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Most Likely You Go Your Way and I'll Go Mine
Most Likely You Go Your Way and I'll Go Mine takes place in an early nineties New York City and follows the romance between Jen and Geoff the novel's two main characters. It is a story about fathers and sons, mothers and daughters, the value of friends, the reason its best to go out for coffee on first dates and what exactly defines being on the rebound. The characters riff on their favorite books, channel Yoda and Bob Dylan, deal with siblings and try to make sense of a world that shouldn't be as confusing as it seems to be. They also seek greater self-awareness and debate why Dallas will always be superior to Knots Landing, even as they find love, lose it and find it again.
- GenresFiction
176 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2008
2 people are currently reading
187 people want to read
About the author
Ben Tanzer
40 books265 followersEmmy-award winner Ben Tanzer's acclaimed work includes the short story collection UPSTATE, the science fiction novel Orphans and the essay collections Lost in Space and Be Cool. His recent novel The Missing was released in March 2024 by 7.13 Books and was a Chicago Writers Association Book of the Year finalist in the category of Traditional Fiction and his new book After Hours: Scorsese, Grief and the Grammar of Cinema, which Kirkus Reviews calls "A heartfelt if overstuffed tribute to the author’s father and the ameliorative power of art," was released by Ig Publishing in May 2025. Ben is also the host of the long running podcast This Podcast Will Change Your Life and lives in Chicago with his family.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 35 reviews
May 27, 2009
Ben Tanzer has a playwright's ear for dialogue, which I mean as a huge compliment. And he showcases it often in this quick novel. The main characters wax about their zeitgeist, making humorous and devastating observations, often only lines removed from one another. No easy task.
February 1, 2010
F. Scott Fitzgerald said: “We should write for the youth of today, the critics of tomorrow, and the school masters thereafter.”
As some of the other great reviews have mentioned, this book makes dialog look effortless, does the magic of churning everyday life into story, but I feel most importantly, it stares into the days of our youth and finds our lives have meaning behind the murmur of chatter, endless self-doubt, and loneliness. Tanzer captures what a lesser writer misses. He does the heroic thing of taking everyday life to task. Arguably, examining the Here and Now is one of the most important things a writer can do. Tanzer does this with skill and charm.
He also employs some unique and interesting story-telling devices. For example, there's a bonafide Greek chorus that shows up between action in the form of guys talking around the water-cooler. There's a chapter where we only get the one-side of the same phone conversation. Tanzer seems to enthusiastically jump up on the tightrope.
I recommend the book to every reader who is or has been 23. But also to every young writer who finds themselves groping for material in the exceptional. There's a 'Friends' quality to this book. It's about young people. It's about everyday relationships and life. But maybe that's the problem with literature these days. We aren't writing about this. We aren't examining what it feels like to be alive today. Characters aren't worthwhile unless they're autistic, blood-sucking, oddly-named or from a country most of us couldn't find on a map. This book isn't navel gazing; it looks just past the front porch and finds things of importance and beauty.
As some of the other great reviews have mentioned, this book makes dialog look effortless, does the magic of churning everyday life into story, but I feel most importantly, it stares into the days of our youth and finds our lives have meaning behind the murmur of chatter, endless self-doubt, and loneliness. Tanzer captures what a lesser writer misses. He does the heroic thing of taking everyday life to task. Arguably, examining the Here and Now is one of the most important things a writer can do. Tanzer does this with skill and charm.
He also employs some unique and interesting story-telling devices. For example, there's a bonafide Greek chorus that shows up between action in the form of guys talking around the water-cooler. There's a chapter where we only get the one-side of the same phone conversation. Tanzer seems to enthusiastically jump up on the tightrope.
I recommend the book to every reader who is or has been 23. But also to every young writer who finds themselves groping for material in the exceptional. There's a 'Friends' quality to this book. It's about young people. It's about everyday relationships and life. But maybe that's the problem with literature these days. We aren't writing about this. We aren't examining what it feels like to be alive today. Characters aren't worthwhile unless they're autistic, blood-sucking, oddly-named or from a country most of us couldn't find on a map. This book isn't navel gazing; it looks just past the front porch and finds things of importance and beauty.
November 22, 2009
I highly recommend Ben Tanzer's new novel. I read it in two days. His ear for dialogue is sharp and conversations make up 90 percent of the novel. It has a Richard Linklater film quality, especially the ultra-talky Before Sunrise and Before Sunset. That's a good thing. You are inside the heads of the characters who are charting an uncertain course through love and life in Manhattan, circa 1993.
