Entertainment Weekly revealed the title and cover of the tome, which is called "Uncommon Type: Some Stories." The book -- first announced back in November of 2014 -- features 17 stories that have some connection to a typewriter, a nod to Hanks's love of vintage models of the machines. But that's where the similarities end for the eclectic works in the collection.
Here's the official description of the book, from its Amazon listing:
A gentle Eastern European immigrant arrives in New York City after his family and his life have been torn apart by his country's civil war. A man who loves to bowl rolls a perfect game--and then another and then another and then many more in a row until he winds up ESPN's newest celebrity, and he must decide if the combination of perfection and celebrity has ruined the thing he loves. An eccentric billionaire and his faithful executive assistant venture into America looking for acquisitions and discover a down and out motel, romance, and a bit of real life. These are just some of the tales Tom Hanks tells in this first collection of his short stories. They are surprising, intelligent, heartwarming, and, for the millions and millions of Tom Hanks fans, an absolute must-have!
In a statement, Hanks explained that he began working on the book back in 2015, writing stories while working on film sets in various international locations including New York, Berlin, Budapest, and Atlanta.
"I wrote in hotels during press tours," his statement continued. "I wrote on vacation. I wrote on planes, at home, and in the office. When I could actually make a schedule, and keep to it, I wrote in the mornings from 9 to 1."
According to Sonny Mehta, the chairman and editor-in-chief of Hanks's publisher, Alfred A. Knopf, the company was inspired to work with Hanks after reading his first published short story, "Alan Bean Plus Four," in The New Yorker in 2014. In a statement, Mehta said he "was struck by both [Hanks's] remarkable voice and command as a writer. I had hoped there might be more stories in the works. Happily, for readers, it turns out there were."
"Uncommon Type" is due to hit shelves on October 24. Hanks will also narrate the accompanying audiobook version of the tome, set for release on the same day.
[via: Entertainment Weekly]