Select delivery location
See All Buying Options
Amazon book clubs early access
Loading your book clubs
There was a problem loading your book clubs. Please try again.
Not in a club? Learn more
Amazon book clubs early access

Join or create book clubs

Choose books together

Track your books
Bring your club to Amazon Book Clubs, start a new book club and invite your friends to join, or find a club that’s right for you for free.
Explore Amazon Book Clubs
Kindle app logo image

Download the free Kindle app and start reading Kindle books instantly on your smartphone, tablet, or computer - no Kindle device required.

Read instantly on your browser with Kindle for Web.

Using your mobile phone camera - scan the code below and download the Kindle app.

QR code to download the Kindle App

Follow the author

Tom Spanbauer
+ Follow
More books from this author
Something went wrong. Please try your request again later.

The Man Who Fell in Love with the Moon by Tom Spanbauer (30-Sep-1992) Paperback Paperback

by Tom Spanbauer (Author)
4.6 4.6 out of 5 stars 160 ratings
See all formats and editions
The Man Who Fell in Love with the Moon is an American epic of the old West for our own times -- a novel huge in its imaginative scope and daring in its themes. The narrator is Shed, or Duivichi-un-Dua, a half-breed bisexual boy who makes his living at the Indian Head Hotel in the little turn-of-the-century town of Excellent, Idaho. The imperious Ida Richilieu is Shed's employer, the town's mayor and the mistress, and the mistress and owner of this outrageously pink whorehouse. Together with the beautiful prostitute Alma Hatch, and the philosophical, green-eyed, half-crazy cowboy Dellwood Barker, this collection of misfits and outcasts make up the core of Shed's eccentric family. And although laced with the ugliness and cruelty of the frontier West -- Shed is raped by the same man who then murders the woman he thinks is his mother, and the Mormon townspeople bring a fiery end to Ida's raucous way of life -- the love and acceptance that tie this family together provide the true heart of this novel. The Man Who Fell in Love with the Moon is a beautifully told, mythic tale that is as well a profound meditation on sexualty,race and man's relationship to himself and the natural world.
Read more Read less
Previous page
  1. Publisher
    HarperPerennial
  2. See all details
Next page
The Amazon Book Review
The Amazon Book Review
Book recommendations, author interviews, editors' picks, and more. Read it now.

Product details

  • ASIN ‏ : ‎ B011T8HA36
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.6 4.6 out of 5 stars 160 ratings

About the author

Follow authors to get new release updates, plus improved recommendations.
Tom Spanbauer

Tom Spanbauer

Brief content visible, double tap to read full content.
Full content visible, double tap to read brief content.

Discover more of the author’s books, see similar authors, read author blogs and more

Customer reviews

4.6 out of 5 stars
4.6 out of 5
160 global ratings

Top reviews from the United States

Kellee M. Morris
5.0 out of 5 stars Best book ever great seller
Reviewed in the United States on January 30, 2024
Verified Purchase
fave book, but it for everyone
Helpful
 Report
MIA
5.0 out of 5 stars GREAT book
Reviewed in the United States on October 12, 2023
Verified Purchase
I randomly found this book at an airbnb, read it, and loved it. It's amazing that it was written over 30 years ago, yet seems like it was written in today's world. I love it when a book finds you and you discover a new author. I absolutely LOVED this book. It’s a story that will stick with you always.

Bravo, Mr. Spanbauer! I plan on reading his other books. I'm a new fan for sure.
One person found this helpful
Helpful
 Report
Maurice Williams
5.0 out of 5 stars Great journey that stretches the imagination!
Reviewed in the United States on April 5, 2009
Verified Purchase
Wow, what an incredibly trippy ride through the Wild West! Set primarily in the gold mining town of Excellent, Idaho during the early 1900's, this novel is filled with adventure and history, magic and adventure, love and debauchery, philosophy and religion. "The Man Who Fell in Love with the Moon" is one of the more creatively imagined novels that I've come across recently. At its core is the coming of age story of the main character and narrator Shed, whose quest for a fuller understanding of self leads him on an odyssey that ends, as many do, exactly where it started. In the telling of this story, Spanbauer reinforces the idea that it's rarely the destination but the journey that transforms. Populated with characters both loveable and detestable the novel intertwines each character's story in a way that allows for an exploration of Native American beliefs, frontier values and the human debris that results when the two collide.

It's also a story about the importance of stories; "You can't stop people from talking" - explains Ida, the novel's heroine - "They talk and pretty soon you got a story, and what's a human being without a story?" "The Man Who Fell in Love with the Moon" is not for the faint of heart. It can be seen as modern day ribald in the tradition of Chaucer's Canterbury Tales or an insightful philosophical debate on the nature of the human soul, or both. Vices and virtues intersect in this novel in ways that are at once shocking and enlightening. So get ready for a wild ride on this airship in route to a visit with the man in the moon. These are stories that are comforting and unsettling, familiar and eye opening. But, "you got to consider the source", cautions Ida, "a story about a crazy man, told by crazy people should only make you wonder." Kudos to Spanbauer for superb execution and many thanks to Dave M. for this recommendation. Enjoy!
5 people found this helpful
Helpful
 Report
Lee Hanson
5.0 out of 5 stars A Million stars: the best novel of America I have ever read
Reviewed in the United States on November 15, 2006
Verified Purchase
First I belong to a bookgroup that has met every month for the last 15 years. This is one of only two books we have read twice. And we are a picky bunch of smart people. :-)

When I read the reviews here, again, tears are in my eyes, again. There was once an audio version of this book that I almost got killed while listening to because my tears made it impossible to see the road at one point. On the other hand there are so many parts of the book that make a man laugh out loud.

