371 ratings | 137 reviews | avg rating:4.17

Len Joy’s Followers (42)

Len’s Bookshelves

to-read (3)
currently-reading (8)
read (371)

Len’s Friends (226)

Louise Gray

1,077 books | 26 friends

Karen Carlson

846 books | 67 friends

Kate Gies

507 books | 206 friends

Jennifer Barthe

289 books | 10 friends

Claire Geiger

324 books | 170 friends

Lucy Adkins

312 books | 185 friends

Tommy Dean

1,041 books | 134 friends

Jaclyn Shelton Hamer

1,162 books | 145 friends

More friends…

Len Joy

Goodreads Author

Born

in Wellsville, NY, The United States

Website

http://www.lenjoybooks.com

Twitter

len_joy

Genre

Fiction

Member Since

October 2012

edit data

Len Joy had an idyllic childhood, growing up in the gem of the Finger Lakes, Canandaigua, New York. As a typical small-town boy, he had a wide range of interests, most involving sports. He lettered in four sports in high school and went off to the University of Rochester with dreams of becoming a football hero and world-famous novelist.

When he awoke from those dreams, he switched his major from English to Finance and quit the football team, but started dating one of the cheerleaders – Suzanne Sawada. Three years later they were married, and four decades later, they still are.

They moved to Chicago where Suzanne became a corporate lawyer and Len, with his MBA and CPA, became the auditing manager for U. S. Gypsum. Despite the thrill of audit Len Joy had an idyllic childhood, growing up in the gem of the Finger Lakes, Canandaigua, New York. As a typical small-town boy, he had a wide range of interests, most involving sports. He lettered in four sports in high school and went off to the University of Rochester with dreams of becoming a football hero and world-famous novelist.

When he awoke from those dreams, he switched his major from English to Finance and quit the football team, but started dating one of the cheerleaders – Suzanne Sawada. Three years later they were married, and four decades later, they still are.

They moved to Chicago where Suzanne became a corporate lawyer and Len, with his MBA and CPA, became the auditing manager for U. S. Gypsum. Despite the thrill of auditing gypsum plants, Len found himself wanting a different challenge.

He bought an engine remanufacturing company in Arizona and for fifteen years commuted to Phoenix. Despite the travel, he managed to stay married and have three kids. While flying, he read hundreds of novels, which renewed his dream of becoming a world-famous author.

In 2004 he wound down his engine business and started taking writing courses and participating in triathlons.

While world fame remains elusive, Len has made advances in his writing career.

His third novel, EVERYONE DIES FAMOUS, was published by BQB Publishing in August 2020. KIRKUS described it as a “…a striking depiction of small-town America at the dawn of the 21st century.” It won 1st Prize in the 2020 Top Shelf Book Awards for Southern Fiction and a Silver Medal in the IBPA Ben Franklin Awards for Midwest Region fiction. It was also a Book Excellence Award winner in the category of Aging.

Kevin Wilson, NY Times bestselling author of Nothing to See Here and The Family Fang had this to say: “Len Joy's Everyone Dies Famous is a clear-eyed examination of how we live in an uncertain world. By creating imminently understandable characters and skillfully linking them to a specific landscape, one that is so evocatively described, he shows us all the ways in which we're connected, how fragile those threads are. In clear prose, Joy does real work here. I'm grateful for it.”

Joy’s first novel, AMERICAN PAST TIME was published in 2014. KIRKUS praised it as a “darkly nostalgic study of an American family through good times and bad, engagingly set against major events from the ‘50s to the ‘70s as issues of race simmer in the background…expertly written and well-crafted.” It was the 2019 Readers’ Favorite gold medal award winner for Fiction – Sports and took 1st Prize in the Top Shelf Book Awards contest for Fiction – General.

His second novel, BETTER DAYS (2018) was described by FOREWORD Reviews as “a bighearted, wry, and tender novel that focuses on love and loyalty.” KIRKUS called it “a character-rich skillfully plotted Midwestern drama.” It was the 2019 Readers’ Favorite silver medal award winner for Fiction – Sports and was a finalist in the Indie Excellence Book Awards in the category of Fiction: Midwest.

Today, Len is a nationally ranked triathlete and competes internationally representing the United States as part of TEAM USA. His three kids (a son and two daughters) have grown up and moved away, although the daughters return frequently to Evanston to do their laundry and get legal advice from their mother. ...more

Learn more
Ask the Author

To ask Len Joy questions, please sign up.

Combine Editions
Len Joy’s books

Average rating: 4.13 · 1,003 ratings · 176 reviews · 11 distinct works • Similar authors

	Better Days 3.96 avg rating — 367 ratings — published 2018 — 8 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Freedom's Just Another Word... 4.01 avg rating — 177 ratings — published 2023 — 3 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Everyone Dies Famous (The Stonemason Trilogy Book 3) 4.16 avg rating — 146 ratings — 4 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	American Past Time 4.46 avg rating — 120 ratings — published 2014 — 7 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	American Jukebox (The Stonemason Trilogy Book 2) 4.33 avg rating — 55 ratings — 3 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Dry Heat: A Novel 4.40 avg rating — 50 ratings — 4 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Dry Heat 4.42 avg rating — 48 ratings — 2 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Casualties and Survivors: Stories 4.35 avg rating — 17 ratings — 3 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Letting Go: Stories 4.36 avg rating — 14 ratings — 4 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	The Book of Stephen 0.00 avg rating — 0 ratings	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars

More books by Len Joy…

89 posts
Len Joy's Blog

After Ragbrai

As I reported in my previous blog post, last year my friend Cam persuaded me to participate in Ragbrai – a weeklong bike adventure across Iowa. It’s not a race – it’s more like a Burning Man on wheels. We started outdoor training in March and by July we had logged over a thousand miles.

Unfortunately fifteen miles into the ride on the first day a rider lost control of his bike as he crosse

Len is Currently Reading

Len Joy is currently reading

Hope for the Best (Hope for the Best Series)

by Vanessa Lafleur (Goodreads Author)

bookshelves: currently-reading

Rate this book

Clear rating

1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars

Feb 12, 2021 08:11PM

Len Joy is currently reading

Attention!: The power of simple decisions in a distracted world

by Rob Hatch (Goodreads Author)

bookshelves: currently-reading

Rate this book

Clear rating

1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars

Oct 07, 2020 07:59PM

Len Joy is currently reading

Fly Like a Bird

by Jana Zinser (Goodreads Author)

bookshelves: currently-reading

Rate this book

Clear rating

1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars

Sep 21, 2020 07:48PM

rss
Len’s Recent Updates

Len Joy liked Vivian Walsh's review of Better Days: "Better Days is a masterclass in understated intensity. Len Joy crafts a deeply human story about the weight of loyalty and the burden of living in the shadow of a past peak. Darwin Burr is not your typical hero he’s quiet, reluctant, and, in many way" Read more of this review »
Jun 02, 2025 05:02AM · see review · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of Better Days by Len Joy. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — Better Days by Len Joy <iframe sandbox id="wrongBookKindlePreviewScreen">
Len Joy is now following Vivian Walsh and Alice Dixon
May 31, 2025 06:20AM
Len Joy wants to read The Light Between Us by Elaine Chiew (Goodreads Author)	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Feb 08, 2024 05:50AM · like

More of Len's books…

Topics Mentioning This Author

topics	posts	views	last activity
The Mystery, Crim...: Reviews	60	296	Aug 12, 2020 03:01PM
NetGalley Readers: What NG Books have you just read? Any recommendations?	11588	1735	Jan 18, 2021 05:18PM