Neel Patel is a first-generation Indian American who grew up in Champaign, Illinois. His debut story collection, If You See Me, Don't Say Hi, was a New York Times Book Review Editor's Choice and was long-listed for the Story Prize and the Aspen Words Literary Prize. He currently lives in Los Angeles. Tell Me How to Be is his debut novel.
Praise for Tell Me How To Be: A Lilly's Library Book Club Pick from
Lilly Singh
A Most Anticipated Book (The TODAY Show, Good Morning America,
Harper's Bazaar, Reader's Digest, Business Insider, The Millions,
Lambda Literary, Goodreads, PopSugar, Bustle, Chicago Review of
Books, LGBTQ Reads, Alta, Apartment Therapy) "A beautiful book
about a mother and son...I really loved this book."
--Rumaan Alam on The TODAY Show
"Patel infuses Tell Me How to Be with a lively self-awareness,
humor and warmth... Mother and son share a love of guilty pleasures
in a novel that asks: When you find the melody that speaks to you,
why let it go?"
--New York Times Book Review "If you want your heart broken open,
Neel Patel's Tell Me How to Be, about an immigrant mother still
longing for the man she left behind, and her mostly closeted son
still struggling with his own desires, is perfection."
--Jennifer Weiner, USA Today "This is a dream of a novel -- the
story is, among so many things, about family and its endless forms,
about loves found and lost and reimagined. It's deeply funny and
full of feeling, by turns wickedly funny and emotional. I was
smitten, and I'm so glad it's a part of our canon."
--Bryan Washington, The Cut
"If you like stories about families coming to terms with long-held
secrets, Patel's self-assured debut should be on your radar."
--Harper's Bazaar "This debut novel about an Indian-American family
has all the right ingredients: family secrets, love, sexuality,
loss, identity questions and remorse."
--Good Morning America "Poignant...Fresh...Soulful and
convincing."
--The Guardian "A moving saga of identity and reconciliation."
--People Magazine "In this soulful, moody novel, Patel shows how
Akash and Renu suffer from the impossibility of emotional honesty
within their Indian immigrant community in the Midwest, its norms
enforced by gossip and social snubs."
--The Minneapolis Star Tribune
"Both irreverent and tender, this story of a recently widowed
mother and grown son going through the motions of selling the
family home, each trying to figure out how to best make each other
happy while learning to accept their mistakes and each other, is a
love story at its heart."
--Reader's Digest "Generous and soulful...As enveloping and warm as
a long-overdue hug from a loved one, and written in accessible,
dynamic prose, it'd make a perfect last-minute holiday gift for any
son to give a mother, and read for themselves, too."
--Chicago Review of Books "Tell Me How to Be is a quietly wise
novel, a love song to families, however imperfect they may be, as
well as a tender and fierce celebration of queerness. It's a lot of
books in one, and each one is a knockout."
--Alta Journal of California
--"A funny and moving story about forgiveness and learning to move
forward."
--BookRiot
"Patel's well-drawn characters and richly metaphorical style carry
the reader along."
--New York Journal of Books "Neel Patel's gorgeous debut novel
flows so seamlessly that you hardly notice you're reading it; it
feels more like you're simply existing with his characters."
--BookPage
"Readers who enjoyed Nadia Hashimi's Sparks Like Stars and Jonathan
Franzen's The Corrections will enjoy similar complicated family
dynamics and needing to read between the lines of what is being
said to get at what is meant. Highly recommend to anyone keeping
secrets from their families."
--ALA Rainbow Round Table
"A funny, yet heartbreaking story of a mother and son grappling
with grief and moving on from the past together."
--PopSugar
"This excellent debut novel explores themes of love, betrayal, and
reconciliation in a modern, funny and tender way that is sure to
make it a readers' favorite in 2022."