Geoff and Jen have had their series of lovers, one-night-stands and horrible break-ups. They have become cynical and nearly immobile when it comes to connecting with the opposite sex. They have also suddenly found themselves grown up, working dead-end jobs and feeling familial pressures that accompany adulthood. Geoff and Jen have instant chemistry when they meet at a party, while their best friends Paul and Rhonda have a disastrous one night stand. The book explores both couples, but the narrative mostly stays with Geoff and Jen as we get insight into their pasts. Geoff has a volatile, drug-addicted brother, while Jen feels under the gun to find a man when her younger sister becomes engaged.
Self-doubt and miscommunication are rife in this novel and Tanzer peppers it with pop culture references and music lyrics that are almost Tarintino-esque. At 172 pages, it's a brisk, hyper read. Get it!
Geoff and Jen have had their series of lovers, one-night-stands and horrible break-ups. They have become cynical and nearly immobile when it comes to connecting with the opposite sex. They have also suddenly found themselves grown up, working dead-end jobs and feeling familial pressures that accompany adulthood. Geoff and Jen have instant chemistry when they meet at a party, while their best friends Paul and Rhonda have a disastrous one night stand. The book explores both couples, but the narrative mostly stays with Geoff and Jen as we get insight into their pasts. Geoff has a volatile, drug-addicted brother, while Jen feels under the gun to find a man when her younger sister becomes engaged.
Self-doubt and miscommunication are rife in this novel and Tanzer peppers it with pop culture references and music lyrics that are almost Tarintino-esque. At 172 pages, it's a brisk, hyper read. Get it!
June 8, 2010
This book read like an excerpt from my life navigating lower Manhattan in the early 90's. I genuinely enjoyed it.
This book is written as a series of conversations. Ben Tanzer is an expert writer of dialogue. I was taken at page one and didn't put the book down until I was finished.
Too many writers produce feculent pop cultural references. There is a tendency to reduce the 90's to a collection bad stereotypes. Tanzer does not. He is as believable as he is relevant.
This book did not "change my life," but it certainly made it better for a while.
This book is written as a series of conversations. Ben Tanzer is an expert writer of dialogue. I was taken at page one and didn't put the book down until I was finished.
Too many writers produce feculent pop cultural references. There is a tendency to reduce the 90's to a collection bad stereotypes. Tanzer does not. He is as believable as he is relevant.
This book did not "change my life," but it certainly made it better for a while.
September 12, 2008
Once again, I am impressed by a Ben Tanzer novel. Ben Tanzer’s writing has been featured in Rated Rookie, Chicago Parent, Abroad View, Clamor, Third Coast Press, and The Truth Magazine. Most Likely You Go Your Way and I’ll Go Mine follows his first book, Lucky Man. Ben Tanzer resides in Chicago, Illinois with his family.
Centering around four people in their late twenties, this story follows the often medial relationships between family, friends, and lovers- giving you an inside peek at secret thoughts, unusual and uncomfortable conversations, big city culture, the pain of rejection, and the elation of a newly budding romance. Geoff, not knowing at all what he wants in life, meets Jen, a woman who outwardly knows what she wants but never seems to reach it. Together with their friends, Paul and Rhonda, Geoff and Jen find themselves on new ground in their relationship and wondering if men and women will ever entirely understand each other.
The book was littered with comma errors, making me have to reread sentences more than once. Some of the sentence structure could be erratic at times, as well. It could use a period and start a new sentence to tie it together. I’m going to issue an age warning- not to be read by anyone under fifteen, due to language.
Most Likely You Go Your Way and I’ll Go Mine is a brilliant, clever, humorous, edgy, and raw portrayal of urban single life. Deftly written, it will capture your attention from the first page and leave you shaking your head in awe until the end. The plot flowed well and I didn’t find any dead spots where I lost interest. The characters were convincing and relatable, reminding you of just how uncertain your twenties and the dating scene could be. And anyone who can get a character to literally talk like Yoda while giving advice is fabulous in my opinion. The dialog was spectacularly honest, as if you were listening in on a real conversation. I particularly loved the coffee machine sequences, where Geoff is at work and mumbling about whatever ailments he has, and is given quirky and useless advice by his co-workers. It popped up several times in the book, making me shake my head, laughing. A recommended read!
Kelly Moran,
Author and Reviewer
Centering around four people in their late twenties, this story follows the often medial relationships between family, friends, and lovers- giving you an inside peek at secret thoughts, unusual and uncomfortable conversations, big city culture, the pain of rejection, and the elation of a newly budding romance. Geoff, not knowing at all what he wants in life, meets Jen, a woman who outwardly knows what she wants but never seems to reach it. Together with their friends, Paul and Rhonda, Geoff and Jen find themselves on new ground in their relationship and wondering if men and women will ever entirely understand each other.
The book was littered with comma errors, making me have to reread sentences more than once. Some of the sentence structure could be erratic at times, as well. It could use a period and start a new sentence to tie it together. I’m going to issue an age warning- not to be read by anyone under fifteen, due to language.
