Background
O'Brien was born in Oxford, Ohio, where his parents, Bill and Judy O'Brien, were both students at Miami University. John grew up in Brecksville and Lakewood, Ohio, and graduated from Lakewood High School in 1978.
(John O'Brien's books have established him as a writer who...)
John O'Brien's books have established him as a writer who communicated the voice of the loner with blistering realness and unmistakable force. In Leaving Las Vegas, he wove a love story of incredible passion among two lost souls. In The Assault on Tony's, he unfolded a psychological drama among five drunks who spend their last days barricaded in a bar. Stripper Lessons is perhaps O'Brien's most interior and intense book, a powerful story of a man's obsessive search to belong.In Stripper Lessons, O'Brien details the dark and simple life of Carroll, a middle-aged, unmarried, friendless man whose only joy is watching beautiful women dance. Terribly shy and unable to socially: with the people around him, Carroll's fascination with the women at his favorite club is totally innocent; his desire for them is the desire to be connected. There, he finds solace in the routine, the rules, and the predictability of the action; inside, a dollar or two will win him affection. But when his desire for a particular dancer takes him one step too far, his entire life threatens to crumble.As he did in Leaving Las Vegas O'Brien has given life to the outcast and captured the hope and truthfulness that even the most simple lives are built on.
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0802135072/?tag=2022091-20
(A groundbreaking, practical program for transforming trou...)
A groundbreaking, practical program for transforming troubled relationships into positive ones “This is the best book on relationships I have ever read. . . . John Gottman has decoded the subtle secrets that can either enrich or destroy the quality of our ties with others.” Daniel B. Wile, Ph.D., author of After the Fight: Using Your Disagreements to Build a Stronger Relationship “John Gottman is our leading explorer of the inner world of relationships. In The Relationship Cure, he has found gold once again.”William J. Doherty, Ph.D., author of Take Back Your Marriage: Sticking Together in a World That Pulls Us Apart “When he says his five steps will help you build better connections with the people you care about, you know that they have been demonstrated to work.” E. Mavis Heatherington, Ph.D., professor of psychology, University of Virginia From the country’s foremost relationship expert and New York Times bestselling author Dr. John M. Gottman comes a powerful, simple five-step program, based on twenty years of innovative research, for greatly improving all of the relationships in your life—with spouses and lovers, children, siblings, and even your colleagues at work. In The Relationship Cure, Dr. Gottman: * Reveals the key elements of healthy relationships, emphasizing the importance of what he calls “emotional connection” * Introduces the powerful new concept of the emotional “bid,” the fundamental unit of emotional connection * Provides remarkably empowering tools for improving the way you bid for emotional connection and how you respond to others’ bids
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0609809539/?tag=2022091-20
(The New York Times bestselling “manifesto for the future ...)
The New York Times bestselling “manifesto for the future that is grounded in practical solutions addressing the world’s most pressing concerns: overpopulation, food, water, energy, education, health care and freedom” (The Wall Street Journal). Since the dawn of humanity, a privileged few have lived in stark contrast to the hardscrabble majority. Conventional wisdom says this gap cannot be closed. But it is closing—fast. In Abundance, space entrepreneur turned innovation pioneer Peter H. Diamandis and award-winning science writer Steven Kotler document how progress in artificial intelligence, robotics, digital manufacturing synthetic biology, and other exponentially growing technologies will enable us to make greater gains in the next two decades than we have in the previous 200 years. We will soon have the ability to meet and exceed the basic needs of every person on the planet. Abundance for all is within our grasp. Breaking down human needs by category—water, food, energy, healthcare, education, freedom—Diamandis and Kotler introduce us to innovators and industry captains making tremendous strides in each area. “Not only is Abundance a riveting page-turner…but it’s a book that gives us a future worth fighting for. And even more than that, it shows us our place in that fight” (The Christian Science Monitor).
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/145161683X/?tag=2022091-20
(A provocative history of violence—from the New York Times...)
