Monday, October 17, 2011

BED by DAVID WHITEHOUSE


Congratulations
Faithspage!
Please email me your full name and address at stephanieelliot@gmail.com
so I can send you your book!



First of all, I PROMISE to have winners chosen for previous books by Wednesday of this week. Thank you for your patience! In the meantime, here's another great book for you to enter to win!




Here’s a book I have been waiting for a chance to read and I’ve finally found the time to get to it. I’m about half-way through it and it’s mesmerizing! BED is about a boy who becomes a man who decides at the age of twenty-five that the end result of adulthood isn’t worth much so he takes to his bed and stays there. And doesn’t get out. He becomes the fattest man in the world and becomes famous for it.

Malcolm, from what I have read so far, was an odd yet intelligent young boy, but had a penchant for being uncomfortable in his clothing, so he would strip naked at the strangest of places, completely mortifying his parents and younger brother, who is the shy and sweet narrator in the book. As Malcolm grows older and stranger, he becomes more withdrawn. Even so, he finds a girlfriend, Lou, and his younger brother finds that he is drawn to Lou as well. She is kind and compassionate and brings light into the family.

I am finding that in the reading of this book, I am expecting a major surprise ending, not sure if it will be sad or happy, but am definitely positive this is going to be a book that will stay with me for a very long time. It’s one of those books that I had to work up to reading, and I keep thinking about it when I’m not immersed in it.

BED is David Whitehouse’s first novel. It was the inaugural winner of the 'To Hell with Prizes' award in 2010 for best unpublished novel. It is also being adapted for film. 

Here is an official blurb:

Reminiscent of such novels as A Confederacy of Dunces and The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time, Bed is a darkly funny and surprisingly tender debut novel about two brothers, one of whom refuses to leave his bed on his twenty-fifth birthday.

Mal Ede, a child of untamed manners and unbounded curiosity, is the eccentric eldest son of an otherwise typical middle-class family. But as the wonders of childhood fade into the responsibilities of adulthood, Mal’s spirits fade too. On his twenty-fifth birthday, disillusioned, Mal goes to bed—back to his childhood bed—and never emerges again.

Narrated by Mal’s shy, diligent younger brother, BED details Mal’s subsequent extreme and increasingly grotesque transformation: immobility and a gargantuan appetite combine, over the course of two decades, to make him the fattest man in the world. Despite his seclusion and his refusal to explain his motivations, Mal’s condition earns him worldwide notoriety and a cult of followers convinced he is making an important statement about modern life. But Mal’s actions will also change the lives of his haunted parents, his brother and the woman they both love, Lou.



Here is the stunning trailer for the video:


When Mr. MaNiC and I were first married and shopping for a bed, we bought a Queen. My parents told us we were crazy to buy a queen. We were like, “No! We love our queen! We want to be close! We want to cuddle! We LOVE each other!” Dumb. Dumb. Dumb. Mr. MaNiC is six-foot-five. I am five-foot-nine but shrinking every day. We have three children. A queen was the stupidest investment we ever made. Well, not really because now our son sleeps on it, but that’s not big enough for him because he is six-foot-two at age 13. 

To win BED, tell me if you sleep in a Twin, Queen, King, Bunk, Blow-Up, Trundle, Couch, Lazy-Boy Chair. Tell me the story of your bed, and you’ll be entered to win this incredible novel by David Whitehouse

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Check previous book features to see who the winner is -- that's how you'll find out if you've won or not, and you can still enter if there's not a winner's name posted on the top and highlighted! I usually choose a winner for each book anywhere from 3-7 days after I post a feature!


Thanks for checking out the Fall Fab Giveaway – we’ve got more books coming your way through October. I'll be featuring 2-3 each week. At the end of ALL the individual books featured and given away, one or two lucky winners will win the WHOLE batch of the books.


If you’ve got particular questions on how the Giveaway works, check the ORIGINAL POST HERE, or feel free to email me! Thanks!


Good luck everyone! And I really enjoy your comments too!


Thanks for reading and being a part of this promotion! To find out all the details on how to participate throughout the whole promotion click the previous link!


I also blog at Real Moms Guide if you'd like to read some of my other work.


If you're new here, check out the rules and all the books at in the promotion HERE.

If you have any questions feel free to leave a comment and I'll answer it in the thread, or email me at stephanieelliot@gmail.com. It is always at my discretion to change things up, and because of some regulations, I guess I must say that the books I review are given to me by either the authors or publishers or publicists, and I am never paid for my reviews, and they are my own personal reviews, and you know what, because I'm here telling you this anyway, I will also tell you that I never review a book I don't like, because you know what, why waste my time, life is too short to read a crappy book! There.