Most Likely You Go Your Way and I’ll Go Mine is a brilliant, clever, humorous, edgy, and raw portrayal of urban single life. Deftly written, it will capture your attention from the first page and leave you shaking your head in awe until the end. The plot flowed well and I didn’t find any dead spots where I lost interest. The characters were convincing and relatable, reminding you of just how uncertain your twenties and the dating scene could be. And anyone who can get a character to literally talk like Yoda while giving advice is fabulous in my opinion. The dialog was spectacularly honest, as if you were listening in on a real conversation. I particularly loved the coffee machine sequences, where Geoff is at work and mumbling about whatever ailments he has, and is given quirky and useless advice by his co-workers. It popped up several times in the book, making me shake my head, laughing. A recommended read!
Kelly Moran,
Author and Reviewer
December 20, 2008
It's just a young-love story: they meet & mince around, hurt each other & then, bruised... but don't let me spoil the fun. What matters is, so far as stories of young love are concerned, so's the Bob Dylan winner from which Ben Tanzer derives his title. So's many another engaging ditty, & many a good novel. What distinguishes MOST LIKELY YOU'LL GO YOUR WAY & I'LL GO MINE, indeed, is implied in that full-length title, a balancing act that this narrative mimics artfully. The opening drags a bit, a problem w/ such stock material (we're talking young love in NYC, though Tanzer wisely keeps his Manhattan seekers free of artistic pretensions), But by the 4th or 5th of these brief chapters the storytelling achieves the necessary velocity, as the wings of scene & speech extend to full length & beat up & down w/ a fine pacing. I mean the way the set-pieces match up, & the way the speakers pair off, there's humor & propulsion & a baroque shapeliness, inventively assembled & often glittering w/ some inset gem of a joke. Much of the effects are achieved via dialog, but there's also an admirable sidewalk catalogue or two, as lovers stroll their way towards something more serious. Seriousness, in fact, snaps its jaws more & more often as one gets deeper into YOUR WAY &...MINE. Addiction & abandonment, in various guises, haunt the latter half, & Tanzer raises a similar chill w/ the way he uses the World Trade towers. In this smartly-done exercise, we witness again how even young love can never exist free of timeless agonies.
August 26, 2008
A great summer read. I ended up reading it all in two sittings. Most Likely... is full of witty dialog, quirky, intelligent characters and is a very frank, honest depiction of the dysfunctional nature of dating in nyc. The characters were complex, funny, sad, lost all unique yet unidentifiable. I highly recommend it!
October 9, 2008
Ben Tanzer has a way of writing that gives the reader a feeling of that urban college lifestyle which I believe many readers ages 18-25 can identify with. The hang outs were easy to imagine as were the thoughts and the angst of single life.
An enjoyable read that had me wishing for my youth again.
An enjoyable read that had me wishing for my youth again.
July 13, 2009
ah the halcyon college days ...
Tanzer evokes what it is to be smart and puzzled, and full of ennui. A deft portrait of characters in mid-wander.
Tanzer evokes what it is to be smart and puzzled, and full of ennui. A deft portrait of characters in mid-wander.
Read
July 28, 2020It changed my life.
October 29, 2009
Some of the best dialogue I've ever read.
March 4, 2010
The first thing I thought when I finished this book was, that I saw the ending coming relationship-wise. It matters, not because I need a shock at the end of every book I read (I really don't). It matters because there is a natural progression to the end, and it feels like there would be loose ends if it ended differently. The couple that ends up together at the end have to work for what they have, to quit looking at the little things for evidence that they should be together and just go with where they are being driven, to see that their brokenhearted balms only inflame the injury they ultimately inflict upon themselves. With the other couple, it is pretty clear what their functions are in the story, and that was fine, if not mildly comforting. Not everyone reaches a state of relationship stasis at the same time, and a double-wedding ending would seem contrite.
I liked the indecision, the way at this age you never know what you should really do, especially when everyone else around you seems to know better. When Geoff asks his co-workers, they each speak in turn in a succinct succession, and they all bring their job title-shaded "expertise" to the table, even though they are just as lost as Geoff. they tell him what they would do, how they would want things to be, but they expose a bit of maturity in not telling him he has to do it their way despite the general immaturity of these suggestions. Jen has her sister and best friend to guide her, who falter along the paths of their own love lives but she still wonders if she should model after them. These are very real examples of how we use peer pressure to make decisions in our youth, and sometimes beyond.
