Dean Bakopoulos

Dean Bakopoulos is an American writer, born in Dearborn Heights, Michigan in 1975. He is a two-time National Endowment for the Arts fellow, a Guggenheim Fellow,[1] and writer-in-residence at Grinnell College. Bakopoulos has a B.A. from the University of Michigan and an M.F.A. degree from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. He is also a faculty member in the Warren Wilson College MFA Program for Writers.

Please Don't Come Back from the Moon (2005) was his debut novel, about fathers in Maple Rock, Detroit abandoning their families under a strange compulsion to go to the moon. It is narrated by the young Mikey, a would-be writer, whose father feels the same desire to leave. The New York Times said it "deftly weld[ed] magic realism with social satire".[2] Entertainment Weekly gave it a B- saying it turned into a very conventional coming-of-age story.[3] People gave it 3.5/4.[4]

In 2017, James Franco's Rabbit Bandini films released a film version of the novel, entitled Don't Come Back from the Moon, starring Franco, Rashida Jones, and Jeffrey Wahlberg. Bruce Thierry Cheung directed the film version, which was co-written by Bakopoulos.[5]

My American Unhappiness (2011), his second novel, is narrated by Zeke Pappas, a young man compiling an inventory of American unhappiness for a struggling non-profit organization. The New York Times found Bakopoulos charming but the book too frivolous and arch.[6] The Los Angeles Times found that some of the characters were one-dimensional, there only to advance the plot, but found the satire was pleasantly combined with warmth and affection for its subjects.[7]

Summerlong, his third novel, was published by Ecco in June 2015.[8] It was named a "best book" of 2017 by National Public Radio, which praised its sadly funny vibe, saying, "this book nails the entropy of adulthood."

Personal life

In September 2015 he married Alissa Nutting. It is his second marriage. Bakopoulos and Nutting divide their time between Los Angeles and Iowa City, IA, along with their blended family of three children. The couple frequent collaborates and are currently working on a television series based on Nutting's novel, "Made for Love." The series will star Cristin Milioti, Ray Romano, and Noma Dumezweni and will premiere on HBO Max in 2020. They're also at work on a noir mystery series, written under a pen name.[9]

Bibliography
  • Please Don't Come Back from the Moon, Harcourt (2005)
  • My American Unhappiness, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt (2011)
  • Summerlong, Ecco Press (June, 2015)

References
  1. "Biography: Dean Bakopoulos". Book Reporter. Retrieved 5 December 2013.
  2. Schappell, Elissa (February 13, 2005). "'Please Don't Come Back From the Moon': Fatherless Children". The New York Times. Retrieved 5 December 2013.
  3. Geier, Thom (Feb 7, 2005). "Please Don't Come Back From The Moon (review)". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved 5 December 2013.
  4. "Picks and Pans Review: Please Don't Come Back from the Moon". People. February 28, 2005. Retrieved 5 December 2013.
  5. https://www.imdb.com/title/tt5249200/
  6. Lennon, J Robert (June 10, 2011). "The Unhappiness Project". The New York Times. Retrieved 5 December 2013.
  7. Wappler, Margaret (7 August 2011). "Review: 'My American Unhappiness' by Dean Bakopoulos". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 5 December 2013.
  8. Wilkinson, Amy (June 18, 2015). "Summerlong by Dean Bakopoulos: EW review". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved 24 June 2015.
  9. "Largehearted Boy: Book Notes - Dean Bakopoulos "Summerlong"". www.largeheartedboy.com. Retrieved 2015-09-30.
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