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Someday This Pain Will Be Useful to You: A Novel Kindle Edition
Someday This Pain Will Be Useful to You is the story of James Sveck, a sophisticated, vulnerable young man with a deep appreciation for the world and no idea how to live in it. James is eighteen, the child of divorced parents living in Manhattan. Articulate, sensitive, and cynical, he rejects all of the assumptions that govern the adult world around him–including the expectation that he will go to college in the fall. He would prefer to move to an old house in a small town somewhere in the Midwest. Someday This Pain Will Be Useful to You takes place over a few broiling days in the summer of 2003 as James confides in his sympathetic grandmother, stymies his canny therapist, deplores his pretentious sister, and devises a fake online identity in order to pursue his crush on a much older coworker. Nothing turns out how he'd expected.
"Possibly one of the all-time great New York books, not to mention an archly comic gem" (Peter Gadol, LA Weekly), Someday This Pain Will Be Useful to You is the insightful, powerfully moving story of a young man questioning his times, his family, his world, and himself.
- LanguageEnglish
- PublisherFarrar, Straus and Giroux (BYR)
- Publication dateApril 28, 2009
- Reading age14 - 18 years
- Grade level9 and up
- File size275 KB
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Editorial Reviews
From Booklist
Review
"His best work--it's terrific, piercing, and funny. The novel demonstrates every kind of strength."--David Lipsky, The New York Times Book Review
"Deliciously vital right from the start . . . a piece of vocal virtuosity and possibly Cameron's best book . . . It is a bravura performance, and Someday This Pain Will Be Useful to You is a stunning little book. "--Lorrie Moore, The New York Review of Books
"Cameron's prose handily marries the tangled logic of adolescence to simple, beautiful language."--Peter Terzian, Newsday
"Beautifully conceived and written . . . funny, sad, tender, and sophisticated."--Michael Cart, Booklist
From the Back Cover
"Not since The Catcher in the Rye has a novel captured the deep and almost physical ache of adolescent existential sadness as trenchantly as the perfectly titled Someday This Pain Will Be Useful to You. You don’t have to be eighteen to relate to James Dunfour Sveck and his sense of alienation from a world he doesn’t understand, nor to be profoundly moved by his story. Told with compassion, insight, humor, and hope, Someday This Pain Will Be Useful to You deserves to be read by readers of all ages for years to come. I would have loved it as a teenager, and I love it now." —James Howe, author of The Misfits
"As I drew near the end of Someday This Pain Will Be Useful to You, I read more and more slowly because I didn’t want to leave James. With his devotion to precise English, his dislike of most other people—especially those his own age—and his adoration of his grandmother and old houses, James is the ideal antihero and companion. And, most important of all, he never utters a dull sentence. This is
a riveting, suspenseful, witty, and very funny novel." —Margot Livesey, author of Banishing Verona
"Peter Cameron is one of my favorite writers, and this is one of his best books, a shrewd, funny, and at times painful story about the difficulty of becoming an adult. James is a wonderful narrator—brilliant and witty, remarkably observant, and just a little infuriating. His voice is so irresistible you’ll hate to put the book down." —Stephen McCauley, author of Alternatives to Sex
"The effect that comes from reading this comedic and beautiful novel is one that I particularly love and only happens with certain books—this feeling that you madly adore the narrator, that you’ve made this new intimate friend, and that for a little while (the duration of the book, at least) you’re a little bit less alone in the world." —Jonathan Ames, author of Wake Up, Sir! and The Extra Man
About the Author
Excerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.
We sat for a moment in silence, and then the waiter delivered our meals. My father glanced at my plate of pasta, but said nothing. He cut into his nearly raw beef and smiled at the blood it drooled. “So,” he said, after he had taken a bite, “you’re not going to tell me.”
“Not going to tell you what?”
“Whether or not you’re gay.”
“No,” I said. “Why should I? Did you tell your parents?”
“I wasn’t gay,” said my father. “I was straight.”
“So, what, if you’re gay you have a moral obligation to inform your parents and if you’re straight you don’t?”
“James, I’m just trying to be helpful. I’m just trying to be a good father. You don’t have to get hostile. I just thought you might be gay, and if you were, I wanted to let you know that’s fine, and help you in whatever way I could.”
“Why might you think I was gay?”
“I don’t know. You just seem – well, let’s put it this way: you don’t seem interested in girls. You’re eighteen, and as far as I know you’ve never been on a date.”
I said nothing.
“Am I wrong? Or is that true?”