Geoff and Jen also look to their parents, while acknowledging the parents' choices have led to dysfunction but still wanting to turn to the one who has helped them since their birth. I was a bit surprised to see the parents' ability to overlook their children's active sexuality when they feel like they may need to move on or when they move too quickly. Perhaps this is because I am from a small town with parents who are sexually conservative that I can't really talk to about intimate matters...even if I wanted to. This parenting model in the book feels like it comes from a place of personal liberation. Still, I was glad to see a model of caring parenting with lots of honesty. They seem a bit too much like friends at times, as is the case in some parent-child relationships, but they ultimately truly want the best for their children. Steven is a good addition because he not only fills out the story a bit more; he also shows that most parents will not give up on a child even when they struggle so greatly.
What I didn't like was the incredible sameness of the characters at times. They all have their own things going on and individual things to work out, but some things are a bit too close. Both Geoff and Jen had a parent move out when they were children. Geoff and Jen are paralyzed at times by their own neurosis and indecision. These are questions that enter every relationship, but they feel them at the same time from the start of the relationship. They both rely on a parent and either a group of friends or a friend and a sister for advice that gets them nowhere most of the time. This is realistic, but I would like to see maybe one struggle more individually or have a more adept sounding board board to switch things up. The uncaring girl with the tattoo was a good way to switch things up and to demonstrate to Geoff what not to want.
At first I mistook the brief chapters as laziness or ineptitude, and then I saw the genius of being able to switch between perspective so neatly, which is something I think a lot of other authors have a problem with. Also, the short snips and resulting disjointed feel of the quick switching of gears says something more of the inattention of youth and the aimlessness of those who are uncertain. I'm glad sometimes the jumps also served to move to a different point in time. This probably eliminated some filler in a book that keeps to a snappy clip. I think it is somewhat courageous to take a chance with a tableau-like series of vignettes instead of just moving beginning to end and acting like nothing else happens in between. On the topic of time, I think the time period is well-established in many ways: the slang, the music references, the attitudes, the bombing especially since it can be pinpointed in time. I also like that they mention past things they still like, such as Bob Dylan, since it's more realistic not to just deal with what is currently popular. It's nice to see a bit of nostalgia in a nostalgic novel. I think the title itself is good because it has a pop culture reference as a Bob Dylan song and sets a real tone for the story to come. I was supremely pleased to see mention of journey's "Don't Stop Believin'" mentioned, both because of its status as one of my favorite songs and also because it is meaningful to the text on a level beyond simply being mentioned.
What I couldn't stand is the numerous errors. Winona Ryder's name is spelled differently in different parts of the book, and another celebrity's name is misspelled, both of which could be remedied with a quick visit to imdb.com or similar simple research. The errors of grammar and other spelling (I spotted the wrong "too" once, for example) could also stand to be fixed. Since I majored in writing in college, I realize the over-sprinkling commas are most likely stylistic, standing in for natural pauses, another manifestation of the uncertain, among other things. I think it does turn off a quantity of readers who may not realize this, so it's a gutsy decision that makes repeating the reasoning worth it. Still, there were some straight punctuation errors. there is even one or two in the author bio and blurb on the back cover.
Overall, I really liked this book. I can see beyond its shortcomings to a story that feels very natural emotionally to someone who has dated or tried to get advice and came up wanting. I saw myself in the characters and wanted the best for them because of it. I felt several times that i wished I had been a part of the scene as it happened, to have such haphazard control over my flailing life. I wanted to have friends who could accept me and give me their frankness instead of playing games to try to hide their hearts and ill choices in exchange for trying to act like the ideal is always achievable. The stringency of the rules and thorough discussions of such rules remind me of how important standards are in life and how the ones society sets forth mean little when we want something different. Just reading this book felt like that for me. I don't like the best-sellers--I crave something a bit more unique, more risk-taking. I found that in much of this book and hope others will as well.
I liked the indecision, the way at this age you never know what you should really do, especially when everyone else around you seems to know better. When Geoff asks his co-workers, they each speak in turn in a succinct succession, and they all bring their job title-shaded "expertise" to the table, even though they are just as lost as Geoff. they tell him what they would do, how they would want things to be, but they expose a bit of maturity in not telling him he has to do it their way despite the general immaturity of these suggestions. Jen has her sister and best friend to guide her, who falter along the paths of their own love lives but she still wonders if she should model after them. These are very real examples of how we use peer pressure to make decisions in our youth, and sometimes beyond.
Geoff and Jen also look to their parents, while acknowledging the parents' choices have led to dysfunction but still wanting to turn to the one who has helped them since their birth. I was a bit surprised to see the parents' ability to overlook their children's active sexuality when they feel like they may need to move on or when they move too quickly. Perhaps this is because I am from a small town with parents who are sexually conservative that I can't really talk to about intimate matters...even if I wanted to. This parenting model in the book feels like it comes from a place of personal liberation. Still, I was glad to see a model of caring parenting with lots of honesty. They seem a bit too much like friends at times, as is the case in some parent-child relationships, but they ultimately truly want the best for their children. Steven is a good addition because he not only fills out the story a bit more; he also shows that most parents will not give up on a child even when they struggle so greatly.
