Arbitrary Stupid Goal by Tamara Shopsin

Arbitrary Stupid Goal by Tamara Shopsin

In Arbitrary Stupid Goal, Tamara Shopsin takes the reader on a pointillist time-travel trip to the Greenwich Village of her bohemian 1970s childhood, a funky, tight-knit small town in the big city, long before Sex and the City tours and luxury condos. The center of Tamara's universe is Shopsin's, her family's legendary greasy spoon, aka The Store, run by her inimitable dad, Kenny--a loquacious, contrary, huge-hearted man who, aside from dishing up New York's best egg salad on rye, is Village sheriff, philosopher, and fixer all at once. All comers find a place at Shopsin's table and feast on Kenny's tall tales and trenchant advice along with the incomparable chili con carne.

Filled with clever illustrations and witty, nostalgic photographs and graphics, and told in a sly, elliptical narrative that is both hilarious and endearing, Arbitrary Stupid Goal is an offbeat memory-book mosaic about the secrets of living an unconventional life, which is becoming a forgotten art.

Jason Fulford is a photographer, graphic designer, and cofounder of the nonprofit J&L Books. He is a contributing editor at Blind Spot and a frequent lecturer at universities. His monographs include Sunbird, Crushed, Raising Frogs for $$$, The Mushroom Collector and Hotel Oracle. He lives with his wife, Tamara Shopsin, in New York.

Tamara Shopsin is a graphic designer and illustrator whose work has been featured in The New York Times, Good, Time, The New Yorker, Wired and Newsweek. She is the author of several books including Mumbai New York Scranton: A Memoir and Arbitrary Stupid Goal, as well as the designer of 5 Year Diary. She is also a cook at her family's restaurant, Shopsin's, in New York.