91 comments:

Sherry said...

I have a Cal King--Love it but since having my son I find my sleeping place moves-I fall asleep in my suns queen size bed--we love to cuddle and talk about our day and then opps I always seem to drift to sleep--so then I either travel to my cal king or couch depending on the time if it is an hour or 2 from the time I wake I will just go lay to sleep on the couch so I do not get to comfy before waking at 4:45 for work:0

faithspage said...

King!
Just bought a pillowtop king, hoping to have a great relationship with it.
kyfaithw at aol dot com

Ally said...

We have a queen. It's worked well, but we are moving in a few months and will definitely upgrade to a king.
Ally N

Ready To Be A Momma said...

I have a queen size that I share with a husband and 3 dachshunds. It's gets very cramped.
Qweska8402

Literary Chanteuse said...

My hubby and I sleep on a queen. I wish it was a king because I find the queen is just not big enough. I'm usually pushed to the edge during the night and by morning the kids pile in too so....we need a king! The only problem is our bedroom isn't really big enough. I'll be left with no room for a dresser so I'm putting up with my queen dreaming of my king!

Margaret(singitm)

Jenn3128 said...

The Hubs & I have a Euro King and we love it. I am not a night time snuggler, so the Euro King works out well for us, (its 6" wider than a normal king). Some nights I wake up and have to look around to make sure he's still there!

Crystal said...

We have a California King too, but we think it's too big for us. (Reading some of these comments though is making me think against it). We're moving soon and want to get a queen. The Cal King is just TOO big and somehow one person (me) always ends up squished to one side of the bed and the other half of the bed remains empty. I've been told that I "emit heat" so I make a nice warming blanket in the winter, or for summer nights when we crank up the AC. This is also true for the dogs; one will curl herself in a ball behind my knees and the other will lay at my stomach. I swear, one day they will push me off!! LOL!

I guess we are BIG cuddlers so maybe a queen will be fine for us.

crystal717

Melissa said...

We have the Simmons Beautyrest Black regular king (Cal King is actually narrower than a regular king) and we love it. Best purchase ever.
-tmd636

Lesley Davis, Esq said...

We bought a tempurpedic king in 2009 & have loved it every night since! It's big enough to have your own space but we can cuddle up too. We love that bed so much that on vacation we're always excited to home to it! Yes we're dorks :)

Mom said...

I will order this immediately! I am happy to hear that Dad and I have given you some good advice thru the years! We gave the same advice to Seth and Nicole and they wish they had listened to us also! Love you!

Krystal said...

We have a King bed it's much needed as our American Bulldog (110 lbs) sleeps with us, too.
kndyer

DaphneSFL said...

We have a queen, but, with 2 dogs who sleep with us, we need to upgrade to a king soon. Very soon.

absolutahnie said...

we're very happily in a queen! when we go away and get a king we both feel "lost!"

ncsuloges said...

Queen for me, the boyfriend and our chocolate lab. Which sounds amazing but she likes to use the comforter as a pacifier sometimes so that makes it not so amazing.

Jeffie T said...

Queen for me.

Kayo said...

King... and I'm wondering why it took so long for my Husband and I to get one.. Love it. And so does my black lab who sleeps with us.

Melissa said...

California King. When we shopping we weren't sure if we should spend the extra money on the king. I asked my parents and they, who had a queen for 30 years, yelled, "get the King! do it now!" Glad we spent a little more on the bed and the mattress before we had kids. Melissa Rem

Anonymous said...

I have a King. I've always had a King, once I moved out on my own. And it's been very important to purchase a quality mattress and box spring. cindyinmiami writeoncindy@yahoo.com

Colleen Turner said...

We have a queen...keeps the hubs and I cozy together :).
Colleen Turner

Kimmi said...

We have a full. Yeah, I know. But I can't figure out how to arrange the bedroom to support something bigger. My boyfriend is very sensitive about mattresses; he hated the old one, so I let him be the one to pick out the new one. I didn't even shop with him. He bought it and began complaining two days after it was delivered. He's now convinced it's not the firmness of the mattress, but the fact that it's so small. I think we need separate bedrooms.

Liz said...

We have a queen. We slept in a FULL bed until last year, when I demanded a bigger bed during my twin pregnancy. I knew that a queen would not be enough, that we should have gotten a King or even a California King with our little litter, but my husband is so cheap that I was lucky to get a queen. I shall continue to hog this bed until I get my way.