What I didn't like was the incredible sameness of the characters at times. They all have their own things going on and individual things to work out, but some things are a bit too close. Both Geoff and Jen had a parent move out when they were children. Geoff and Jen are paralyzed at times by their own neurosis and indecision. These are questions that enter every relationship, but they feel them at the same time from the start of the relationship. They both rely on a parent and either a group of friends or a friend and a sister for advice that gets them nowhere most of the time. This is realistic, but I would like to see maybe one struggle more individually or have a more adept sounding board board to switch things up. The uncaring girl with the tattoo was a good way to switch things up and to demonstrate to Geoff what not to want.
At first I mistook the brief chapters as laziness or ineptitude, and then I saw the genius of being able to switch between perspective so neatly, which is something I think a lot of other authors have a problem with. Also, the short snips and resulting disjointed feel of the quick switching of gears says something more of the inattention of youth and the aimlessness of those who are uncertain. I'm glad sometimes the jumps also served to move to a different point in time. This probably eliminated some filler in a book that keeps to a snappy clip. I think it is somewhat courageous to take a chance with a tableau-like series of vignettes instead of just moving beginning to end and acting like nothing else happens in between. On the topic of time, I think the time period is well-established in many ways: the slang, the music references, the attitudes, the bombing especially since it can be pinpointed in time. I also like that they mention past things they still like, such as Bob Dylan, since it's more realistic not to just deal with what is currently popular. It's nice to see a bit of nostalgia in a nostalgic novel. I think the title itself is good because it has a pop culture reference as a Bob Dylan song and sets a real tone for the story to come. I was supremely pleased to see mention of journey's "Don't Stop Believin'" mentioned, both because of its status as one of my favorite songs and also because it is meaningful to the text on a level beyond simply being mentioned.
What I couldn't stand is the numerous errors. Winona Ryder's name is spelled differently in different parts of the book, and another celebrity's name is misspelled, both of which could be remedied with a quick visit to imdb.com or similar simple research. The errors of grammar and other spelling (I spotted the wrong "too" once, for example) could also stand to be fixed. Since I majored in writing in college, I realize the over-sprinkling commas are most likely stylistic, standing in for natural pauses, another manifestation of the uncertain, among other things. I think it does turn off a quantity of readers who may not realize this, so it's a gutsy decision that makes repeating the reasoning worth it. Still, there were some straight punctuation errors. there is even one or two in the author bio and blurb on the back cover.
Overall, I really liked this book. I can see beyond its shortcomings to a story that feels very natural emotionally to someone who has dated or tried to get advice and came up wanting. I saw myself in the characters and wanted the best for them because of it. I felt several times that i wished I had been a part of the scene as it happened, to have such haphazard control over my flailing life. I wanted to have friends who could accept me and give me their frankness instead of playing games to try to hide their hearts and ill choices in exchange for trying to act like the ideal is always achievable. The stringency of the rules and thorough discussions of such rules remind me of how important standards are in life and how the ones society sets forth mean little when we want something different. Just reading this book felt like that for me. I don't like the best-sellers--I crave something a bit more unique, more risk-taking. I found that in much of this book and hope others will as well.
August 31, 2014
(this review originally appeared at Outsider Writers Collective)
Attention Kevin Smith fans (and strangely, Gilmore Girls fans): you are going to love this book. Though Most Likely You Go Your Way and I’ll Go Mine (Orange Alert Press) arcs as a novel, it is written as a series of dialog-heavy exchanges of wit between characters that define themselves by a pop culture context. Knots Landing vs. Dallas is their war. The gospel of Star Wars is their religious creed.
Attention Kevin Smith fans (and strangely, Gilmore Girls fans): you are going to love this book. Though Most Likely You Go Your Way and I’ll Go Mine (Orange Alert Press) arcs as a novel, it is written as a series of dialog-heavy exchanges of wit between characters that define themselves by a pop culture context. Knots Landing vs. Dallas is their war. The gospel of Star Wars is their religious creed.
What is perhaps most interesting and impressive with this, Ben Tanzer’s second novel (released in 2008; in 2009 CCLaP Publishing released Repetition Patterns, a collection of stories) is just how much the author relies on dialog and pop culture to describe the characters. Physical description is sparing, and despite the implications there, the novel is quick and engaging. Who needs setting when you’ve got exchanges like this:
“What? You never got why people liked Star Wars? Is there something wrong with you?”