“Just because I’ve never been on a date doesn’t mean I’m gay. And besides, no one goes on dates anymore.”
“Well, whatever – normal kids hang out. They go out.”
From AudioFile
Product details
- ASIN : B004UND8GG
- Publisher : Farrar, Straus and Giroux (BYR); First edition (April 28, 2009)
- Publication date : April 28, 2009
- Language : English
- File size : 275 KB
- Text-to-Speech : Enabled
- Screen Reader : Supported
- Enhanced typesetting : Enabled
- X-Ray : Not Enabled
- Word Wise : Enabled
- Print length : 241 pages
- Best Sellers Rank: #570,063 in Kindle Store (See Top 100 in Kindle Store)
- Customer Reviews:
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Learn more how customers reviews work on AmazonCustomers say
Customers find the book engaging and well-written. They appreciate the witty humor and heartfelt story that resonates with them. The content is suitable for young adults and parents alike, providing an insightful glimpse into young adulthood. The romance is described as endearing and tender. Overall, customers describe the book as intelligent and thought-provoking.
AI-generated from the text of customer reviews
Customers find the book easy to read and engaging. They find it a nice, entertaining read with an interesting storyline. The voice is simple and the reading experience is sophisticated. Overall, readers describe the book as a good story.
"...The plotting is finely done. The dialogues range from extremely witty to LOL (which rarely happens with me, even in a supposedly "hilarious" novel.)..." Read more
"...It is a good story. My main issue with it was the punctuation in the sentences got so in the way of my reading- there seemed to be NO commas...." Read more
"...The voice is simple, engaging and in James Peter Cameron creates a narrator who is an astute observer of those around and has opinions on others and..." Read more
"...The author has a light and humorous touch which is enjoyable at first. One third in I began to wonder what the kid's beef was...." Read more
Customers enjoy the well-written and engaging story. They find the protagonist likable and the writing convincing. The book is described as a readable, easy-to-read novel with an easy flow.
"...and intelligence and wit and good humor and excellent writing, then you will not be disappointed. You may even love it, as I did." Read more
"...This story is written well enough that I felt like I know him pretty well...." Read more
"...The voice is simple, engaging and in James Peter Cameron creates a narrator who is an astute observer of those around and has opinions on others and..." Read more
"...The novel is crisply written, humorous throughout, adroitly crafted, endearing, while suitably alienated by all the phony characters who..." Read more
Customers enjoy the book's humor. They find the dialogue witty and humorous, with sections where they laugh out loud. The author has a light and humorous touch that is enjoyable at first. The characters are described as lovable and thoughtful.
"...The plotting is finely done. The dialogues range from extremely witty to LOL (which rarely happens with me, even in a supposedly "hilarious" novel.)..." Read more
"...The book has some wonderful dialog and there were sections where I laughed out loud...." Read more
"...The novel is crisply written, humorous throughout, adroitly crafted, endearing, while suitably alienated by all the phony characters who..." Read more
"...The author has a light and humorous touch which is enjoyable at first. One third in I began to wonder what the kid's beef was...." Read more
Customers find the story heartbreaking and funny. They describe it as an amazing portrait of the angst, longing, and discomfort of young people. The book is described as profound and a pleasant representation of the YA coming-of-age genre. It creates much dinner conversation and is thought-provoking.
"...It's a perfectly pleasant representation of the YA coming of age Genre...." Read more
"This beautiful, painful, luminous, and funny novel may be the most complex depiction I’ve read of a young person trying to figure out his place in..." Read more
"...in the Rye to it, but it's definitely original and an amazing portrait of the angst, longing and discomfort of the teenage years, particularly for..." Read more
"i would call this book interesting, somewhere between provocative and sad...it's worth the read, the characters are actually very believable and the..." Read more
Customers find the book engaging for young adults and parents. They describe it as a sensitive coming-of-age novel that is not challenging for teenagers.
"...novel did for me was capture, in its main character, a perfect snapshot of young adulthood, in all its painful throes...." Read more
"What a wonderful coming-of-age novel in the Age of Cynicism...." Read more
"...Adults would enjoy reading this book also; our world seen through the eyes of a wisely observant adolescent serves as a worthy reminder of who we..." Read more
"Overall, I think this book was well-written and did capture the 18-year old mindset pretty well...." Read more
Customers find the romance engaging and well-crafted. They describe the characters as endearing and vulnerable.