Kimberly Russell said...

The hubby and I sleep on a queen. With two dogs.

Bev V said...

Queen bed with 12 drawers under it. It was "supposed" to replace our dressers. Yeah, right, it was a place to put MORE clothes!!

Tyra said...

California King...my husbad is 6'10", so it's pure necessity.

BrendaL71 said...

I sleep in a queen all by myself and I love it. The bad new is I've gotten so used to sleeping by myself. It's the first bed that I bought myself and it's worn. Unfortunately it's not the finances for a new one right now.

animallover75 said...

I have a full size bed I inherited from my parents. I sleep with yorkies and 3 cats. We all like to cuddle.

Joani 15 said...

Finally bought a king sixe bed 5 years ago and love it. It fits my husband, me and our two dogs nicely even though my big (120 lbs.) rescue pit sleeps right up against my back, and the little one sleeps on my legs.

Denise said...

I still have a full. I'm single, so it's plenty of room for now :)

Carly said...

We sleep in a queen (my husband, myself, and however many of the cats care to join us). Our house came with a built in wall/shelf/bed frame thing. Only a queen bed fits in the frame otherwise my 6'4 husband would love a CA King.

Katie said...

We sleep in a Queen size bed but need a King when we buy a new one! We do not have children yet but we do have a 6o lb dog that sleeps with us everynight. (I know, but she is my baby!)

Katie in Indy

Coleen said...

I have a pillow-top King. My bed is very comforting no matter what time of day it is. My husband and I go to bed together every night and we can lay close or apart. . and that is the beauty of having a king size bed.

Twins + 1 said...

I have a queen bed. It's the perfect size for my hubby and I. Looking forward to getting new bedding and redecorating my bedroom!!

jdstec said...

King. For my sweet husband, myself and at any given time, anywhere between 1 and 3 dogs.

michelle m! said...

Queen...2 adults, 2 dogs and 2 cats
cozy and warm on a harsh winter night

BRN2SHOP9 said...

I sleep in a twin

ludy2288 said...

My queen bed was my very first grown up purchase after collage and I still love it 5 years later with the addition of a boyfriend and pup...although we did recently stay at a hotel with a giant king bed and it was quite wonderful.

Jessica said...

I sleep in a full bed. I've had it ever since I was little. I still live at home right now. It's the most comfortable mattress in the world and I never want to get another one. It doesn't really have much of a story to it. I love it.

LizzybethDJ said...

We have a king size (finally!). When we rescued our black lab, my husband decided he (the dog) needed to learn how to cuddle. Since that night, the dog takes up more bed than I do. So we really needed the space! The down side is how much space it takes up in our 100-year old bedroom.

Dani In Chicago said...

My bed is a custom-built platform double-size bed. It's actually my close friend's. Her dad was an engineer and he built the bed for her when she first moved out of the house. That was about 30 yrs ago. Once she got married, she got a new bed and didn't want to get rid of the bed her dad made her. So she gave it to me to keep in the "family."

Erin G said...

We have a King. We got it when I was preggers with our first, and it was the best decision we made! All 3 kids can cuddle with us on weekend mornings... it's so nice.

Amy R. said...

No interesting story behind mine: Got a queen before I met my boyfriend. Now we live together and we have 2 queen beds (one in the guest room). Once we move to our new house we'll eventually upgrade to a king. The end!

Kristi said...

We have a queen that my husband and I share with our yorkie and as small as he is there is never enough room. I think I should win the book though because my last name is Whitehouse too.

Kristi Marie W.

morninglight mama said...

Ooh, I requested this one for review, but it never came through, sadly. Hubby and I sleep in a Queen, even though he's 6'4" and I'm... well, not as thin as I used to be... BUT, it is a new mattress, nice and comfy, so at least we have that. :)

Megan said...

I have a queen and I love it. It's from CB2 and it was my first non-Ikea bed as a grown up. I felt like an adult when it was delivered!
ID Eloisepeaches

Kim W. said...

We have a king size bed that we bought about 2 years into our relationship. It's a soft pillow-top and has seen many things in our almost 9 years of having it....birth of our 2 babies, nursing, sleepless nights, tears, laughter, fights....the list goes on!

Nanette said...

