Emma Narvaez
In all this book’s damaged glory, I undeniably, wholeheartedly loved it. From the title page, all the way to the end of its Acknowledgements, this book constantly kept me on my toes. Written by the creator of the beloved animated sitcom Bojack Horseman, I knew I was in for a treat. Those who are familiar with Raphael Bob-Waksberg’s brand must be aware of his wry humor cleverly intertwined into tragic storylines, but could that same wit translate the same way in the literary domain? The answer is yes.
https://www.amazon.com/Someone-Will-Love-Damaged-Glory/dp/152473201X
Each of the 18 short stories transport readers into the hearts of real people (and one dog), who experience love in every form, and in endless ways. Bob-Waksberg explores the endurance of love and why it may falter; why it was so great and where it came from in the first place. But most importantly, Bob-Waksberg illustrates what that love (or “love”) itself does to those who experience it– what’s left after the storm.
Each story diverges into various genres and formats such as literary fiction, surrealism, science-fiction, including even a poem and a list. Waksberg also makes use of every kind of relationship – boyfriend-girlfriend, husband-wife, dog-owner, brother-sister, and co-workers. These dynamics, although distinct, all highlight the flaws humans possess and their influence on the connection that brings them together. The stories ring with the same bittersweet truth, but are all executed in a myriad of ways, some taking readers across dimensions.
My favorite part of Bob-Waksberg’s experimental literature is that it doesn’t rely on cynicism nor pretension to create meaningful narratives. Instead, he balances ironic humor and sincere sensibility, leaving readers constantly surprised and charmed by his unexpected storytelling.
Inevitably, some stories hit the mark better than others, as others may have lingered for too long without giving readers a reason to care. Nevertheless, the collection as a whole offers a comprehensive landscape of love in all its forms.
Some personal favorites:
Salted Circus Cashews, Swear to God – A first date that begins well until the man offers the woman a can of salted circus cashews that definitely doesn’t have a fake snake inside prepared to jump out at the lid’s opening. The date quickly becomes an introspective reflection of the difficulties in trusting someone at the start of a new relationship.
“Open this can and everything will be okay. The salted circus cashews are waiting. They are so savory and delicious. You will be so glad you put your faith in me. This time is different; I promise you it’s different. Why would I lie to you? Why would I want to hurt you? This time there is no snake waiting. This time things are going to be wonderful.”
– Raphael Bob-Waksberg, “Salted Circus Cashews, Swear to God.” Someone Who Will Love You in All Your Damaged Glory
A Most Blessed and Auspicious Occasion – A satirical, hyperbolic analogy of wedding culture and how it reduces love to how much one is willing to spend on a Promise Egg, or whether traditional Shrieking Choruses will perform.
Missed Connection—m4w – Two people sit on a train for 60 years, waiting for the other to spark their connection. Until one day the girl finally gets off the train, and it becomes apparent to the boy how you can know someone for so long, but not really know them. How some couples spend a life together without really knowing each other. Or how some couples will never have the chance to know each other because they never try.
Lies We Told Each Other (a partial list) – The start and end of a relationship told through a list of lies told to each other. Hilarious and heartaching at the same time.
- I’ve never felt like this before.
- This moment, right here, is the happiest moment of my life.
- Yes.
- Yeah.
- No.
- Definitely.
– Raphael Bob-Waksberg, “Lies We Told Each Other (a partial list).” Someone Who Will Love You in All Your Damaged Glory
Lunch with the Person Who Dumped You – A gameshow take on five hypothetical scenarios of how a reunion lunch with an ex may turn out, namely “The No-Hard-Feelings Lunch”, “The Loaded-Weapon Lunch”, “The Reconciliation Lunch”, “The For-Old-Times’-Sake Lunch”, and my personal favorite, “The Here’s-Your-Stuff-Back Lunch”.
“The memory of whatever spark you had is rusted, corroded, hardly maintained, and scarcely revisited. This was no great affair, this thing. This was no tragic heartbreak. This was just another thing that happened in a long series of things that happened. Here’s your stuff back. Have a nice life.”
– Raphael Bob-Waksberg, “Lunch with the Person Who Dumped You.” Someone Who Will Love You in All Your Damaged Glory
rufus. – A precious narrative told completely from the perspective of a dog, Rufus, who observes its ManMonster fall in and out of love. When the ManMonster is left with Rufus and his dogged loyalty, the ManMonster utters the sound “Goodog” and nothing else matters.
“ManMonster makes noise like, “Rufus rufus rufus,” and he scratches my back and I love him. I love him with everything I am. I love him like he’s a part of myself.”
– Raphael Bob-Waksberg, “rufus.” Someone Who Will Love You in All Your Damaged Glory
More of the You That You Already Are — This one is probably my favorite out of the bunch. Here, Waksberg cleverly creates an action-packed, sci-fi narrative, with a scientifically constructed presidential mishmash of the most iconic U.S. presidents to replace ten impersonators at the Presidentland theme park. However, this science experiment does not work as planned – what’s created is a constantly malfunctioning, monster-like creature who pukes non-stop. But it’s not its fault, it didn’t choose to exist did it? When a wardrobe worker ends up falling in love with the creature, seeing through its disturbing facade and seeing the “heart of ten men”, she steals it before it gets killed by the scientists. In this sub-plot, Waksberg illustrates that anyone has the potential to be loved, even artificially created beings that won’t stop puking. But that’s just the half of it. The protagonist, the 21st president impersonator, flees this chaotic job—where he faces the threat of being replaced by another lab-created combined president and corporate misdeeds—to be with his sister, who is recovering from cancer surgery. Although Waksberg takes time to distract readers from the sole purpose of the story, at its core, there lies the message of showing up in the midst of any multidimensional crisis.
“And I think about how loving someone is kind of like being president, in that it doesn’t change you, not really. But it brings out more of the you that you already are.”
– Raphael Bob-Waksberg, “More of the You That You Already Are.” Someone Who Will Love You in All Your Damaged Glory
But my favorite quote lies humbly in the Acknowledgements section of the book, and perfectly ties everything together.
“Finally, I would like to thank my wife. About half of these stories are from before I met her and half since, and I’m convinced if you lined them all up in the order they were written, you could pinpoint the moment where my heart became whole.”
– Raphael Bob-Waksberg, “Acknowledgements.” Someone Who Will Love You in All Your Damaged Glory
Whether you had a valentine this February, you lost yours, or you’ve never had one, I recommend you read this book to experience love in all its damaged glory. At the end of the day, Waksberg makes us understand that love is out there for everyone, regardless of how damaged or unlovable we may seem to ourselves.
Bob-Waksberg, Raphael. Someone Who Will Love You in All Your Damaged Glory : Stories. New York, Alfred A. Knopf, 2019.
Emma Narvaez