"...compared to a Rodin sculpture, this can be compared to an exquisite Song dynasty teacup, perfect in form and purity of tone...." Read more
"...Maybe it was because it all felt so familiar or so lovingly rendered, but I didn't really miss the plot. So do I recommend it?..." Read more
"...The novel is crisply written, humorous throughout, adroitly crafted, endearing, while suitably alienated by all the phony characters who..." Read more
"This beautiful, painful, luminous, and funny novel may be the most complex depiction I’ve read of a young person trying to figure out his place in..." Read more
Customers appreciate the book's intelligence. They find it observant and interesting.
"...and in James Peter Cameron creates a narrator who is an astute observer of those around and has opinions on others and emphasizes precision in..." Read more
"...He’s smart, very observant, and also oblivious to certain frailties of the human heart...." Read more
"...good book...the author's style of writing is clean and simple and intelligent...buy this book, if your looking for an excellent read!" Read more
"This is about a Holden Caulfieldesque coming of age adolescent, smart, funny, witty, tender and well crafted in every way...." Read more
Customers have mixed opinions about the character development. Some find the characters believable and charming, with the main character being funny and precociously cynical. Others feel some characters were poorly developed, like the mother, who was over the top. Overall, the protagonist is described as endearing yet vulnerable.
"...The novel has a modest cast of characters and the characters are all extremely sympathetic despite their flaws...." Read more
"...up this is a small gem of a book that is an easy read with an engaging narrative voice, that at first does not seem to be about much but stays with..." Read more
"...For most of story the main character is disaffected and misunderstood by a family that seems if not stellar, hardly deserving of an 18 year old's..." Read more
"...The character's all stayed distinctly themselves, maybe a little wiser for the events of the story, but then again maybe not really...." Read more
Top reviews from the United States
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- Reviewed in the United States on August 10, 2021What a pleasure to read a novel that, in its modest way, seems to achieve a sort of perfection. -- perfection, of course like beauty being in the eyes of the beholder. I consider Greene's "The End of the Affair" to be one of my ideals of perfection in the novel (leaving aside all the giants of 19-20th Century literature). If "The End of the Affair" can be compared to a Rodin sculpture, this can be compared to an exquisite Song dynasty teacup, perfect in form and purity of tone. The novel has a modest cast of characters and the characters are all extremely sympathetic despite their flaws. The main character, a Holden Caulfield-type, is totally lovable. The plotting is finely done. The dialogues range from extremely witty to LOL (which rarely happens with me, even in a supposedly "hilarious" novel.) I can't praise this modest novel enough. It's a treasure. Read it. If you love humanity (well, you know what I mean) and intelligence and wit and good humor and excellent writing, then you will not be disappointed. You may even love it, as I did.
- Reviewed in the United States on August 4, 2009"Someday This Pain Will Be Useful to You" is about an 18 year old kid who is still growing up- though in the body of a legal "man". He is sad for no reason, bothered by no action, seemingly depressed. He wants to leave the world without making a mark on it- to leave the beauty of existence untouched/ unmarred by human hands.
This story is written well enough that I felt like I know him pretty well. He seems like a kid- one not unlike myself at times- where it seems to be much easier to THINK than to TALK. Talking seems to distract from the feelings which you want to express- but to think it, you can run it over and over in your head and it will always come out correctly. Because thought is not a language, it's an entire other world.
"Someday..." carried through many life experiences- divorce, parent-son talks, fitting in during school, college wants, sexuality, social acceptance, depression... and even the trusty psychiatrist.
I like that I am reading his thought processes. I like that I can see what's going on in his mind. Because, that's pretty much how I am. I think and think and think and analyse until there's nothing left- and I have NO IDEA how much time has passed. That's me in a nutshell. You either love it or hate it.
By the way, I loved his grandma. She reminds me of "home".
And his sister was hilarious.
I would NOT compare "Someday..." to "Catcher in the Rye" by JD Salinger. I would moreso compare it to "The Perks of Being a Wallflower" by Stephen Chbosky- maybe even "Catch" by Will Leitch.
It is a good story. My main issue with it was the punctuation in the sentences got so in the way of my reading- there seemed to be NO commas. I know this is only cosmetic, but I kept stmbling over the sentences without them. Also, I think there needed to be ONE more chapter before the ending. Other than that, it's a solid 4 stars.
