How to Stay Married

By: Harrison Scott Key

Narrated by: Harrison Scott Key, Lauren Key

Harrison Scott Key, winner of the Thurber Prize for American Humor, tells the shocking, “shot through with sharp humor” (The Washington Post), spiritually profound story of his journey through hell and back when infidelity threatens his marriage.

One gorgeous autumn day, Harrison discovers that his wife—the sweet, funny, loving mother of their three daughters, a woman “who’s spent just about every Sunday of her life in a church”—is having an affair with a family friend. This revelation propels the hysterical, heartbreaking events in How to Stay Married, casting our narrator onto “the factory floor of hell,” where his wife was now in love with a man who “wears cargo shorts, on purpose.” What will he do? Kick her out? Set fire to all her panties in the yard? Beat this man to death with a gardening implement? Ask God for help in winning her back?

Armed only with a sense of humor and a hunger for the truth, Harrison embarks on a hellish journey into his past, seeking answers to the riddles of faith and forgiveness. Through an absurd series of escalating confessions and betrayals, Harrison reckons with his failure to love his wife in the ways she needed most, resolves to fight for his family, and in a climax almost too ridiculous to be believed, finally learns that love is no joke. “A fiercely memorable account of marital devotion against all odds” (Publishers Weekly, starred review), How to Stay Married is a comic romp unlike any in contemporary literature, a wild ride through the hellscape of marriage and the mysteries of mercy.

Great story, great philosophical foundation, very creatively told

Loved this book. I went thru a divorce 25 years ago and this resonated so much. Being in
the church & trying to figure out what was most soul affirming for all was one of the hardest things I have ever done! I found that Harrison articulates the
complexity of it all in a way no other writer has captured as clearly, which is ironic because he is a very colorful writer!! So gifted!! Thank you for writing this book. As a therapist, I’m sure I will recommend to some of my clients.

Graceful, Truthful. Beautiful. Painful. Glorious.

You will laugh, cry, groan, want to murder, want to die, desire legit community, feel closer to the genuine Jesus. I am walking away feeling like it is the best explanation of the genuine joy and pain of the most intimate relationship we will ever have.

Challenging

Excellent, funny and challenging. Real, when a book makes me think and question my logic, makes you grow and learn. Totally recommended.

A real love story.

I love this real love story. It rings true to my own marriage and the dark troubled waters my husband and I waded through. My first time reading this author’s writing. He is funny and authentic. I love his understanding of God, also known as Jesus, and how the Trinity comes along, beside and into our messed up selves and relationships.

Sheer Excellence

Truth as it should be…The authors’ intelligent and honest story has touched the deep parts of my soul and I am greatly encouraged with much gratitude as I continue on my own life journey.