It is a tale of sexuality, race, America, religion, passion, cruelty, gender, meaning, and life like no other novel I have ever read. As a voracious and consistent reader of way too much education this novel stands like the first wonder of the literary landscape in my soul.

For the new reader: one reviewer "gave up" at a bit into the book. It MUST be appreciated as an oral novel. If you don't read it aloud to yourself you need to let Shed speak into your head as a talking person rather than as words on a page or any other type of narrator. This IS an aural novel.

The sex is graphic and wonderful, the passions unequalled, the pain intense, the joy is palpable, and the influence on a person is permanent after reading this novel.

I loved Brokeback Mountain and love its author all the time, "The Shipping News" is amazing. But the reviewer who said this surpassed Brokeback mountain wasn't saying enough since this is a novel of grand visions of life.

Normally I am somewhat articulate. "The Man Who Fell In Love With The Moon" trancends articulation and leaves me with only the ability to provide pictures of the shadow of what Spanbauer accomplishes in this grand American novel.
15 people found this helpful
Helpful
 Report
QC
5.0 out of 5 stars Full of depth, heart, and controversy
Reviewed in the United States on June 5, 2020
Verified Purchase
When I first read this book as a young teenager I never believed it would have affected my life so much. What do prostitutes, bi-sexual teenagers and sex with older men have to do with me? Well, a lot but that's not the point. During a time when there were few examples of LGBTQ culture in media, finding this nugget of queer gold gave me hope that I could later be understood and better fit into my skin. As an adult I have read this book several times. The scenes of Shed (the protagonist) discovering his sexuality bring me back to the naivety I once felt when entering "the scene". Despite being in a completely different time and place, this novel is a testament to the fact that coming out can be a shared experience.

Maybe this book was not written for the eyes and minds of the underaged. It's full of graphic, real, and heartfelt sex. But to me it became an intimacy and love I aspired to have. Perhaps this pining won't resonate much for a generation used to seeing their faces and bodies on screens. But to me it meant the world.
3 people found this helpful
Helpful
 Report
Kit Egan
5.0 out of 5 stars A delightful surprise!
Reviewed in the United States on June 13, 2022
Verified Purchase
I was in a book store in Stockholm, Sweden looking for a book in English to being back to Krakow, Poland when I was in the Peace Corps. Running out of time, I snatched this book off the shelf and hurried to the cross Baltic Sea ferry. This book is sooo insightful, so delightful that I've given countless copies to friends and family over the years. Try it. You'll be glad you did. But only if you have a sense of humor.
One person found this helpful
Helpful
 Report

Top reviews from other countries

Translate all reviews to English
認
5.0 out of 5 stars El mejor exponente del “dangerous writing” de Spanbauer. Los personajes y entornos cobran vida
Reviewed in Spain on February 8, 2021
Verified Purchase
El libro es una maravilla, mucho mejor en su versión original, y eso que la traducción en español ea muy buena, pero nada como el uso del lenguaje de Spanbauer. Lástima que la edición sea tan barata e incluso la tipografía se vea algo borrosa, y ya el primer día, horas después de recibirlo, la portada ya se estaba despuntando por la esquina inferior...
Report
clover
5.0 out of 5 stars Highly recommended
Reviewed in France on June 2, 2017
Verified Purchase
I'm half way through this book and this is actually my very first book in English. Though the writing is in a weird way (but due to the narrator) it's really easy to write and once you're in it, you just can't stop reading it!
Report
Brian Oliver
5.0 out of 5 stars Five Stars
Reviewed in Canada on September 28, 2016
Verified Purchase
Item received in a timely manner and as described.
Report
Karen Goldberg
5.0 out of 5 stars One of my best books ever
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on June 3, 2014
Verified Purchase
Perhaps the simplest way to describe this book is: Western meets Tantra. It is one of the most beautiful books I have ever read. The names and language used, the symmetry and poetry will linger long after you have closed the last page.
2 people found this helpful
 Report
C. F.
5.0 out of 5 stars outstandingly great
Reviewed in Germany on February 17, 2010
Verified Purchase
Its a very intelligent and fascinating book about the spiritual journey of what we call life. Philosophically deep and in the same moment fundamentally absurd, funny or just plain sad. Between the lines of this great story lies so much wisdom, understanding and compassion for all the different journeys we're on, making us what we are. Sometimes we choose, sometimes we don't have a choice and if we are really lucky, we get chosen, to take a look beyond ourselves, into an other travelers life. What else could we do but take the chance and love.
Report