- Reviewed in the United States on December 2, 2012Once I started reading I enjoyed the book being told in the protagonist James voice. James is an eighteen year old well to do New Yorker who is the child of divorce. The book opens with the sentence "The day my sister Gilian decided to pronounce her name with a hard G was, coincidentally, the same day my mother returned early and alone from her honeymoon." This sets us up for a family where James feels disconnected from both his parents and his sister who is now in college at Brown. We get glimpses of To begin with the title of the book drew me in, made me curious about delving into the pages. the Art-World, James's mother runs an art gallery and believes an art gallery should contain things no one really needs, and carries items from a person from Japan who refuses to have a name.
James father is a partner at a law firm who is having plastic surgery for his eyelids and lives in one of the Trump apartments. The one person James feels connected to is his grandmother who lives in New Jersey and always has time to listen to James when he visits. Within the first third of the book, James pronounces that he is not sure he wants to go to college and would like instead to move to the Midwest and own a house there that would be less expensive than what his father has to spend on college.
This is not a plot heavy book with steamy sex and a murder a minute. The plot is subtle, it is a post 9/11 New York story but does not talk about terrorism or wars, instead only halfway through the book do we realize that James actually was in school where he saw the towers collapse and a woman who no one even bothered to realize was missing for many days afterwards. As a parallel James goes missing twice, once during an American Classroom event in Washington D.C that we hear about in backstory. And then another time when he goes to his grandmother's place and neither his sister nor mother realize his absence and there is the line that they would have noticed had he been gone longer.
The voice is simple, engaging and in James Peter Cameron creates a narrator who is an astute observer of those around and has opinions on others and emphasizes precision in language. However while James is particular about language and its use one also gets the impression that he is hiding behind words. The climax of the novel comes when James sets up a profile on Gents4Gents to match the dream that John, his mothers gay gallery assistant is looking for. But this again is not plot heavy and don't expect a big coming out event or a hot and heavy romance. The book has some wonderful dialog and there were sections where I laughed out loud. There was something about this book, the way it deals with issues with both gravity and levity that made me think of Nick Hornby's `A long way down.'
To sum up this is a small gem of a book that is an easy read with an engaging narrative voice, that at first does not seem to be about much but stays with you a long time.
Top reviews from other countries
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Alba VeloceReviewed in Italy on August 28, 2019
5.0 out of 5 stars Profonda analisi dei tormenti di un adolescente inquieto
Il libro narra la storia di un diciottenne americano apparentemente molto fortunato, perché abita a New York city, non ha alcun problema economico e deve andare a breve al college. Eppure tutto questo non è sufficiente a dare un senso alla sua vita, perché non riesce a sentirsi a suo agio con i coetanei, che gli appaiono superficiali e concentrati sull'obiettivo di essere accettati dalla società, facendo sempre la "cosa giusta", che li rende accettati dalla famiglia e popolari nel gruppo. Non ha nemmeno ben chiaro quale sia il suo orientamento sessuale e perché l'unica persona esterna al gruppo familiare con cui gli piace stare è gay. Nella tempesta dei suoi dubbi non gli sono di grande aiuto la mamma (proprietaria di una galleria d'arte in cui nessuno va mai e che lascia il terzo marito durante la luna di miele), il padre (uomo d'affari che si sottopone a interventi estetici) e la sorella (una adolescente socialmente inserita molto diversa da lui). Non è nemmeno di aiuto la psicoterapeuta, che incontra una volta a settimana, e che inanella luoghi comuni. L'unico punto di riferimento è la nonna, che non lo giudica e non prova a indicargli la soluzione ai suoi problemi, ma lo ascolta, cercando di far venire fuori quanto di bello ha dentro. È, quindi, una storia in cui possiamo tutti specchiarci e per questo ne consiglio la lettura a chiunque.
- Philipp ReineckeReviewed in Germany on October 12, 2016
5.0 out of 5 stars Good read
Although, I have to say I haven't finished the book yet, I really enjoy reading it. The protagonist might appear obnoxious to some people but that is what the book is about. A young boy who doesnt fit into society and some of his remarks or the way he describes some situations are quite hilarious. I can recommend it :)
- Mr. D. P. JayReviewed in the United Kingdom on August 1, 2015
5.0 out of 5 stars not disappointed
I was not disappointed – indeed I have ordered another of his books - The Weekend.
I was once left with a friend’s eighteen-year-old son when she left the room. Trying to make polite conversation, I asked him what his plans were now that he had finished his A’ levels. He said that he was going to join the circus and get ‘as far from here as possible.’
Teenage angst, I thought. I had wanted to talk about universities and courses.
This book is written in the same sort of engaging language.
