Longlisted for the prestigious Booker Prize 2024, this work showcases a compelling narrative filled with rich characters and intricate themes. The story delves into the complexities of human relationships and societal challenges, offering readers a thought-provoking exploration of contemporary issues. With its engaging prose and deep emotional resonance, it promises to captivate audiences and spark meaningful discussions.
Salem, Massachusetts, 1851: McGlue è nella stiva, ancora troppo ubriaco per essere sicuro del suo nome, della sua situazione o della sua orientazione – potrebbe aver ucciso un uomo. Quell'uomo potrebbe essere stato il suo migliore amico. Ora, McGlue desidera una sola cosa: un drink. Perché per McGlue, insopportabili e terrificanti ricordi accompagnano la sobrietà. Navigando nei mari alti della tradizione letteraria, Ottessa Moshfegh ci offre un indimenticabile mascalzone in un viaggio affilato come un coltello attraverso le nebbie della memoria.
Eigenlijk zou onze hoofdpersoon gelukkig moeten zijn: ze is jong, slank, mooi, net afgestudeerd aan Columbia, heeft een eenvoudige baan bij een trendy kunstgalerij en woont in een appartement aan de Upper East Side van Manhattan dat ze - net als alles in haar leven - betaalt van een erfenis. Desondanks is er een donker, luchtledig gat in haar hart dat niet enkel te verklaren is door het verlies van haar ouders, de manier waarop haar geliefde haar behandelt of haar sadomasochistische relatie met haar beste vriendin Reva. Het is het jaar 2000 in een stad die glinstert van rijkdom en onuitputtelijke mogelijkheden. Wat zou er dan toch zo vreselijk verkeerd kunnen voelen? Mijn jaar van rust en kalmte is een krachtig antwoord op die vraag. In dit verhaal over een jaar doorgebracht onder de invloed van een waanzinnige combinatie van drugs die de hoofdpersoon zouden moeten genezen van haar vervreemding van deze wereld, toont Moshfegh de lezer hoe redelijk en zelfs noodzakelijk precies die vervreemding kan zijn. Zowel fijnzinnig als zwartgallig grappig, genadeloos en barmhartig: dit boek toont ons een jonge, veelbelovende schrijfster op de toppen van haar kunnen.
From the comic genius of Steve Martin comes a contemporary fable of life an love from the point of view of a shopgirl behind the glove counter at Neiman Marcus. Mirabelle, a semi-glamourous young woman who is making her way through the romantic jungles of Beverly Hills/Los Angeles, is an aspiring artist who prides herself on her clothing aesthetic. Unfortunately, she doesn't always have the best taste in men. When she meets a young Turk named Jeremy, whose idea of a great second date is a visit to the Laundromat, she sees him through a haze of prozac and other anti-depressants, and through the prism of her own poor self-esteem. But then she meets Ray Porter and thinks he could be her Knight in Shining Armor. In fact, he does turn out to be a worldly, rich gentleman who is a kindly and even exciting lover, but he never really takes Mirabelle seriously. Together, Mirabelle, Ray, Jeremy, and a few other suporting characters populate this insightful piece that is sometimes quirky, sometimes comic, and sometimes languid as a summer day.
Thirty-five years after a trip down the Mississippi on a raft with their classmates, four women are reunited to cruise the river once again where they plan to release the ashes of a fellow rafter, Margaret "Baby" Ballou. Revered for her powerful female characters, here Lee Smith tells a brilliantly authoritative story of how college pals who grew up in an era when they were still called "girls" have negotiated life as "women." Harriet Holding is a hesitant teacher who has never married (she can't explain why, even to herself). Courtney Gray struggles to step away from her Southern Living-style life. Catherine Wilson, a sculptor, is suffocating in her happy third marriage. Anna Todd is a world-famous romance novelist escaping her own tragedies through her fiction. And finally there is Baby, the girl they come to bury-along with their memories of her rebellions and betrayals