against this complicated and most recognizable backdrop, Metcalfe eschews easy resolution while creating a love story between father and son that shines." --Lacy Crawford, author of Early Decision
"Stephen Metcalfe's The Practical Navigator is the kind of up-from-the toes heartfelt, beautifully rendered, real-life-till-it-hurts novel that gives us a man at the end of his rope, handling more than he can handle, lavishing hope and despair in equal measure - all in prose so staggering in its intensity the reader may have to stop, catch their breath, and look up at the sky before diving back in again. For his unflinching, astonishing portrayal of a young boy's autism alone, Metcalfe's book will be devoured, and cherished, read and re-read by legions of readers for whom his voice, his insight, and his genius will be consolation and inspiration. And let's not forget, The Practical Navigator is a sentence-by-sentence pleasure on the page. This is a book to love." --Jerry Stahl, author of Permanent Midnight
"Less Than Zero meets Catcher in the Rye in this biting bildungsroman. Written in an insightful, frenetic tone that occasionally turns surreal. Exhilarating and indicting." --Kirkus Reviews (starred review) on The Tragic Age