It’s Cameron's fifth novel. He counts among his strongest influences the novels of British women writers such as Rose Macaulay, Barbara Pym, Penelope Mortimer, and Elizabeth Taylor. He admires these writers for their elegant and accomplished use of language and their penetrating and sensitive exploration of personal life.
From 1990 – 1998 he worked for Lambda Legal Defense and Education Fund, a legal organization that protects and extends the civil rights of gay men, lesbians, and people with HIV/AIDS.
The novel's title comes from the ancient Roman, Ovid; the full quotation is preceded with, "Be patient and tough". It appears in the novel when the protagonist goes to a sailing camp - Camp Zephyr whose motto was "Be Patient and Tough; Someday This Pain Will Be Useful to You."
The protagonist shows some signs of Asperger’s but maybe he’s merely an introvert: -I only feel like myself when I am alone. Interacting with other people does not come naturally to me; it is a strain and requires
And “I’m not a sociopath or a freak (although I don’t suppose people who are sociopaths or freaks self-identify as such); I just don’t enjoy being with people. People, at least in my experience, rarely say anything interesting to each other. They always talk about their lives and they don’t have very interesting lives. So I get impatient. For some reason I think you should only say something if it’s interesting or absolutely has to be said.”
Hiding his fears behind a curtain of disinterested contempt, James, who is gay but unwilling to either discuss or test it, likes only two people in his life, his wise and accepting grandmother and the man who manages his mother's art gallery. In the course of the story, James comes to realize that he can't wall himself off forever, finally making a maladroit and unsuccessful attempt to reach out.
Reminiscent of London Kings Cross: I seriously doubt women would have torn down the old Penn Station) infuriates me. At the new, improved Penn Station they don't announce the plat¬form until about thirty seconds before the train departs, which means you have to stand around staring up at the (really ugly) signboard and then make this mad dash along with thousands of other people to the announced platform if you want to get a seat.
Reminiscent of some places where I have been on holiday: I set out to walk to the Getty Museum. I thought this would be fairly easy since I could see it; it seemed merely a mat¬ter of going around the corner and up the hill. But it turns out you can't walk to the Getty. At one point the sidewalk just ended for no apparent reason and I was forced to walk on the shoulder of the road, where obviously I was not supposed to be walking because I almost got run over. Drivers in L.A. are not pedestrian-friendly; it's like they've never seen pedestrians before and they don't believe they're real, so they can drive past them at eighty miles an hour. The road I thought would take me to the Getty Museum only took me to an eight-lane freeway, which I knew I could not cross, even though I could see the Getty Mu¬seum right in front of me.
I found it odd that Americans called continental quilts ‘comforters’.
I had to look up ‘finagle’ = To obtain or achieve by cleverness or deceit, especially in persuading someone.
Also ‘termagant’ = a harsh-tempered or overbearing woman.
A little proof-reading wouldn’t have gone amiss – e.g.’stoop’ when he meant step’.
It was one of the American Library Association’s Best Books for Young Adults 2008. It also won the Ferro-Grumley Award for Gay Male Fiction 2008.
- Antonio GomezReviewed in Spain on January 21, 2013
4.0 out of 5 stars Very good vision of a troubled teenager.
Very realistic aproximation to a teenager with familiar, social and mental troubles. There is a film based in the book, but I think the novel is much better.
-
HirouchReviewed in Japan on January 1, 2016
5.0 out of 5 stars 思春期の葛藤、とただ括るにはあまりに深い(あくまでも個人的に)
英語の勉強を兼ねて読みました。もともとこの作者の日本語訳の小説が
好きだったこともあります。
何と言ったら良いのか、自分が小説に期待しているものが全て入って
いました。Just right for me、という感じです。
話の展開というよりも、主人公の心の声、比喩、キャラクターそれぞれ
の発する言葉、全てにおいて自分の心が揺さぶられました。
話の展開的に言えば、ほとんど何も起こりません。そもそも話の流れで
勝負する類いの小説ではありません。けれど表現の仕方次第でここまで
人の心に何かを届けることができると言うことに素直に感動しました。
英語のレベルも自分には合っていたと思います。ストーリーを追う分
には問題がないですが、たまに単語の問題で立ち止まってしまうことが
ある感じでした。
話の展開には全く関係ないものの、KindleのWord Wise機能、もう少し
何とかならないものでしょうか。サポートされる必要のないレベルの
単語を、意味不明な(文脈に全くそぐわない)言葉で言い換えている
頻度が多すぎます。