“Maybe. I definitely feel that way most of the time.” (pg. 18)
And character portraits like this:
Jen and Gracie believe that love has to knock you over, though even if it does, it not only can’t be trusted, but you are likely doomed to endless struggle, inane dissections of problems big and small and always at risk of perpetually losing oneself in the murky swamp of confusion and loathing that inevitably attaches itself to most relationships. (pg. 54)
The four main characters (helpfully depicted on the novel’s cover) endure life as they search for human connection. These are quick-witted, intelligent people that we all wish we knew. And for Most Likely You Go Your Way And I’ll Go Mine’s 172 pages, we do.
April 1, 2017
Review copy from author/signed
God. How good does it feel to discover you are not the only one who has no clue how to date! In "Most Likely You Go Your Way and I'll Go Mine", Ben Tanzer introduces us to two completely fucked up twenty-somethings trying to hook up in the 1990's in New York City.
Jen is a girl who knows what she wants, but is unsure how to fight for it. Geoff is a guy who has no idea what he wants, and can't be bothered to fight for it. It's a recipe for a dating disaster.
This book was a flashback to those achey, unsure, 'what the heck is he thinking - is he thinking what I'm thinking - God, am I coming off too needy - Why does he seem so distant' moments.
Tanzer places us inside the heads of Jen and Geoff as they work their way through their relationship. It's actually kind of a relief, watching them struggle. It almost validated everything I had ever gone through in my dating years. The insecurity, the embarrassment, the fear of getting physical too soon, or not soon enough.
The conversations are what makes this story work. Geoff seeks out the advice of his best friend Paul, who spews his words of wisdom Yoda-style in the back alley of their office, and the "Coffee Pot Crew" who are constantly contradicting one another but somehow all end up asking Geoff the same questions "What do you want"?
Jen confides in her mother, who sees too much of the man she married in her daughters love interest, her best friend Rhonda, who intermittently dates Geoffs BFF Paul and a married man, and her sister, who she is insanely jealous of.
If you have ever wanted a front row seat to both sides of a dysfunctional romantic relationship, you cannot afford to pass up this book.
God. How good does it feel to discover you are not the only one who has no clue how to date! In "Most Likely You Go Your Way and I'll Go Mine", Ben Tanzer introduces us to two completely fucked up twenty-somethings trying to hook up in the 1990's in New York City.
Jen is a girl who knows what she wants, but is unsure how to fight for it. Geoff is a guy who has no idea what he wants, and can't be bothered to fight for it. It's a recipe for a dating disaster.
This book was a flashback to those achey, unsure, 'what the heck is he thinking - is he thinking what I'm thinking - God, am I coming off too needy - Why does he seem so distant' moments.
Tanzer places us inside the heads of Jen and Geoff as they work their way through their relationship. It's actually kind of a relief, watching them struggle. It almost validated everything I had ever gone through in my dating years. The insecurity, the embarrassment, the fear of getting physical too soon, or not soon enough.
The conversations are what makes this story work. Geoff seeks out the advice of his best friend Paul, who spews his words of wisdom Yoda-style in the back alley of their office, and the "Coffee Pot Crew" who are constantly contradicting one another but somehow all end up asking Geoff the same questions "What do you want"?
Jen confides in her mother, who sees too much of the man she married in her daughters love interest, her best friend Rhonda, who intermittently dates Geoffs BFF Paul and a married man, and her sister, who she is insanely jealous of.
If you have ever wanted a front row seat to both sides of a dysfunctional romantic relationship, you cannot afford to pass up this book.
January 25, 2009
Frequently referencing Bob Dylan and John Hughes, this experimental, cinematic and beautiful romance has its feet in two different worlds, one of idealized romance and one of harsh reality that doesn't need to happen. The characters are well drawn in spite of dialogue that sometimes falls flat, the situations painful and sweet, reminiscent of songs from Blood on the Tracks (yes, I know this book's titular track is not from the album) and Say Anything (yes, I know that's Cameron Crowe, not John Hughes). I was worried looking at the blurbs regarding this book that Indie film romantic banality might rule the day, but it's just the opposite. The jaunty, experimental style fights off any incursion of oppressive realism or wallows in depression. I think that's damn impressive. Fans of High Fidelity, Swingers and Clerks will see shades of these favorites in this book, as will Dylan fans. Dylan's music uplifts you when you feel the old master's smirk turning into a genuine smile or genuine tears and this book has a similar effect. Actual catharsis is rare in realistic fiction, but Tanzer achieves it.
February 7, 2010
Gosh, how to describe this book. Fun, interesting, fascinating, sad and frustrating -- perhaps.
This is the story of four young people, but the focus seems to mainly be on Jen and Geoff. They are both leery of relationships. Jen's father left the family when she was just becoming a teen. Geoff's mother also left when he was a boy.
Needless to say, they both know whoever they become involved in will eventually break their hearts. To compensate, they set up their relationships for failure. They look for clues that the other person isn't happy and offer them an easy out.
