In 2008, the Chicago Center for Literature and Photography was proud to kick off its new publishing program with the release of Ben Tanzer's Repetition Patterns, dark stories about childhood and twentysomething repercussions all set in a small town in upstate New York similar to the one where Tanzer grew up; and now CCLaP is equally proud to release part two of this story cycle, entitled So Different Now. Set in the same town where Repetition Patterns takes place, and sometimes featuring even the same characters from the first book, these stories instead mostly concern themselves with the issues facing these people as they enter middle-age, taking Tanzer's astute use of popular culture and his fondness for black plotlines to deliver a stunning meditation on aging, maturing, and the struggle to do the "right thing" in the face of sometimes not understanding what that even is. Sure to both delight and horrify in equal measures, these interconnected short pieces (nearly all of them originally published in various literary magazines in the three years leading up to this collection) easily have the capacity of getting under your skin in a deep and profound way, and you are guaranteed to remember their exquisite language and ambiguous morality for a long time to come.
This electronic book has been released under a "pay what you want" system; if you want to pay nothing, that's perfectly fine, and you too will receive the same full-length version as everyone else. To start the purchasing/downloading process, choose an option below:
I'd like to pay 10 dollars / 7 euros / 5 pounds.
I'd like to pay 20 dollars / 14 euros / 10 pounds.
I'd like to pay a different amount than above.
I'd like to pay nothing.
Kindle owner? Click here to buy the ebook at Amazon for a flat $5.
SOME PEOPLE EXPERIENCE PROBLEMS with getting to this book's download page after their purchase. If this happens to you, simply write to [cclapcenter at gmail.com] to receive an email with the direct download link.
PDF for European laserprinters (A4)
EPUB for computer screens and most mobile devices
MOBI for Amazon Kindles
Want a paper copy of So Different Now? Then please consider purchasing The New York Stories, a special deluxe compendium of both this book and Tanzer's 2008 story collection with CCLaP, Repetition Patterns. This premier "fine art" publication, designed specifically for professional collectors and hardcore fans, features 30 illustrations by local artist Laura Szumowski (six in full color and inserted via special vellum sheets), held together with faux-suede covers and external Coptic stitching. Click here to learn more, and to see samples of the illustrations found within.
Supplemental and promotional material:
A podcast interview with the author, explaining more about how this book came out
A critical essay by the publisher on why he signed the book (COMING SOON)
Repetition Patterns, part one of this story cycle
This book has been released under a Creative Commons license (click the above icon to actually read it in full); this gives you permission to make unlimited copies for yourself, convert it into other formats, translate it into other languages, and use it as a basis for nonprofit multimedia projects (audio, film, animation, stage performance, calligraphy, etc), in return for you not changing the contents or removing the credits.
Cover image: "Street scene, possibly in Brockton, Mass.," by Jack Delano, circa 1940. From the Library of Congress "Commons" collection at Flickr.
CCLaP is always on the lookout for great unsigned manuscripts. Click here for more on how to submit your own.
Back to CCLaP Publishing
Back to CCLaP's main front page