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Latest News:
Check out this fun interview with Russ Foster on Pirate Cat Radio re: the novel and growing up a Jehovah's Witness.
August 4th reading at Dog Eared Books.
Publishers Weekly (Starred Review)
DuShane's debut novel unfolds within the insular world of Jehovah's Witnesses, following a teenager's coming of age within the strict rules of a widely known but little explored sect. Gabe is in many ways a typical California teenager: attending public high school, lusting after female classmates, and enjoying hacky sack with his best friend, Peter. At the same time, he is preoccupied with thoughts of Armageddon, and whether or not masturbating will keep him from being resurrected at the end of the world. Gabe wrestles genuinely with his faith-both embarrassed and deeply committed. As pre-pubescence gives way to young adulthood, Gabe, his troubled (non-Jehovah) cousin Karen, his high school crush Jasmine, and Peter find their moral dilemmas taking on serious dimensions, eventually leading to a tragedy that profoundly alters Gabe's understanding of faith. As a former practitioner, DuShane writes with an insider's perspective about this unique world, balancing criticism with understanding and a convincing portrait of the struggle to integrate religion into a modern world, producing an ultimately touching story that will speak to atheists and believers alike. (Feb.)
"Addictive, informative, heartbreaking and utterly satisfying."
-Janet Fitch, author of White Oleander and Paint It Black
"Confessions of a Teenage Jesus Jerk is astonishing and hilarious, evoking shades of John Kennedy Toole and C.D. Payne. Tony DuShane has a sharp, new voice that's sure to be noticed; I have no doubt he'll garner fans fast."
-Katie Crouch, author of Girls in Trucks and Men and Dogs
"Watch out Armageddon. Here comes DuShane! A mushroom cloud of excruciating laughs, and wicked twists. Deserves to be placed in drawers in every Motel in the country."
-Alan Black, author of Kick the Balls
"Darkly funny and authentically kinky, Tony DuShane's first novel is a surprisingly sweet coming-of-age story told through the eyes of a horny, Jehovah-battered, Watchtower-wielding door-to-door proselytizer. I may never answer my doorbell again."
-Mark Haskell Smith, author of Moist, Salty, and Delicious
"Tony DuShane's highly original novel lives at the fecund corner of religion and sex. Confessions of a Teenage Jesus Jerk captures the ache of an adolescent heart drunk on a combustible cocktail of Jesus, hormones, and visions of escape. You'll pull for this most sympathetic hero and hope he finds a god of his own."
-Seth Greenland, author of Shining City and The Bones
"An absorbing and poignant exploration of the dilemmas facing a youth growing up within a conservative religious community."
-C. D. Payne, author of Youth in Revolt
"A truly original take on familiar, omnipresent subject matter is a rare and precious thing. And subject matter doesn't get more familiar or omnipresent than the coming of age and sexual awakening of an American suburban teenage dude. But I guarantee you've never read coming-of-age like this before. Smart, funny, touching, and more fun than a Jehovah's Witnesses ethnography could be reasonably expected to be -- a real winner."
-Frank Portman, author of King Dork and Andromeda Klein
"DuShane writes like a dirty angel. Raw and inspired. He is not afraid of the dark. Spread the word."
-Rachel Resnick, author of Love Junkie
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