Love, Dishonor, Marry, Die, Cherish, Perish

A Novel

By: David Rakoff

Narrated by: David Rakoff

From the incomparable David Rakoff, a poignant, beautiful, witty, and wise novel in verse whose scope spans the twentieth century

Through his books and his radio essays for NPR's This American Life, David Rakoff has built a deserved reputation as one of the finest and funniest essayists of our time. Written with humor, sympathy, and tenderness, this intricately woven novel proves him to be the master of an altogether different art form.

LOVE, DISHONOR, MARRY, DIE, CHERISH, PERISH leaps cities and decades as Rakoff sings the song of an America whose freedoms can be intoxicating, or brutal.

The characters' lives are linked to each other by acts of generosity or cruelty. A daughter of Irish slaughterhouse workers in early-twentieth-century Chicago faces a desperate choice; a hobo offers an unexpected refuge on the rails during the Great Depression; a vivacious aunt provides her clever nephew a path out of the crushed dream of postwar Southern California; an office girl endures the casually vicious sexism of 1950s Manhattan; the young man from Southern California revels in the electrifying sexual and artistic openness of 1960s San Francisco, then later tends to dying friends and lovers as the AIDS pandemic devastates the community he cherishes; a love triangle reveals the empty materialism of the Reagan years; a marriage crumbles under the distinction between self-actualization and humanity; as the new century opens, a man who has lost his way finds a measure of peace in a photograph he discovers in an old box—an image of pure and simple joy that unites the themes of this brilliantly conceived work.

Rakoff's insistence on beauty and the necessity of kindness in a selfish world raises the novel far above mere satire. A critic once called Rakoff "magnificent," a word that perfectly describes this wonderful novel in verse.

Uniquely beautiful!

Where does Love, Dishonor, Marry, Die, Cherish, Perish rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

I am very sad to find that the author is no longer with us. I actually found the rhyming of this book to be lovely and it takes more time and effort and just plain smarts to write a book that also 'rhymes'. Mr. David Rakoff has departed this world, leaving his mark behind with one last heartwarming and heartwrenching, humorous, intelligently clever, forlorn and brilliant novel. David's own voice reading this story makes me long for his return - but is a reminder that our last words spoken are forever a part of this world. Especially now that we can put our words into recordings. Love, Dishonor, Marry, Die, Cherish, Perish: A Novel, are short stories in verse form which are an absolute treat to listen to, and a reminder that the spoken word lives on.

Heartbreaking

One of the suggestions to encourage reviews is, "struggled to finish it?" I did, but not in the sense it was meant. Every generous, clever, thoughtful and humane word reminded me of what we've lost with David's death. It was indeed a struggle to finish, but more than worth the effort.

Pure Poetry

Can a novel composed in iambic pentameter be relatable, detailed, and meaningful? The answer is a resounding yes! Rakoff's lyrical rhyming composition doesn't detract or sacrifice story. It's not just a novelty for he packs each character's storyline with ironic and heartbreaking realism. A girl suffers a tragic event only to be dismissed by insecure mother; a secretary navigates a sexist boss in a loveless affair, and many other stories and scenarios I won't spoil.

This novel is brief, yet loaded with satirical and tragic tales of ordinary people dealing the hand they're dealt. It's heartbreaking, yet beautiful. The vocabulary, turn of phrase, and irony transform this "poem" to a higher level. Felt I needed to revisit the 500 core GRE words to keep up! Listened on 1X to absorb the meaning and paused frequently to take in all the information. Short, yet thought-provoking and sad this is his last work. If you enjoyed this, check out another of his books, "Fraud."

Brilliant Mind

And a fiercely lovely soul fluently flying among words and sounds and bulls eye things to say. I really miss this light but never met him (in the person)

Witty and touching

Every time I listen to this book, I just miss David Rakoff more! Sometimes funny, sometimes tragic, always poetic.