Sellevision: A Novel

by Augusten Burroughs

Paperback, 2003

Status

Available

Call number

PS3552.U745 S45

Genres

General Fiction

All Topics

Fiction

Collections

Your library, University of Pittsburgh, Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh

Publication

Picador (2003), Paperback, 229 pages

Description

Darkly funny and gleefully mean-spirited,Sellevisionexplores greed, obsession and third tier celebrity, in the world of a fictional home shopping network. Welcome to the troubled world of Sellevision, America's premier retail broadcasting network. When Max Andrews, the much-loved and handsome (lonely and gay) host of "Slumber Sunday Sundown" accidentally exposes himself in front of twenty million kids and their parents during a "Toys for Tots" segment, Sellevision faces its first big scandal. As Max fails to find a job in television, another host, the popular and perky Peggy Jean Smythe is receiving sinister emails about her appearance from a stalker. Popping pills and drinking heavily, she fails to notice that her husband is spending a lot of time with the very young babysitter who lives next door. Then there's Leigh, whose affair with Sellevision boss Howard Toast is going nowhere, until she exposes him on air; and Bebe, Sellevision's star host, who finds Mr. Right through the Internet--if she can just stop her shopping addiction from taking over.… (more)

User reviews

LibraryThing member name99

Funny stuff but, in the end, empty. His autobiographical stuff is so much more interesting for being real.

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LibraryThing member BNBook

If you are fan of QVC, HSN, etc. you will totally get this. If not you still might find it funny!
This is about the fictional cable shopping channel "Sellevision" and it's popular hosts. You get Max Andrews who is their golden boy host who makes an on-air peek-a-boo of a mistake. There is Peggy Jean

Smythe (think Mary Beth Roe of QVC), wholesome, Christian, delusional and is the victim of facial hair!.You also get the popular Bebe Friedman (think former QVC host and lovely gal Kathy Levine)who finally finds Mr. Right until a twist in the relationship makes for a funny read. There are other characters but these 3 are best. An easy read and perfect for the beach!

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LibraryThing member peonygoat

I enjoyed this humourous romp into the tacky world behind the scenes of a home shopping channel!

LibraryThing member Djupstrom

Funny and crazy, in your face humor...just like Burroughs' memoirs.

LibraryThing member robinamelia

Far be it from me to reject a book that focuses on the too little explored topic of facial and arm hair. Not since T.S. Eliot's Prufrock has the topic gotten such literary attention. Nevertheless, the subject matter may be a little thin to build a novel on. One can see that Burroughs is building up

his writing chops with this book. Most people start out with the thinly veiled autobiography, then move to pure fiction: he has gone the other way, finding his stride when he draws on his personal experience. That is because he really cares about himself. The people in this novel, not so much, and it shows. Even superficial ninnies deserve some love, at least they do if you want readers to care enough to keep reading, and these characters just don't get any from Burroughs.

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LibraryThing member xmaystarx

Not the best of Augusten's but anything written by him has entertainment value.

LibraryThing member melancholycat

As much as I love Augusten Burroughs, I did not like Sellevision at all. It was very obvious this was his first book as the plot jumped all over the place as if he had a lot of ideas, but couldn't decide on how to blend them together. My biggest problem, though, was the characters; I didn't care

about them. I couldn't empathize with them, could care less that their lives sucked, etc. Another one of those books that took me forever to read because I didn't enjoy it enough to not put it down, and avoided it because I wasn't enjoying it.

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LibraryThing member brianinbuffalo

A hilarious satirical glimpse into the world home shopping networks, consumerism and scandal. I didn't think I would like "Sellevision," but I ended up enjoying it more than some of Burroughs' later works. Granted, a few of the quirky characters begin taking on cartoon-like qualities. Continuity is

also problematic in some spots. But I disagree with those reviewers who suggest that there's not much of message in this book. It speaks volumes about everything from society's insatiable appetite for scandal, to the changing consumer landscape. Yet is also remains an easy and amusing read.

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LibraryThing member kelawrence

This book was fun - a harmless romp into the idealistic world of QVC and Home Shopping Network executives and their private lives. Great beach book!

LibraryThing member presto

Burroughs' Sellevision is a tale about a gay TV presenter who inadvertently exposes himself on TV. The story follows the after effects of the event. Some of the descriptions of the book might lead on to think the story to be a little smutty; but far from it, in fact I found it to be highly

entertaining - an hilarious and thoroughly rewarding story with some larger than life characters. Rewarding as a read, and rewarding in the just and so appropriate outcome. Highly recommended.

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LibraryThing member JeremyPreacher

I would have liked this better had I read it on the plane, which was my intent - it's not quite the sort of thing I dig, but it was funny enough. It's wildly over-the-top, which is kind of its only charm - from the intro, where the only sympathetic character gets fired from his Home Shopping

Network-type job for a wardrobe malfunction of the highest order, it doesn't let up on the broad caricatures or ridiculous action.

It's badly dated, of course, but that can't be helped. I wasn't totally a fan of reading a whole book about hopelessly shallow people (hence the "better on an airplane" part) but Burroughs certainly hit what he was aiming for, I think.

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LibraryThing member debbie.menzel

This is fiction by Augusten Burroughs who is mostly known for his memoirs. This is a really funny story about people trying to make it in the business of Home Shopping TV.

LibraryThing member iowabooker

A cute fun summer beach read. The characters and their events are zany, out loud laughable, and wanting you to hope they make this a movie!

LibraryThing member rolyat

Augusten Burroughs never fails to make me laugh when reading his books.

LibraryThing member mattrutherford

Lightweight, but humorous

LibraryThing member ChrisWeir

"You exposed your penis on national television, Max." The first line of the book and it's a wild ride from that point. Max the flasher in question is one of the hosts of a home shopping show for the Sellevision network. We follow Max's story and some of the other hosts from the network. Max is

termed right after that first sentence and tries out for various other jobs. There's Peggy Jean a good Christian woman who finds herself with a stalker and turns to drugs and alcohol to try and cope. Bebe is the networks longest running hostess who has a bit of a shopping problem herself. There's also a younger hostess who's having an affair with the married boss. Throw in another philandering husband, a dry cleaner, a psychotic child with anger issues and you've got most of the characters in the book. Truly a hilarious book and you can't help but wonder what awful thing the characters are going to fall into next. Unlike most I did like this as much or more than Burroughs memoirs.

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