OMG Manic!! You find the most interesting books! I may have to download this to my Kindle even if I don't win. Anyway, as far as our bed...we own an "Olympic Queen". Yep...not quite a King but bigger than a Queen. And a ROYAL pain in the ass! I mean, having the extra room is nice but finding sheets to fit it is next to impossible. It's a GOOFY size and when I *do* find a place that sells the sheets for it, they cost a small fortune. Sigh....lesson learned! I think if and when we get a new bed, we will just stick with a regular queen. Our son is almost 13 and doesn't crawl into bed with us anymore and half the time I'm in the guest room b/c of my hubby's snoring!! Sorry...TMI probably!! Hugs, Nan

Kelley said...

Queen. Sometimes I wish we had a king, but it works!!

AisforRandom said...

I currently sleep whereever the baby cares to sleep. on the couch in the recliner, on the bed(queen), next to the changing table, when my mother vists, when his father is really home and work is at work.

Tiffany Drew said...

After a few months of riding the couch in the living room due to the hubby's snoring, I am back upstairs in our queen sized bed. We decided to get rid of the couch for two recliners but I think I may be moving into one of them because the snoring is getting worse and I'd really like to get some sleep at night once in a while. Waking up every few minutes to roll him over is not working for me lol.

MonaLisa said...

We have a King, but my two littlest (age 4 and 9) still end up with us so sometimes I still end up laying on the edge.

Anonymous said...

We have a king size bed. We bought our house a few months after we got married. My husband's cousin owned his own mattress company. He said he would give us a mattress as a wedding gift. I was nervous because we did not get to pick out what we wanted. It is the perfect mattress. So comfortable.

-Donna W.

lucy872 said...

I have a King. We bought it after years of sleeping on a Queen and we love it. Although, I have to admit...the cuddling and snuggling doesn't happen as much now that there is space in between us...

Juliet Farmer said...

I have a queen, which is as big as i want to get. I like to know where my husband is at night! But we do need a new bed soon.

Bernadette7 said...

We have a Full...when we moved in together he had a crappy Queen and I had a nice new Full. Needless to say I won and my arguement was that he basically sleeps right on top of me anyways so what difference did it make. Well we've been in the full for two years and i was right no plans to change anytime soon. For the record we are about the same sizes as you and your hubby but i know if I got a bigger bed it wouldnt change how we sleep.

Amy Goddard said...

I have a queen bed. My parents bought it for my husband and I as a wedding present. After sleeping together on my old, lumpy, full-size mattress for one night, my husband and I went right to the mattress store to buy a bigger be so we would be more comfortable.

Amy Goddard

Anonymous said...

Queen.

Nicole

Carie Casey said...

king

buttah said...

Hubs and I have a queen...we keep saying we need to get a king, but never do. Hubs is 6'2", and I am 5'7", so I can relate. Anytime we go to a hotel and get a king, it seems like we are worlds away from each other, but my hormonal body that sweats buckets at night doesn't mind that so much. After 15 years, we still manage in our queen, and Hubs still gets to "snuggle" as he calls it, I just call it "hogging the bed"!!

Lindsay Elizabeth said...

We sleep in a queen, mainly b/c that's what I had when we moved in together. However, we're pretty small people, and live in the city where space is tight.

However, as soon as we moved in together I was like "maybe we can fit a king in here..." needless to say if kids come into the picture Cal-King is the next thing we'll be buying!

Unknown said...

Well if you want to get technical I have no bed. :( I sleep on my boyfriends king size bed though. Luckily there's a little room left for me after his 6'2" body is down. :)

LynnBelo said...

we sleep on one of the most uncomfortable queen beds known to man. We just have to hold off a few more months and we'll be able to afford a king tempurpedic or latex mattress. I...CAN'T...WAIT!!! :)

Lizett34 said...

I sleep in a full size bed! It's only me so it's perfect size =)!

MamamicheleTN said...

I sleep in a queen sized bed, but share it with my Sweetie, one puppy dog and a kitty. There is NEVER enough room. Also as the puppy and I age we BOTH are going to need either a step or ramp because the bed is TALL! :)

Emily said...

i have a full sized bed...and it is SO comfortable. Plus, I get it all to myself so I can sleep diagonally across it if I decide that's what I want. :)


Emily116

robynn78 said...

I have a queen, yep its old 11, but I refuse to buy a new one till my house is built end of summer!!!, then Im going to get a king size sleep number, my husband likes coushy, fall in the bed softness, I like it a lil stiffer..

Melissa said...

I sleep in a twin sometimes and a king at others. I do a thing called family purity where my husband and I have to sleep in separate beds during my time of the month. We combine them after I go to the mikvah. :)

Melissa A from CLC

Books & Reviews said...

