21.   But her mother called her not long ago to say she attended a charity auction where one of the items on the block was the Neiman Marcus Cookie recipe.

22.   Creating an alter ego named Vladimir Girshkin, a struggling immigrant whose mother calls him Failurchka, Shteyngart channeled all of his bitterness and resentment into his character.

23.   During the summer, his mother had called the cops and begged them to pick her son up and charge him with something, anything.

24.   He retreated into his San Francisco apartment, answering the phone so infrequently that his mother finally called the police.

25.   He explained that his mother had called him on his cell phone and told him he had crossed the line of good taste.

26.   He said he shrugged it off when his mother called him Wednesday morning to tell him of the Tennessee incident.

27.   He was nervous before the game because his mother called and talked basketball with him, something she rarely does.

28.   Her mother called it a major accomplishment the first time Caroline put butter on anything.

29.   Her mother called it awesome.

30.   Her mother called the police after having found the baby, not knowing anything about the infant.