--The San Diego Union Tribune
"While the novel does offer wry and dark comedic takes on what it
means to be a modern family, it is more accurately a beautifully
and carefully crafted chronicle of characters in search of one
another, triangulating their past with their present in an ongoing
attempt to fully see and be seen."
--West Trade Review
"[A] resplendent debut...Patel skillfully maneuvers through the
treacherous territory of abandoned dreams, family squabbles, and
cultural clashes before finding a resounding catharsis for mother
and son. The result is noteworthy and memorable."
--Publishers Weekly (starred review) "Emotionally rich...A winner
for book clubs and those who enjoy a little heartstring
pulling."
--Booklist "Strong characters and a sharp depiction of familial
secrets."
--Kirkus "Once in a while there comes a book that reminds us of why
we read: to feel, to question, to grow. This is that book. A love
letter to R&B, youth, and the unforgettable agonies of one's
first love. The emotional truth of this indelibly portrayed family
and their messy lives will leave you weeping and shattered. I will
read everything Neel Patel writes from here on."
--Susie Yang, New York Times bestselling author of White Ivy "Tell
Me How to Be is daring, hilarious, poignant, and impossible to put
down. Neel Patel is a fabulous storyteller!"
--Deesha Philyaw, author of The Secret Lives of Church Ladies
"A soulful and seductive love song of a book, Tell Me How to Be is
a keen and sharply hilarious celebration of the universal messiness
of desire and the necessity of coming clean first with ourselves. I
laughed out loud at the prickliness of Renu and ached for Akash
through the book's careful unfurling of the past. In this
examination of identity through yearning and loss and the enduring
consequences of denial, Patel has crafted an unforgettable duet
between mother and son."
--Nancy Jooyoun Kim, New York Times bestselling author of The Last
Story of Mina Lee "I loved Tell Me How to Be's story of family,
first love, and figuring out your place in the world. Neel's
writing is vulnerable, authentic and entertaining. This book gives
a fresh perspective to complicated family relationships...something
everyone can relate to."
--Lilly Singh, #1 New York Times bestselling author of How to Be a
Bawse "Neel Patel's compelling first novel tells a story that is
sometimes funny, sometimes disturbing, and, by the end, deeply
moving. Tell Me How to Be explores the high price of secrets,
deceit, and regret and the redemptive power of speaking one's
truth. Patel's short chapters, immensely readable prose, and talent
for continually raising the stakes for his complicated characters
kept me turning the pages late into the night. A memorable
debut."
--Stephen McCauley, author of My Ex-Life
"Immersive, seductive and elegant, this novel shimmers richly on
the surface, even as its depths pulse with potent heartbreak and
loss."
--Mahesh Rao, author of Polite Society
Praise for If You See Me, Don't Say Hi: "Patel upends what we think
the experience of Indians in America looks like. It's about time."
--Rumaan Alam, author of Leave the World Behind
"Refreshing...Defiant...Consistently surprising." --The New York
Times Book Review "Patel writes with the wisdom and compassion of
an old soul." --Celeste Ng, New York Times bestselling author of
Little Fires Everywhere
"Surprising, funny...Brave...A reminder that messiness makes the
human experience beautiful." --NPR
"A joy to read, reminiscent of Jhumpa Lahiri and David Ebershoff.
What exquisite writing. What a tremendous talent." --Imbolo Mbue,
New York Times bestselling author of Behold the Dreamers
"Patel turns his lens on Indian-Americans, addressing with depth
and care subjects that are often overlooked or made into
caricature." --Vanity Fair
"Neel Patel upends stereotypes, especially Indian-American
masculinity. He's at his most remarkable when illuminating the
experience of queer men making sense of their sexuality, and
allowing themselves to hope for a happy ending." --BuzzFeed
"Patel will make you laugh, then cry, then feel uncomfortable, then
feel free, all within a few pages." --Scaachi Koul, author of One
Day We'll All Be Dead and None of This Will Matte
|
Ask a Question About this Product More... |
|