My husband and I slept in a double bed for 5 year! Then we upgraded to a queen -- it was so roomy at first! We used that one for 5 years and we finally purchased a pillow top king when we purchased our new home two years ago. Love it but my 7 pound chihuahua manages to take up quite a bit of space!

your invisible pixie said...

I sleep in a queen bed! I just got it, hoping to share it with someone nice :)

Kristi said...

King... it's the only way my marriage will survive!

Kristi Hooke

Joelle said...

I sleep in a king size bed but some nights when my husband is smooshed up under me I feel like I'm on half of a twin. lol.

EKB said...

KING all the way. If we could fit 2 kings in teh room I would be cool with that. the more space the better. love the hubby but love my nightime space. how on EARTH did you survive a queen??!!

StereoQueenBee said...

Queen with memory foam. I have trouble leaving it every day. It's a trap. A comfy, comfy trap.

queenofcrunk at gmail dot com

Dolly said...

I have a King memory foam. No reason for a King - I sleep in the space of a twin, and in fact I swap sides of the bed to get full use of the mattress!

Susan @ The Book Bag said...

We just bought a Temperpedic Queen bed - mattress, frame, 2 bedside tables - the works!! And this is so exciting for me because after 38 years of marriage, this it the very first time that we have bought a BRAND NEW bedroom set.

Kinda sad, isn't it? But happiness too!!

Jeryl M. said...

We have a king size bed. The car sleeps with us and most nights my 6 year old ends up there too so we need to have a big bed in order for my husband and I to have any room to sleep.

jeryl.marcus@gmail.com

Terri said...

I have a king that is so ridiculously comfy. I have all the featherbed and down comforters etc. It is seriously the best thing I walked away with from my divorce. Although I did invest in new 'girly' bedding to go with the new single me!

Terri M.

kathygold9778 said...

I have a King...I LOVE my King! It's the best bed in the world. However, I only get to sleep on about 6 inches of it. This bed was my husband and I first big, huge (read: expensive) furniture purchase and we love it. Then, when we moved into our new house (I'm sure you know how kids feel about sleeping in strange new houses)and my husband got a new position at work that requires him to work over night hours my kids decided to move in...with the dog of course and the 3 of them leave me about 6 inches of a King size bed...I guess I'm lucky to have the King because if I had anything smaller I guess I'd be sleeping on my end table.

kathygold9778

Jezebel's Mama said...

Queen (shoulda gotten the king) Temperpedic with 2 Maltese between me and my husband!

Margie said...

We have an old, standard size double bed. Still gives a good night's sleep.

Emma S. said...

my bed is antique, so it's about the size of a double bed, maybe a little smaller. My boyfriend and I are both on the shorter and petite size, so we both fit comfortably. My boyfriend's bed is a queen.

Anonymous said...

Queen... but it is WAY too small for my husband & I. He is a huge bed-hog! We had the most difficult time getting the box spring & mattress upstairs though- it barely fit & I thought the endeavor would end with a CSI crime scene- so I'm unsure how we'd get a bigger bed in our 2nd floor bedroom. I dream of a huge california king. Maybe we should just find a new house?

JenFee 9476

Leah B said...

King for us. And it was one of the best decisions we made.

BethC said...

We have a queen size bed and the only story that I can think of to tell is that, it has seen a lot of bounce to the ounce, that is for sure! :)

IandSsmom said...

I sleep in a full usually with a 4 year old and at least 2-3 cats! We fit I love it wouldn't trade it for nothing!! :)

fourkidsmom4 said...

We have a king, but had a queen for years prior. It was the last room in the house that got new furniture. We are both tall so it is nice. Every morning our 8 & 9 year old join us, so it still gets crowded but we love it that way!

Becki**** said...

QUEEN. And will NEVER switch - my Grandmother made me 5 or 6 queen size quilts which are beyond lovely . ..

krstrpp said...

I sleep in a Queen...but would prefer a King. Thanks for the chance to win a copy of "Bed." I love reading new authors.

Anonymous said...

I have a Queen, but the next will definitely be a King. Been seeing a guy with a King and it is wonderful! As I am only 5'1" so I can be on there sideways and still not hang off :) LeslieGC

EBrowning said...

I sleep in a full sized bed that I have had since I was about seven. I've replaced the mattress once or twice but needless to say I think it's about on it's last leg. I think bed shopping will be in my near future.

Philly said...

Queen! Although because its just me sometimes I feel like its too much space.

-Philly5

Erica said...

Well we did the same as you EXCEPT we bought a double. What were we thinking? Long story short - we now have a California King. Sigh!