But now, they've met each other and are beginning to wonder if things could possibly be different this time.
This really was an enjoyable read. In fact, I had it done in one day because I just couldn't put it down until I found out what was going to happen to these kids. There were times I wished I could have knocked some sense into them (that's obviously the mother in me) and other times when I would have liked to be able to warn them not to treat the other the way they were (that's obviously the wife in me).
Ben Tanzer has given us a great read and one that teaches several lessons for life, love and relationships.
This is the story of four young people, but the focus seems to mainly be on Jen and Geoff. They are both leery of relationships. Jen's father left the family when she was just becoming a teen. Geoff's mother also left when he was a boy.
Needless to say, they both know whoever they become involved in will eventually break their hearts. To compensate, they set up their relationships for failure. They look for clues that the other person isn't happy and offer them an easy out.
But now, they've met each other and are beginning to wonder if things could possibly be different this time.
This really was an enjoyable read. In fact, I had it done in one day because I just couldn't put it down until I found out what was going to happen to these kids. There were times I wished I could have knocked some sense into them (that's obviously the mother in me) and other times when I would have liked to be able to warn them not to treat the other the way they were (that's obviously the wife in me).
Ben Tanzer has given us a great read and one that teaches several lessons for life, love and relationships.
September 9, 2009
Ben Tanzer gets it. He gets the current zeitgeist: pop culture, the hookups, the office chatter, friendships, the musical soundtrack of our lives, and relationships. He really gets relationships in spades, the stop-start, the awkward patches, the doubts, the sex, the conversations. Ben Tanzer gets the conversations dead on. His dialog is crisp, droll, rhythmic, stoned, dour, realistic. His dialog-driven novel is a dizzy ride into the precarious place where two human hearts try to cohere. Relationships are tough, except when they’re not. Ben Tanzer understands this and he gets it. In Most Likely You Go Your Way and I Go Mine, he gets it all right.
November 16, 2009
It's not often that I come across a book I feel was written just for me. But Ben Tanzer's Most Likely You Go Your Way and I'll Go Mine is one of them.
It's a tale of modern love and the pitfalls of dating, bursting at the seams with humor, heart, sharp insights, hot sex and moderate drug use.
Through his extensive and often hilarious knowledge of pop culture, and his skillfulness at crafting tight circles within the narrative, Tanzer quickly earned my trust and showed me a world I knew all too well filled with characters I recognized immediately as my friends.
Like I said, this book was written just for me.
It's a tale of modern love and the pitfalls of dating, bursting at the seams with humor, heart, sharp insights, hot sex and moderate drug use.
Through his extensive and often hilarious knowledge of pop culture, and his skillfulness at crafting tight circles within the narrative, Tanzer quickly earned my trust and showed me a world I knew all too well filled with characters I recognized immediately as my friends.
Like I said, this book was written just for me.
November 16, 2011
First Impressions:
I am rocking on Tanzer's 'Most Likely...' and here in the early going I can already say, "Who owns the film rights?" Goin' down like a cold beer on a hot day.
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Final Thoughts:
And it continued to go down like a cold one in mid-summer's heat. The book read just like a movie - I could see the scenes, the camera movement, the locations ~ the whole she-bang. If Mr.Tanzer has not yet written a screenplay he should. I loved all of the pop culture references. They shook a thousand memories from my mind. I highly recommend 'Most Likely You Go Your Way and I'll Go Mine' so pick it up before it comes to a theater near you.
I am rocking on Tanzer's 'Most Likely...' and here in the early going I can already say, "Who owns the film rights?" Goin' down like a cold beer on a hot day.
_____________________________________________
Final Thoughts:
And it continued to go down like a cold one in mid-summer's heat. The book read just like a movie - I could see the scenes, the camera movement, the locations ~ the whole she-bang. If Mr.Tanzer has not yet written a screenplay he should. I loved all of the pop culture references. They shook a thousand memories from my mind. I highly recommend 'Most Likely You Go Your Way and I'll Go Mine' so pick it up before it comes to a theater near you.
November 5, 2008
Ben Tanzer of This Blog Will Change Your Life and This Zine Will Change Your Life fame, has written a novel like his first, Lucky Man, focusing on the lives of four characters. The relationships are just as precisely drawn as before, but this time he displays more of his wit and humor. With the recent release of his story collection Repetition Patterns, Tanzer is busy creating an impressive body of work. Work you should check out, no matter which way you're going (sorry, just couldn't help myself).
June 3, 2010
I really enjoyed this book. It reminded me a little of a Wes Anderson movie in the sense that it was comprised of little vignettes that would illustrate just how lost and vulnerable these characters were as they tried to navigate the beginnings of a relationship, while coming to terms with the baggage they carried from their family relationships that was complicating the process. Insightful, humorous and oddly touching, it had me smiling through out the story, much like I find myself doing while watching a Wes Anderson movie.
