The Secret Society of Demolition Writers

Aimee Bender · Alice Sebold · John Burnham Schwartz · Anna Quindlen · Marc Parent · Chris Offutt · Rosie O'Donnell · Elizabeth McCracken · Sebastian Junger · Michael Connelly · Benjamin Cheever · Lauren Slater

Sep 2005 · Tantor Media Inc · Narrated by Alan Sklar and Ellen Archer

About this audiobook

What would you write if no one knew who you were? In the spirit of the demolition derby, where drivers take heedless risks with reckless abandon, welcome to the first convocation of the Secret Society of Demolition Writers. Here is a one-of-a-kind collection by famous authors writing anonymously-and dangerously. With the usual concerns about reputations and renown cast aside, these twelve daredevils have each contributed an extreme, no-holds-barred unsigned story, each shining as brightly and urgently as hazard lights. Unconventional and unapologetic, this publishing equivalent of a whodunit features an eclectic group of fictional characters, including a delusional schizophrenic narrator, an egg donor with second thoughts about her decision, a pharmacist who forms a weird crush on a woman who beat both of her parents to death, and a little girl who understands that an old safe is the threshold to another, ghostly, world. Equally diverse and surprising are the authors themselves: Aimee Bender, Benjamin Cheever, Michael Connelly, Sebastian Junger, Elizabeth McCracken, Rosie O'Donnell, Chris Offutt, Anna Quindlen, John Burnham Schwartz, Alice Sebold, Lauren Slater, and Marc Parent, the editor of the collection. Never before has such a wide-ranging and talented group of authors been assembled to such explosive and entertaining effect. The Secret Society of Demolition Writers is an intriguing puzzle in itself, but it's also an important addition to the careers of some of our finest storytellers-even if we never really know who wrote what. Its boundary-smashing fiction offers exhilarating proof that for an artist, withholding your identity can mean gaining your freedom.

About the author

Aimee Bender is the author of The Girl in the Flammable Skirt, which was a New York Times Notable Book, and Willful Creatures, which was nominated by the Believer as one of the best books of the year.

Chris Offutt is an award-winning author and screenwriter who worked on the HBO drama True Blood and the Showtime series Weeds. His books include Kentucky Straight, The Same River Twice, The Good Brother, Out of the Woods, and No Heroes: A Memoir of Coming Home.

A former Los Angeles Times crime reporter, Michael Connelly is the author of over twenty novels and nonfiction books, including the bestselling series of mysteries featuring dark detective Hieronymous "Harry" Bosch.

Lauren Slater is the author of The $60,000 Dog: My Life with Animals and Playing House: Notes of a Reluctant Mother. She has received numerous awards, including a 2004 National Endowment for the Arts award and multiple inclusions in Best American volumes.

Audie Award finalist Alan Sklar has narrated nearly two hundred audiobooks and has won several AudioFile Earphones Awards.

Ellen Archer is an acclaimed audiobook narrator and winner of the coveted Audie Award for For the Love of a Dog by Patricia B. McConnell, PhD.