Among the Ten Thousand Things: A Novel

Among the Ten Thousand Things: A Novel

For fans of Jennifer Egan, Jonathan Franzen, Lorrie Moore, and Curtis Sittenfeld, Among the Ten Thousand Things is a dazzling first novel, a portrait of an American family on the cusp of irrevocable change, and a startlingly original story of love and time lost.
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Jack Shanley is a well-known New York artist, charming and vain, who doesnâ€™t mean to plunge his family into crisis. His wife, Deb, gladly left behind a difficult career as a dancer to raise the two children she adores. In the ensuing years, she has mostly avoided coming face-to-face with the weaknesses of the man she married. But then an anonymously sent package arrives in the mail: a cardboard box containing sheaves of printed emails chronicling Jackâ€™s secret life. The package is addressed to Deb, but itâ€™s delivered into the wrong hands: her childrenâ€™s.
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With this vertiginous opening begins a debut that is by turns funny, wise, and indescribably moving. As the Shanleys spin apart into separate orbits, leaving New York in an attempt to regain their bearings, fifteen-year-old Simon feels the allure of adult freedoms for the first time, while eleven-year-old Kay wanders precariously into a grown-up world she canâ€™t possibly understand. Writing with extraordinary precision, humor, and beauty, Julia Pierpont has crafted a timeless, hugely enjoyable novel about the bonds of family lifeâ€”their brittleness, and their resilience.
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Advance praise for Among the Ten Thousand Things
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â€œThis book is one of the funniest and most emotionally honest Iâ€™ve read in a long time.â€â€”Jonathan Safran Foer
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â€œRemarkable . . . Pierpont displays not only wisdom, but real tact as a writer, knowing how much to say, how much to leave out, how much to imply.â€â€”Colm TÃ³ibÃn
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â€œEvery page of this gorgeous novel contains such joys that you wonâ€™t want to stop reading for anything.â€â€”J. Courtney Sullivan
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â€œPoignant, surprising, and fiercely intelligent,Â Among the Ten Thousand ThingsÂ is about the sturdiness and tremendous delicacy of the bonds between parents and children. Donâ€™t miss this powerful debut.â€â€”Megan Abbott
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â€œA vicious and enchanting portrait of a fragmenting family that will leave you hungry for whatever Julia Pierpont does next.â€â€”Courtney Maum
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â€œSharply observed and deeply illuminating, Among the Ten Thousand Things marks the beginning of what is sure to be a brilliant career.â€â€”Elliott Holt
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â€œWhy arenâ€™t there more first or second or seventh novels like Among the Ten Thousand Things? Thatâ€™s what I asked myself as I readâ€”actually, devouredâ€”Julia Pierpontâ€™s debut. My conclusion: Very few writers, at any point in their lives, can produce prose of the sort youâ€™ll find here.â€â€”Sean Wilsey
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â€œAmong the Ten Thousand Things succeeds in being both heartbreaking and funny: Itâ€™s a wry, sly look at a privileged New York upbringing and the ultimate loneliness at the heart of it.â€â€”Mary Gordon
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â€œThe perennial theme of marital infidelity is given a brisk, insightful, and sophisticated turn in Pierpontâ€™s impressive debut. . . . This novel leaves an indelible portrait of lives blown off course.â€â€”Publishers Weekly (starred review)

â€œA treat for fans of Jonathan Franzen, Jami Attenberg, and Emma Straub . . . shows off an exciting new voice on the literary landscape.â€â€”Library Journal (starred review)
Country USA
Manufacturer Random House
Binding Hardcover
ReleaseDate 2015-07-07
UnitCount 6
EANs 9780812995220

Country	USA
Manufacturer	Random House
Binding	Hardcover
ReleaseDate	2015-07-07
UnitCount	6
EANs	9780812995220

Among the Ten Thousand Things: A Novel

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