A provocative history of violence—from the New York Times bestselling author of The Stuff of Thought and The Blank Slate Believe it or not, today we may be living in the most peaceful moment in our species' existence. In his gripping and controversial new work, New York Times bestselling author Steven Pinker shows that despite the ceaseless news about war, crime, and terrorism, violence has actually been in decline over long stretches of history. Exploding myths about humankind's inherent violence and the curse of modernity, this ambitious book continues Pinker's exploration of the essence of human nature, mixing psychology and history to provide a remarkable picture of an increasingly enlightened world.
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0143122010/?tag=2022091-20
(What was clear to the original readers of Scripture is no...)
What was clear to the original readers of Scripture is not always clear to us. Because of the cultural distance between the biblical world and our contemporary setting, we often bring modern Western biases to the text. For example: • When Western readers hear Paul exhorting women to "dress modestly," we automatically think in terms of sexual modesty. But most women in that culture would never wear racy clothing. The context suggests that Paul is likely more concerned about economic modesty--that Christian women not flaunt their wealth through expensive clothes, braided hair and gold jewelry. • Some readers might assume that Moses married "below himself" because his wife was a dark-skinned Cushite. Actually, Hebrews were the slave race, not the Cushites, who were highly respected. Aaron and Miriam probably thought Moses was being presumptuous by marrying "above himself." • Western individualism leads us to assume that Mary and Joseph traveled alone to Bethlehem. What went without saying was that they were likely accompanied by a large entourage of extended family. Biblical scholars Brandon O'Brien and Randy Richards shed light on the ways that Western readers often misunderstand the cultural dynamics of the Bible. They identify nine key areas where modern Westerners have significantly different assumptions about what might be going on in a text. Drawing on their own crosscultural experience in global mission, O'Brien and Richards show how better self-awareness and understanding of cultural differences in language, time and social mores allow us to see the Bible in fresh and unexpected ways. Getting beyond our own cultural assumptions is increasingly important for being Christians in our interconnected and globalized world. Learn to read Scripture as a member of the global body of Christ.
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0830837825/?tag=2022091-20
O'Brien was born in Oxford, Ohio, where his parents, Bill and Judy O'Brien, were both students at Miami University. John grew up in Brecksville and Lakewood, Ohio, and graduated from Lakewood High School in 1978.
Graduated from the high school, Lakewood, Ohio.
His first novel Leaving Las Vegas was published in 1990 by Watermark Press and made into a film of the same name in 1995. He was the brother of writer Erin O'Brien. His first novel, Leaving Las Vegas, is dedicated to her.
O'Brien committed suicide by gunshot two weeks after learning that his novel, Leaving Las Vegas, was to be made into a movie. His father says that the novel was his suicide note. A third manuscript, Better, was published by Akashic Press in 2009.
BibliographyO'Brien, John (1990). Leaving Las Vegas. Wichita, Kansas: Watermark Press. . OCLC 22766437. Retrieved 17 February 2016.
O'Brien, John (1996). The Assault on Tony's. New York: Grove Press.
. OCLC 34149431. Retrieved 17 February 2016. O'Brien, John (1997). Stripper Lessons. New York: Grove Press.
. OCLC 35593676. Retrieved 17 February 2016. O'Brien, John (2008). "The Tik". In Keene, Jarret.
Pierce, Todd James. Las Vegas noir. Brooklyn, New York: Akashic Books. . OCLC 182529221. Retrieved 17 February 2016.
O'Brien, John (2009). Better: a novel. Brooklyn, New York: Akashic Books. . OCLC 373484234. Retrieved 17 February 2016.
(The New York Times bestselling “manifesto for the future ...)
(A provocative history of violence—from the New York Times...)
(A groundbreaking, practical program for transforming trou...)
(John O'Brien's books have established him as a writer who...)
(What was clear to the original readers of Scripture is no...)
(Leaving Las Vegas by John OBrien . Grove Press, Inc.,1990)
(Leaving Las Vegas by John OBrien . Grove Press, Inc.,1990)
(February 8, 1994 draft)
(February 8, 1994 draft)
(Reprint)
(Reprint)
Member Writer's Guild American.
Married Lisa Marie Kirkwood, August 11, 1979 (divorced May 1993).