{"product_id":"take-me-with-you","title":"Take Me with You","description":"\n\u003ctable align=\"center\" border=\"0\" cellpadding=\"2\" cellspacing=\"0\" width=\"100%\"\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd class=\"productDetailSmallElements\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eBiographical Note\u003c\/strong\u003e:\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003cb\u003eSteven Rowley \u003c\/b\u003eis the \n\u003ci\u003eNew York Times\u003c\/i\u003e bestselling author of six novels, including \n\u003ci\u003eLily and the Octopus, \u003c\/i\u003e a \n\u003ci\u003eWashington Post\u003c\/i\u003e Notable Book; \n\u003ci\u003eThe Editor, \u003c\/i\u003e an NPR Best Book of the Year; \n\u003ci\u003eThe Guncle, \u003c\/i\u003e winner of the Thurber Prize for American Humor; and \n\u003ci\u003eThe Celebrants, \u003c\/i\u003ea \n\u003ci\u003eToday \u003c\/i\u003eShow Read with Jenna book club pick \n\u003ci\u003e.\u003c\/i\u003e His fiction has been translated into twenty languages. He resides in Palm Springs, California.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eReview Quotes\u003c\/strong\u003e:\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003cb\u003eA \u003ci\u003eGood Housekeeping\u003c\/i\u003e May Book Club Pick\u003c\/b\u003e\n\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003cb\u003eOne of \u003ci\u003ePEOPLE Magazine\u003c\/i\u003e's Best Books of May\u003cbr\u003eOne of \u003ci\u003eBuzzfeed\u003c\/i\u003e's Best LGBTQ+ Books of 2026 \u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eA Most Anticipated Book of 2026 \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ci\u003eSouthern Living - Book Riot - BookBub - Queerty - Electric Hit\u003c\/i\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\"A deeply grounded portrait of a marriage.\" -- \n\u003ci\u003e\u003cb\u003ePride Source\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\"Take a deep, slow breath and prepare for Rowley's unique combination of tenderness, longing, sorrow, and humor. The biggest mystery isn't how a man disappears into a beam of light; it's the human vulnerability of moving on, facing mistakes, and naming losses. Every character has hidden stories. Getting a ringside seat to their journeys is the best gift any reader could want.\" -- \n\u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eThe Southern Bookseller Review\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\"In this touching dramedy, Jesse's husband, Norman, gets abducted by aliens. While wondering if his beloved will ever return, Jesse also grapples with grief, paranoia and family drama.\" -- \n\u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003ePEOPLE\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\"Rowley doesn't shy away from the hard questions, and the novel is all the better for it. \n\u003ci\u003e Take Me With You \u003c\/i\u003eis a joyously bittersweet meditation on queer aging and the ridiculousness of love and living. If you're lucky, you get to be old enough to complain about your knees. Isn't that something?\" -- \n\u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eThe New York Times\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\"Steven Rowley takes this deliciously bizarre premise and spins it into something all-too real: a meditation on how we never fully know the people we love, even after decades of shared life . . . Rowley, who gave us \n\u003ci\u003eThe Guncle'\u003c\/i\u003es perfect blend of humor and heartbreak, returns with his sharpest work yet, a novel that lays bare the essential unknowability at the heart of even our most intimate bonds. It's speculative fiction as emotional excavation, and it'll wreck you in the best way.\" -- \n\u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eElectric Hit\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\"Rowley, himself the recipient of a humor-writing prize, adeptly balances the absurdity of Jesse's circumstances with the sensitive portrayal of a longtime couple at a crossroads. Recommend to readers of humorous but moving fiction, like that of Kevin Wilson and Rufi Thorpe.\" -- \n\u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eBooklist \u003c\/i\u003e(starred review)\u003c\/b\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\"I reach for Steven Rowley's books when I need something that will mend my heart.\" -- \n\u003ci\u003e\u003cb\u003eBook Riot\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\"Steven Rowley brings his resonant wit and emotional insight to an epic love story.\" -- \n\u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eThe Nerd Daily\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\n\u003cbr\u003e\"Another foray into perfection by Steven Rowley! Once again, Steven Rowley weaves a story with equal parts humor and heart . . . His characters feel real: flawed yet relatable. How does Steven Rowley make me laugh so uproariously but make my heart absolutely ache for his characters? A masterful work by a true artist!\" -- \n\u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eThe Gloss Book Club\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\"[A] poignant, startling novel.\" -- \n\u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eBookBub\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\n\u003cbr\u003e\"Hilarious and heartwarming . . . \n\u003ci\u003eTake Me with You\u003c\/i\u003e explores the unexplainable gravitational pulls in our universes that bring us together and threaten to tear us apart.\" -- \n\u003ci\u003e\u003cb\u003eQueerty\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\"Only national treasure Steven Rowley could blur the otherworldly with the everyday and turn all of it into heartache-flavored comedy.