Carter Bays

From the co-creator of How I Met Your Mother, a hilarious and thought-provoking comedy of manners set in New York City, following a sprawling cast of characters as they navigate life, love, loss, ambition, and spirituality—without ever looking up from their phones. It’s the summer of 2015, and Alice Quick needs to get to work. She’s twenty-eight years old, grieving her mother, barely scraping by as a nanny, and freshly kicked out of her apartment. If she can just get her act together and sign up for the MCAT, she can start chasing her dream of becoming a doctor . . . but in the Age of Distraction, the distractions are so distracting. There’s her tech millionaire brother’s religious awakening. His picture-perfect wife’s emotional breakdown. Her chaotic new roommate’s thirst for adventure. And, of course, there’s the biggest distraction of all: Love. From within the story of one summer in one woman’s life, an epic tale is unearthed, spanning continents and featuring a tapestry of characters tied to one another by threads both seen and unseen. Filled with all the warmth, humor, and heart that gained How I Met Your Mother its cult following, The Mutual Friend captures in sparkling detail the chaos of contemporary life, a life lived simultaneously in two different worlds—the physical one and the one behind our screens—and reveals how connected we all truly are.

A Novel

The Mutual Friend

“This is a rare thing: an original, intelligent novel that’s not just a perfect summer beach read, but one that deserves serious awards consideration as well. Put down your phone and pick it up. . . . A major accomplishment.”—Kirkus Reviews (starred review) From the co-creator of How I Met Your Mother, a hilarious and thought-provoking debut novel set in New York City, following an unforgettable cast of characters as they navigate life, love, loss, ambition, and spirituality—without ever looking up from their phones It’s the summer of 2015, and Alice Quick needs to get to work. She’s twenty-eight years old, grieving her mother, barely scraping by as a nanny, and freshly kicked out of her apartment. If she can just get her act together and sign up for the MCAT, she can start chasing her dream of becoming a doctor . . . but in the Age of Distraction, the distractions are so distracting. There’s her tech millionaire brother’s religious awakening. His picture-perfect wife’s emotional breakdown. Her chaotic new roommate’s thirst for adventure. And, of course, there’s the biggest distraction of all: love. From within the story of one summer in one woman’s life, a tapestry of characters is unearthed, tied to one another by threads both seen and unseen. Filled with all the warmth, humor, and heart that gained How I Met Your Mother its cult following, The Mutual Friend captures in sparkling detail the chaos of contemporary life—a life lived simultaneously in two different worlds, the physical one and the one behind our screens—and reveals how connected we all truly are.

New York, 2015. In a city of more than 8 million people, there are always new places to visit, new connections to be made, new experiences to be shared. But not for Alice Quick. Determined to finally take her MCAT exam and become a doctor, this has to be a summer of no distractions. So it's a shame that her chaotic roommate Roxy is persistently getting her into trouble, not the most convenient timing for her millionaire brother Bill to decide to embark upon a spiritual search for the meaning of life and plain inconvenient that Alice just can't seem to put down her phone. And then there's the biggest distraction of all, threatening to permanently derail all of her plans: love. Filled with warmth, humour, and heart, THE MUTUAL FRIEND is an unforgettable debut novel that perfectly captures the choreography of navigating life and love amidst the chaos of contemporary life.

the unmissable debut novel from the co-creator of How I Met Your Mother

Mutual Friend

Collectors are bound to love The Encyclopedia of Early American Sewing Machines, Second Edition. The first edition of this book, self-published by author Carter Bays in 1993, sold more than 3,000 copies, and he has totally revamped it for this printing. American sewing machines from 1850 through 1920 are featured in more than 450 large, detailed photographs, half of them in color, and current collector values are estimated. The book traces the history and development of the sewing machine industry from 1800 to after 1900. Almost all known U.S. manufacturers of sewing machines up to 1875 (and several beyond) are highlighted: Singer, Wheeler & Wilson, Shaw & Clark, Weed, Howe, and Holly, to name just a few. Do you own your great aunt's antique treadle sewing machine? This book will identify and give the history of the manufacturer. Specific information is provided on restoring antique sewing machines, and toy sewing machines are also given coverage. This title is sure to become the standard reference for early American sewing machines. 2005 values.

Carter Bays

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