Things That Are Funny on a Submarine But Not Really
A Novel
Will be published approx. on 29. January 2026
Book
Hardback
384 pages
978-1-64821-135-5 (ISBN)
Description
A deeply funny and achingly honest coming-of-age story surfacing from the pressures of Navy life and the weight of what comes after.
"Murphy, a fiction writer of vibrant imagination, wit, and nuance, returns after a long hiatus with a bravura first-person performance in the voice of a kind and curious submarine radioman. . . a soulful and charismatic protagonist in an uncanny, transfixing, and revelatory bildungsroman."-Booklist, starred review
"Quite possibly the best novel about the peacetime Navy since Darryl Ponicsan's The Last Detail."-Publishers Weekly, starred review
"The rollicking, sometimes frightening, in-the-end surprisingly moving evolution of a submariner into a mensch."-Kirkus Reviews, starred review
A nuclear submarine exists due to the laws of physics and for the laws of man. A submariner survives surrounded by high-yield steel, humor, and heartbreak.
Things That Are Funny on a Submarine But Not Really is about David, nicknamed "Dead Man," and his shipmates. Stationed in Guam, they sail the depths of the oceans, swapping jokes and stories while strengthening bonds continually tested by the rigors of submarine life. But when one shipmate is revealed as a Chinese spy, and another takes his own life, Dead Man is burdened by guilt.
Searching for a change, Dead Man leaves the Navy to start fresh as a college student, but his past refuses to let go. The ghosts of former shipmates-both dead and alive-continue to haunt him, and unwilling to stay mired in his memories, Dead Man searches for meaning in a life that feels increasingly foreign.
Written with Yannick Murphy's distinctive and darkly humorous style, Things That Are Funny on a Submarine But Not Really is a headlong, entertaining dive into what it means to find one's way in a new world.
"Murphy, a fiction writer of vibrant imagination, wit, and nuance, returns after a long hiatus with a bravura first-person performance in the voice of a kind and curious submarine radioman. . . a soulful and charismatic protagonist in an uncanny, transfixing, and revelatory bildungsroman."-Booklist, starred review
"Quite possibly the best novel about the peacetime Navy since Darryl Ponicsan's The Last Detail."-Publishers Weekly, starred review
"The rollicking, sometimes frightening, in-the-end surprisingly moving evolution of a submariner into a mensch."-Kirkus Reviews, starred review
A nuclear submarine exists due to the laws of physics and for the laws of man. A submariner survives surrounded by high-yield steel, humor, and heartbreak.
Things That Are Funny on a Submarine But Not Really is about David, nicknamed "Dead Man," and his shipmates. Stationed in Guam, they sail the depths of the oceans, swapping jokes and stories while strengthening bonds continually tested by the rigors of submarine life. But when one shipmate is revealed as a Chinese spy, and another takes his own life, Dead Man is burdened by guilt.
Searching for a change, Dead Man leaves the Navy to start fresh as a college student, but his past refuses to let go. The ghosts of former shipmates-both dead and alive-continue to haunt him, and unwilling to stay mired in his memories, Dead Man searches for meaning in a life that feels increasingly foreign.
Written with Yannick Murphy's distinctive and darkly humorous style, Things That Are Funny on a Submarine But Not Really is a headlong, entertaining dive into what it means to find one's way in a new world.
Reviews / Votes
"Murphy, a fiction writer of vibrant imagination, wit, and nuance, returns after a long hiatus with a bravura first-person performance in the voice of a kind and curious submarine radioman. . . a soulful and charismatic protagonist in an uncanny, transfixing, and revelatory bildungsroman."-Booklist, starred review"Quite possibly the best novel about the peacetime Navy since Darryl Ponicsan's The Last Detail."-Publishers Weekly, starred review
"The rollicking, sometimes frightening, in-the-end surprisingly moving evolution of a submariner into a mensch."-Kirkus Reviews, starred review
"Sometimes things are funny on a submarine, because Murphy makes it so-and poignant and mind-blowing too. Yes. Really."-The Baltimore Sun
"Imagine Catch-22 aboard a fast attack nuclear submarine and you've got Yannick Murphy's hilarious and heartbreaking novel."--Mark Richard, author of Fishboy and The Ice at the Bottom of the World
"A wild romp of a book, I inhaled Things That Are Funny on a Submarine But Not Really. David 'Dead Man' Sterling's voice is that of most any decent junior sailor's or soldier's, disgruntled yet capable, representing America across the reaches of the globe in all our might and absurdity. Yannick Murphy's written a very fine novel that transcends the military-civilian divide because of its sharp humor and humanity."-Matt Gallagher, author of Daybreak
"The novel works because Dead Man - his voice, his thoughtfulness, his journey - works. You'll root for him as he grows into himself and proves too smart to stay forever stuck in a big steel tube of dumb."-Drew Gallagher, Washington Independent Review of Books
"The bond created between humans who wear the uniform is stronger than lifelong civilians such as myself can ever really fathom, which is why it's remarkable that Yannick Murphy - never having served herself - captures these feelings so clearly." -The Metropolitan Review
PRAISE FOR YANNICK MURPHY
"Yannick Murphy, while being one of our most daring and original writers, is first and foremost an exquisitely attuned observer of human behavior. . . . Murphy's work provides pretty much unexceeded reading pleasure."-Dave Eggers
"Murphy's cool, minimalist style is undeniably appealing."-Publishers Weekly
"Remarkable. . . . The truthful evocation of family is the real triumph of The Call. There is much love in this novel, and just as much truth about the pain and pleasure of family life. . . . [A] clever and beautiful book."-Boston Globe
"Wondrously dynamic. . . . A warm-hearted paean to family devotion."-Wall Street Journal
"Murphy pays close attention to the sensual and the macabre. . . . In the quotidian details of farm life, Murphy demonstrates how crucial it is to focus on the small, real tasks in the face of something too big and too dark to understand."-Time Out New York
"Murphy is a subtle, psychologically perceptive writer. . . . A marvelous book: sweet and poignant without ever succumbing to easy sentiment, formally inventive and dexterous without ever seeming showy. A triumph."-Kirkus Reviews (starred review)
"A gifted storyteller with an unusual, hypnotic voice. . . . The nuances of small-town life are superbly captured in prose reminiscent of Philip Roth, but it is menace that drives the story forward. Truly original, it casts a spell that lingers in your mind."-Daily Mail (London)
"She cuts quickly and deeply to the heart of what it means to be human and yet, even after that surgery, her characters remain whole and astonishingly alive."-Brian Evenson, author of Song for the Unraveling of the World
"Yannick Murphy's beautiful new novel is a stirring example of what a real writer can do with form and feeling."-Sam Lipsyte, author of The Ask
More details
Language
English
Place of publication
New York
United States
Publishing group
Skyhorse Publishing
Product notice
Cloth over boards
Dimensions
Height: 161 mm
Width: 238 mm
Thickness: 35 mm
Weight
588 gr
ISBN-13
978-1-64821-135-5 (9781648211355)
Copyright in bibliographic data and cover images is held by Nielsen Book Services Limited or by the publishers or by their respective licensors: all rights reserved.
Schweitzer Classification
Person
Yannick Murphy is the author of the novels This Is the Water, The Call, Signed, Mata Hari, Here They Come, and The Sea of Trees. Her story collections include By the Time You Read This, Stories in Another Language, and In a Bear's Eye. She is the recipient of various awards, including a Pushcart Prize, a Laurence L. & Thomas Winship/PEN New England Award, a Whiting Writer's Award, a National Endowment for the Arts award, and a Chesterfield Screenwriting award.