\" -- \n\u003cb\u003eCatherine Newman, \u003ci\u003eNew York Times\u003c\/i\u003e bestselling author of \u003ci\u003eSandwich \u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\"A tender and thoughtful story about the bonds of romance and family, about the inevitability of bereavement and grief, about the strangeness and beauty of being alive. And of course \n\u003ci\u003eTake Me With You\u003c\/i\u003e is funny; it's a book by Steven Rowley.\" -- \n\u003cb\u003eRumaan Alam, \u003ci\u003eNew York Times\u003c\/i\u003e bestselling author of \u003ci\u003eEntitlement\u003c\/i\u003e \u003c\/b\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\"Beautiful, bittersweet, funny and wise. \n\u003ci\u003eTake Me with You\u003c\/i\u003e shines a hopeful light on life and love, loss and belonging. A gem.\" -- \n\u003cb\u003eChris Whitaker, \u003ci\u003eNew York Times\u003c\/i\u003e bestselling author of \u003ci\u003eAll the Colors of the Dark \u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\"A wild premise and delightfully eccentric characters, but then suddenly--like one of those Magic Eye posters from the 90s--the whole novel resolves into a new level of focus and you are left with . . . beauty. Profundity. Grace. Rowley is a magician.\" -- \n\u003cb\u003eRufi Thorpe, author of \u003ci\u003eMargo's Got Money Troubles\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\n\u003cbr\u003e\"Steven Rowley's \n\u003ci\u003eTake Me with You\u003c\/i\u003e is a cosmic romp through the mysteries and challenges of long-term marriage. A screw-ball comedy that's ultimately about rediscovering true love.\" -- \n\u003cb\u003eJohn Kenney, \u003ci\u003eNew York Times\u003c\/i\u003e bestselling author and winner of the Thurber Prize\u003c\/b\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\"Steven Rowley has crafted a gem of a story: gorgeous, wise, replete with indelible characters, and aflame with empathy and warmth.\" -- \n\u003cb\u003eJosh Duboff, author of \u003ci\u003eEarly Thirties\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003ePublisher Marketing\u003c\/strong\u003e:\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003cb\u003eAN INSTANT \u003ci\u003eUSA TODAY\u003c\/i\u003e BESTSELLER \u003c\/b\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\"Only national treasure Steven Rowley could blur the otherworldly with the everyday and turn all of it into heartache-flavored comedy.\" --Catherine Newman, \u003ci\u003eNew York Times\u003c\/i\u003e bestselling author of \u003ci\u003eSandwich \u003c\/i\u003eand\u003ci\u003e Wreck\u003c\/i\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eWe are all alien, even to the people who know us best.\n\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eCollege professor Jesse del Ruth has been abandoned. Thirty years into their relationship, Jesse witnesses his husband, Norman, get out of bed late one night, walk into their Joshua Tree backyard, step into a strange beam of light and . . . \n\u003ci\u003edisappear\u003c\/i\u003e. How could Norman desert him after a lifetime together? Where did he go? And, most confoundingly . . . will he ever return? Jesse knew they were both feeling stuck, longing for something they couldn't quite name. But was their rut so deep that Norman's only option was to leave Jesse behind? \n\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eAs Jesse struggles to understand Norman's disappearance, he tries to piece together his new reality. Is he expected to wait patiently for a partner who may never come back? Or is this an opportunity for reinvention? He is, after all, alone for the first time in his adult life. Should he return to the classroom? Put in a pool? Get a dog? Call his estranged mother? What does it mean to be alone when you've always been one half of a whole? \n\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eWhen Norman's sister, Lally, lands on Jesse's doorstep with an urgent request, Norman's absence becomes even more profound. Add to Jesse's grief and confusion a conspiracy-theorist neighbor, a strange man following him, and suspicions that he may have had a hand in Norman's disappearance, and Jesse starts to crack under the pressure. With his husband missing and the world closing in, all eyes are on Jesse. Before he can understand how Norman could leave it all behind, Jesse must confront what it means to stay. \n\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eIn \n\u003ci\u003eTake Me With You, \u003c\/i\u003e Steven Rowley brings his resonant wit and emotional insight to an epic love story--an exploration of the forces that draw two people into the same orbit and the gravity that threatens to pull them apart.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eReview Citations:\u003c\/strong\u003e\n\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cul\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cspan class=\"italic\"\u003eBooklist\u003c\/span\u003e 05\/01\/2026 (EAN 9780593851494, Hardcover) - *Starred Review\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cspan class=\"italic\"\u003eKirkus Reviews\u003c\/span\u003e 05\/15\/2026 (EAN 9780593851494, Hardcover)\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cspan class=\"italic\"\u003ePublishers Weekly\u003c\/span\u003e 05\/18\/2026 (EAN 9780593851494, Hardcover)\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003c\/ul\u003e\n\n\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003c\/tr\u003e\n\u003c\/table\u003e\n","brand":"G.P. Putnam's Sons","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":51496203747606,"sku":"9780593851494","price":36.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0857\/9910\/8886\/files\/9780593851494.jpg?v=1783057469","url":"https:\/\/lusper.myshopify.com\/products\/take-me-with-you","provider":"Lusperbooks","version":"1.0","type":"link"}