November 16, 2015
My earliest Tanzer book, one solid enough to make me a fan. It's an ambitious character study of four young people falling in and out of love, and Tanzer gives them all some great depth for such an early offering. His work has since grown and become more refined...but I still liked this book quite a bit. If you like pop-culture-y, brainy, light, battle-of-the-sexes drama-edy, my guess is you'll like Tanzer too.
June 22, 2014
As always, I came away from a Tanzer book feeling a little warmer towards humanity than I had been feeling before. It's just a relationship, but the honesty of what the fictional characters are feeling, their stumbling and their confusion with essentially good hearts, makes me feel it as I imagine they feel it and makes it have significance. It gives the book a weight that isn't measured in the number of pages, a weight that I loved.
December 5, 2008
Most Likely You Go Your Way and I’ll Go Mine is a story of romance, relationships, and the ups and downs of two young couples. The characters are interesting, likeable, and human.
The writing flows so smoothly, you just want to keep on reading to find out what is going to happen next. Tanzer’s novel does not disappoint. I recommend this book.
The writing flows so smoothly, you just want to keep on reading to find out what is going to happen next. Tanzer’s novel does not disappoint. I recommend this book.
September 10, 2009
Ben Tanzer is a master of the art of dialogue--both in terms of what is said and what remains unspoken. Most Likely You'll Go Your Way & I'll Go Mine captures the humor, hang-ups, and heart in relationships.
April 29, 2009
Kind of Friends meets cough syrup. Everything linked. Good read.
January 28, 2010
This is a fun and quick read. With its sharp dialogue, it would be an easy adaptation to screenplay. Consider it, Mr. Tanzer. And thanks.
December 22, 2011
Totally dig.
December 6, 2008
It takes a few chapters for a main character to come out. He comes out in the form of Geoff, who is there from the beginning. Geoff’s best friend is named Paul. I am named Paul. There are frequent interludes, repetitive in nature, where Paul and Geoff step outside their office at the World Trade Center and smoke weed from a bat pipe. You know, the long bat thing. Not an actual animal bat. Animal bats are annoying. Yes. Anyway, I think that these interludes, along with the four maybe five scenes of Geoff at the coffee machine and all these guys giving their witty opinions of what Geoff should do next in his relationship with Jen, someone who he met very randomly when he and Paul were out, I don’t remember exactly how and I don’t think it’s all that important, I just remember they were at one place and then they went another place and then they had a follow-up date–I remember that Paul almost scored with Rhonda, who is Jen’s slutty best friend, and Rhonda had to puke in the bathroom, so Paul just bailed out, leaving his underwear on the bed. And I think that the way I am describing this is illustrative of the subject matter, in a good way. Relationships are never very easy to chart. They are pure bullshit for the most part, with little things counting for way too much and so on. I think that Ben Tanzer did a good job putting me in the mood to react to relationships and care what happens one way or the other.
November 30, 2008
I am waffling between 2 and 3 stars right now, but I think "It was o.k." is where I will stay. This was a book that I wanted to really like.
The characters were likeable enough, in their own ways but they didn't feel like people. There wasn't enough depth to any of the characterization, I felt, to make them feel like people.
I know I will sound horrendously anal here, but there were spelling and/or typographical errors in the text. Anything that has been edited and revised enough to make it through to the end should have had these fixed. That said, I am noticing this more and more lately in published works. I don't imagine that it is the fault of the author, but nonetheless, it bothered me.
The dialogue is crisp, but seems far too "clever" to be true spoken dialogue. I enjoyed the pop culture references and they did help to anchor the story in a certain time and place, but I think there were just too many of them. It felt like name-dropping.
The central story is good, but a bit cliche.
I sound much more harsh than I intend to. I enjoyed reading the book, but it felt more like an unfinished screenplay to me than it did a novel.
The characters were likeable enough, in their own ways but they didn't feel like people. There wasn't enough depth to any of the characterization, I felt, to make them feel like people.
I know I will sound horrendously anal here, but there were spelling and/or typographical errors in the text. Anything that has been edited and revised enough to make it through to the end should have had these fixed. That said, I am noticing this more and more lately in published works. I don't imagine that it is the fault of the author, but nonetheless, it bothered me.
The dialogue is crisp, but seems far too "clever" to be true spoken dialogue. I enjoyed the pop culture references and they did help to anchor the story in a certain time and place, but I think there were just too many of them. It felt like name-dropping.
The central story is good, but a bit cliche.
I sound much more harsh than I intend to. I enjoyed reading the book, but it felt more like an unfinished screenplay to me than it did a novel.
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