The Guy Not Taken

FEATURING A WASHINGTON SQUARE PRESS READERS CLUB GUIDE

“Shouldn’t be missed. . . . It is the reader who will be taken by this set of eleven marvelous short stories.”
—Entertainment Weekly

J
ennifer Weiner’s talent shines like never before in this collection of short stories, following the tender, often hilarious, progress of love and relationships over the course of a lifetime.

We meet Marlie Davidow, home alone with her new baby late one night, when she wanders onto her ex’s online wedding registry and wonders what if she had wound up with the guy not taken. We find Jessica Norton listing her beloved river-view apartment in the hope of winning her broker’s heart. And we follow an unlikely friendship between two very different new mothers, and the choices that bring them together—and pull them apart.

The Guy Not Taken
demonstrates Weiner’s amazing ability to create characters who “feel like they could be your best friend” (Janet Maslin) and to find hope and humor, longing and love in the hidden corners of our common experiences.

“Fans will savor Weiner’s confidential tone and salty wit.”
—People

“Another delightful example of Jennifer Weiner’s tender way with words and emotions.”
—Harper’s Bazaar

JENNIFER WEINER
is the #1 New York Times bestselling author of twelve books, including Good in Bed, In Her Shoes, which was made into a major motion picture, and the forthcoming Who Do You Love. A graduate of Princeton University and a contributor to the New York Times, she lives in Philadelphia with her family. To learn more, visit
www.jenniferweiner.com
.

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COVER DESIGN BY ANNA DORFMAN • PHOTO ILLUSTRATION BY REGINA STARACE • AUTHOR PHOTO BY ANREA CIPRIANI MECCHI

Praise for
New York Times
bestselling author

JENNIFER WEINER

The Guy Not Taken

“This is a book you’ll want to lend to your friends. Just make sure you get it back, you may want to read it more than once. The common thread through all the stories is Weiner’s voice, her ease in any situation—humorous, serious or sad. These are Weiner characters: three-dimensional, with the ability to pull you in and make you forget you’re reading fiction.”

—
Richmond Times-Dispatch

“Weiner’s star rises higher with
The Guy Not Taken. . . .
She continues her successful run with a compilation of eleven short stories, some of which Weiner wrote recently, others as early as when she was a teenager.”

—
Chicago Tribune

“A readable mix of love, angst, disappointment and hope, this collection of short stories adds to Weiner’s stature as a writer. . . . If you weren’t previously a fan of Weiner’s you will be after reading
The Guy Not Taken.
”

—
San Antonio Express-News

“Some of the stories were written when Weiner was in college, others were tucked into a shoebox and others more recent. But all are utterly readable with good characters and Weiner’s trademark wit.”

—
Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

“
The Guy Not Taken
showcases a maturing Weiner. . . . [The]
In Her Shoes
author is resigned to the fact that in some circles she is referred to as the ‘Queen of Chick Lit.’ But I challenge anyone who says her short-story collection,
The Guy Not Taken,
isn’t serious women’s fiction. The women in these stories are a far cry from the Manolo-obsessed bubbleheads sometimes found in chick lit novels. These women apply healthy doses of self-doubt, loneliness and misgivings along with their lip gloss and mascara. All the stories in Weiner’s collection have that ‘Calgon, Take Me Away’ quality to which smart women, whose lives are complicated by careers, men, babies, parents and siblings, can relate.”

—
USA Today

“Very, very funny. . . . These stories are entertaining, with distinctive dialogue and wit.”

—
Philadelphia Inquirer

“These autobiographical stories suggest that Weiner is the kind of wisecracking pal who makes a great lunch date. . . . In
Swim
, a woman who left her TV job after her sexy writing partner led her on, then eloped with the show’s star, helps a nebbish craft a personal ad. When he says he’s picked ‘Lonelyguy 78’ as his screen name, she blurts, ‘Was ‘Desperateguy’ taken?’ Even a coda on the inspiration for the stories is a hoot.”

—
People

“
The Guy Not Taken
has taken Weiner to the next level as an author. . . . With her latest collection, Weiner is proving that the masters of the oft-maligned chick-lit are voices to be reckoned with. An accessible anthology that takes readers on a ride through divorce, heartbreak, insecurity and what might have been,
The Guy Not Taken
is a tender, thought-provoking read that puts Weiner on the map as one of her generation’s best literary voices.”

—
The Boston Herald

“Eleven sharply written short stories about women struggling—with humor and resolve—to get love right.”

—
Life Magazine

“This collection of stories reads like a series of studies for Weiner’s larger chick-lit portraits. . . . One roots for Weiner’s characters as they come to terms—and in some cases, heal—from disappointment and neglect.”

—
Publishers Weekly

“Thorough and clever . . .
The Guy Not Taken
is a collection that explores both sides of what happens when we get what we want, as well as how the idea of stepping out of our comfort zones can at times hold us back.”

—
The Calgary Herald

“From the author of
Good in Bed
comes eleven short stories about romantic (and other) relationships with all their complications. Ranging from the humorous to the heartbreaking, the snippets mostly feature 30ish women, though there are male protagonists, too. One woman tries to woo her broker by putting her apartment on the market, while another young woman struggles with her father’s disappearance. Though the stories are refreshingly different from one another, Weiner’s style is consistent enough to keep readers tethered to her voice.”

—
Daily News

“Jennifer Weiner’s new book of short stories,
The Guy Not Taken,
is
really
good. So good that Paramount has already optioned one story about a woman who obsessively checks her ex-boyfriend’s online wedding registry.”

—
Jane Magazine

“These stories aptly demonstrate how deftly Weiner can transcend the normally limiting moniker of ‘chick-lit.’ Her characters are flesh-and-blood people, with flesh-and-blood problems. They navigate the everyday terrain that we all traverse and usually do so with self-deprecating humor. . . . It soon becomes apparent the reason for Weiner’s incredible popularity—her likeable voice. . . .
The Guy Not Taken
will delight fans of her earlier books and certainly garner new ones.”

—
BookReporter

ALSO BY JENNIFER WEINER

Good in Bed

In Her Shoes

Little Earthquakes

Goodnight Nobody

Certain Girls

Best Friends Forever

Fly Away Home

Then Came You

The Next Best Thing

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