Lonely Planet Journeys. 1996
In 1995 my friend David O’Brien and I drove around the eastern half of Australia in an Holden. This very popular book, reprinted nine times, is the result.
“One of the funniest road stories in print.”
Toronto Globe and Mail
“Funny, pithy, kitsch and surreal.”
Time Out London
“Immensely enjoyable.”
Bill Bryson
“Condon can be quite funny.”
Times Literary Supplement
“An amusingly subversive commentary on stereotypical travel writing… shrewd as well as funny.”
The Age
“Condon is a cool wit who comes off like Hunter S. Thompson on prescription drugs.”
The Australian
Lonely Planet Journeys. 1998
In 1996, David O’Brien and I, still friends despite the previous year’s ordeal, made the mistake of driving around the United States in a rented Chrysler Neon. The book has an excellent cover – designed and painted by David – and is “audacious and contains moments of sheer brilliance”, according to Booklist.
“Funny and high on popular culture, it is one of the most accurate accounts of how travellers really experience America, and the most fun.”
The Times (U.K)
“When it’s good it reaches well-paced brilliance.”
The Independent On Sunday (U.K)
“Hilarious.”
The Philadelphia Enquirer
“Hilarious and cruel.”
Elle magazine
“Tedious, self-indulgent, unrelentingly unrewarding… a cautionary example of exactly how not to write a book about a road trip across the United States.”
Sonoma County Independent
Lonely Planet Journeys. 2003.
A hilarious – and occasionally quite moving – account of my first three years in Amsterdam with my wife Sally. Parts of it were quoted in a speech by the-then Dutch prime minister, Jan Peter Balkenende, in April 2006.
Although it’s more of a memoir than a travel book it is nevertheless full of interesting information about Amsterdam and, to a lesser degree, me. It’s also pretty funny.
“Fans of offbeat travel literature rejoice! Stylistically and philosophically, Condon is as close to Bill Bryson as it’s possible to be. He mixes fascinating facts with hilarious humor… and keeps us thoroughly in stitches from beginning to end. This one’s an absolute must-read.”
Booklist
“A smart and funny book.”
San Francisco Chronicle
“Captivating.”
The Guardian
“Condon is a humorous chap who writes humorous books… in a David Sedaris sort of way – dry and ironic with a skewed sense of the absurdity of it all.”
Chicago Tribune
4th Estate. 2003.
A semi-autobiographical novel about obsession, ambition, failure and redemption.
“A stunning tragi-comedy.”
Vogue magazine
“Funny and touching… On present form Condon is a storyteller who will be delighting us for many years to come.”
The Bulletin magazine
“Notably lucid and imaginative… whimsical moods, surreal humour and nicely paced set pieces. The spectacular, even virtuosic display of movie lore is bound to delight cineastes. Among the attractions of Condon’s book are the lyrical accounts of childhood dreams and puppy love, snappy fantasy screenplays drafted by his hero, beautifully cadenced dialogue… and the carefully plotted build up of character and place. Condon puts into his cross-talking urbanites’ mouths strings of glittering puns, spoonerisms and apophthegms connected by flashy backchat and a precisely gauged authorial sense of pace.”
The Australian
“One of the funniest books I’ve read in years… a wonderful book.”
Saturday Telegraph (U.K)
Hardie Grant. 2005.
A collection of columns and collected wisdom from “one of the funniest writers in the country”. (Good Weekend magazine)
“An authentically hilarious writer – and, it has to be said, a genuine smart-arse – this collection of thoughts and faux narratives works seamlessly.”
The Age
“Very, very funny. Especially the column about Willem Dafoe.”
David Sedaris
Penguin 2007.
“I think about my final year of high school often. A lot of what happened then has led me to where I am now, who I am, and what I’ve become. I did some stupid things and some smart things. I got into trouble, I experienced grief and I fell in love, all for the first time. I started to understand a few things about life. None of them were particularly original insights but they definitely change you, and once you’ve had them there’s no turning back. It’s kind of annoying.”
From Michael Sweeney’s Method
“A superb novel that transcends the young adult genre - deserves to be widely read and richly enjoyed by audiences both young and adult.”
Australian Book Review
“Condon has developed into an outstanding writer of fiction as well as fact. His newest work is one of the best reads of the year.”
The Sydney Morning Herald
“An absolute knockout.”
The Age
“‘Michael Sweeney’s Method’ is bound to be a classic of its genre.” The Bulletin magazine
A 21st century screwball comedy about a Manhattan company that breaks up relationships for people who can't say the words "It's over".
Chester wants to leave his fiancée, Sara.
Holly's looking for revenge after her boyfriend dumped her. And she's starting to develop a crush on Charlie.
Charlie thinks it would be better for Sallie if she left the man in her life.
Thurston would love to have a baby with Lainey because she's cute and because a TV executive thinks it'd be good for ratings.
But Marvin the Millionaire Meat King wants Thurston and Lainey busted up.
Lainey still has feelings for Charlie. Charlie's falling for Adelaide. And Adelaide's married to Rob.
Luckily, there's a corporation that can work all this out for everybody and send them to the happiest place on earth.
Welcome to Splitsville.
"While he gets in your head like Nick Hornby, Sean's writing style is all his own. Splitsville is a hugely original story full of flawed and relatable characters. If there was a word to describe quality literature that's both accessible and piss funny, it would be Condonesque. "
Kitty Flanagan
“This should be a movie. Or a television show.”
The Telegraph
“Fun, original characters that leap off the page - heading toward the screen, one hopes.”
Good Weekend magazine
“Brilliant, original and completely engaging.”
The Australian
