Through The Windshield: An Extremely Controversial Dark Comedy

by Patty Friedmann

The FIRST of two books featuring troubled, fearlessly funny Eleanor Rushing, each a cockeyed (yet charming) work of literary humor by Kindle bestselling author Patty Friedmann. A TOUR DE FORCE! BUT APPROACH WITH CAUTION... ***WARNING*** To open these pages is not to enter Disneyland! Before you purchase THROUGH THE WINDSHIELD, please be aware that the journey you’re about to take may remind you a bit of Alice’s in THROUGH THE LOOKING GLASS. Know that, while loved by many, this is an extremely controversial work of dark comedy. One reader "Not what I was expecting…the theme & tone of the story was dark/disturbed." Heed this man's words! This reviewer was also "Very interesting with a twist. Though it's not for everyone, it sure grasps the attention for the right audience." Yes, a twist! If you need bluebirds and honeymoons, seek entertainment elsewhere. Remember Alice’s words in that other twisted work of “Everything is topsy-turvy here!” Oh, and one other Your money back if it's too disturbing for you. Direct your request (as well as anything you need to get off your chest) to Friedmann’s publisher at julieorleans@cox.net. We’ll also give you a free book of your choice. But whether it's your cup of tea or not, THROUGH THE WINDSHIELD remains to many discerning A tour de force whose heroine falls somewhere between the Southern elegance of Walker Percy and the zany dark comedy of THE CONFEDERACY OF DUNCES. Here’s the Surrounded by the splendor and excess of old money in New Orleans, Eleanor Rushing is a wry and witty young woman who first locks eyes with the love of her life at a City Council meeting. What starts as an innocuous infatuation with Dr. Maxim Walters, a Methodist minister who just so happens to be married, quickly turns into obsessive she orchestrates an automobile accident outside his house, stuffs envelopes at his church, follows him on a business venture, sets up camp in the tools shed in his backyard… Eleanor’s voice is both acutely perceptive and macabrely unhinged. She considers herself blessed with the ability to “remember everything,” except that her recollections and impressions seem to be at odds with everyone around her. By the time her “relationship” with Dr. Walters begins to spin frantically out of control, we’ve become her willing and faithful admirers. She’s so smart and funny—although a thoroughgoing fruitcake--that we can't help but love her. Don’t we all have a friend like that? Magnificently showcases Friedmann's touted powers of psychological acuity and laugh-out-loud dark humor. Who will like it: Fans of contemporary literary humor, especially in Southern fiction; humor and satire in general, and in particular THE SILVER LININGS PLAYBOOK, ONE FLEW OVER THE CUCKOO'S NEST, CATCH-22, RUNNING WITH SCISSORS; masters of dark, offbeat humorous fiction like Kurt Vonnegut, Chuck Palahniuk, Christopher Moore—and of course the New Orleans hometown favorite, John Kennedy Toole. “Intriguing and touching…One finishes [the book] impressed by Friedmann’s compassion for human frailty." -Publishers Weekly “Friedmann's latest subject is brilliant, bitterly funny, and deeply scary ... the reader is seduced by that willful voice, wavering between shock and grudging admiration at Friedmann's high-wire balancing act. And laughing all the way.

202 pages, Kindle Edition

First published July 31, 2014

About the author

Patty Friedmann is a darkly comic New Orleans novelist whose dozen works include the Amazon perennial bestseller Too Jewish and the celebrated Secondhand Smoke. Her essays, short stories, and reviews have appeared in Newsweek, Publishers Weekly, New Orleans Noir, Short Story, and Oxford American, among other places. A novel titled An Organized Panic and a collection of her stories titled Where Do They All Come From are 2017 releases. Patty has had two husbands, two children, and three grandchildren, and currently lives with an annoying philodendron.

Reviews

[Wendy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Eleanor Rushing is a true New Orleans character. If you have ever lived in New Orleans you have certainly come across someone exactly like her. Patty Friedmann gets New Orleans and you can tell in her writing that this is her hometown. I love her books and I'm the first in line to purchase her books as soon as they are published. If you are looking for an entertaining and crazy read just pick up one of her books.