{"product_id":"9781941411346","title":"The Brand New Catastrophe: A Memoir","description":"\u003cb\u003e“A very funny [memoir] about the frailties of the flesh, the absurdities of modern medicine, and how to stay sane amid it all” (Dave Eggers).\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e Raucous family memoir meets medical adventure in this “winning literary debut” that explores the public and private theaters of illness (\u003ci\u003eThe New York Times Book Review\u003c\/i\u003e).\u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e After a pituitary tumor bursts in Mike Scalise’s brain (diagnosed by, of all people, a physician named Dr. Sunshine), it leaves him with a hole in head, and the hormone disorder acromegaly at age twenty-four. He also faces the exasperating challenge of navigating a new, alien world of illness maintenance among family, friends, and spouse. However, it’s his mother, who has a chronic heart condition and a flair for drama, who becomes a complicated model as she competes with her son for the status of “best sick person.”\u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e “Captur[ing] all the fright of a medical calamity and the humor and grace necessary to survive it (\u003ci\u003eKirkus Reviews\u003c\/i\u003e), “Mike Scalise’s startling and slyly hilarious memoir is a heartfelt reminder of how astonishing, how terrifying, how absurd it is to be a body. An essential book for those who’ve lived through catastrophe, or only imagined it” (Alexandra Kleeman, author of \u003ci\u003eYou Too Can Have a Body Like Mine\u003c\/i\u003e).","brand":"Sarabande Books","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":47151910748400,"sku":"9781941411346","price":15.95,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0737\/7593\/9824\/files\/9781941411346_p0.jpg?v=1763756735","url":"https:\/\/shop-qa.barnesandnoble.com\/products\/9781941411346","provider":"Barnes \u0026 Noble (DEV)","version":"1.0","type":"link"}