Ask Bookie
Overview
The lives of three strangers interconnect in unforeseen ways-and with unexpected consequences-in acclaimed author Dan Chaon's gripping, brilliantly written new novel. Longing to get on with his life, Miles Cheshire nevertheless can't stop searching for his troubled twin brother, Hayden, who has been missing for ten years. Hayden has covered his tracks skillfully, moving stealthily from place to place, managing along the way to hold down various jobs and seem, to the people he meets, entirely normal. But some version of the truth is always concealed. A few days after graduating from high school, Lucy Lattimore sneaks away from the small town of Pompey, Ohio, with her charismatic former history teacher. They arrive in Nebraska, in the middle of nowhere, at a long-deserted motel next to a dried-up reservoir, to figure out the next move on their path to a new life. But soon Lucy begins to feel quietly uneasy. My whole life is a lie, thinks Ryan Schuyler, who has recently learned some shocking news. In response, he walks off the Northwestern University campus, hops on a bus, and breaks loose from his existence, which suddenly seems abstract and tenuous. Presumed dead, Ryan decides to remake himself-through unconventional and precarious means.
Await Your Reply is a literary masterwork with the momentum of a thriller, an unforgettable novel in which pasts are invented and reinvented and the future is both seductively uncharted and perilously unmoored.
Customers Also Bought
- 1
Details
- ISBN-13: 9780345476036
- ISBN-10: 0345476034
- Publisher: Random House Publishing Group
- Publish Date: June 2010
- Dimensions: 7.9 x 5.1 x 0.8 inches
- Shipping Weight: 0.65 pounds
- Page Count: 368
Related Categories
You May Also Like...
- 1
New paperback releases for reading groups
POLAND PAST AND PRESENT
In her acclaimed debut novel, A Long, Long Time Ago and Essentially True, Brigid Pasulka deftly mixes history and romance to tell the tale of two lovers living in Poland during World War II. The novel’s protagonist, a young man named the Pigeon, falls for the beautiful Anielica and, to demonstrate his adoration, builds a home for her family. He sides with the resistance during the war, harboring his Jewish relatives and protecting his village. After the war, he becomes engaged to Anielica, and they move to Krakow in hopes of a better life. But their dreams soon wither in the face of the new Communist regime. The story of their granddaughter, Beata, brings the novel full circle. Beata, who hasn’t inherited Anielica’s beauty, has no prospects for marriage in modern-day Krakow. When family secrets come to light, she realizes that she must build her own future, and—empowered by the past—she does just that. Rich with detail, Pasulka’s novel is a profound exploration of politics, history and the role of the individual within both.
BACK TO THE CAPE
In his poignant seventh novel, That Old Cape Magic (Vintage, $15, 272 pages, ISBN 9781400030910), Richard Russo explores middle age and family life in ways that feel fresh and perceptive. An English professor stuck in a mediocre marriage, 57-year-old Jack Griffin finds himself at odds with his life. Thirty years ago, he gave up a career as a screenwriter in Los Angeles to marry his wife, Joy, and settle in New England. But now Jack is tired of academia and longs to return to his old vocation. As he tries to cope with the memory of his dead father, he must contend with his feisty 85-year-old mother, who hounds him by phone from her nursing home. Past and present collide when Jack travels to Cape Cod—the scene of many childhood vacations and his own honeymoon—for a friend’s wedding, an event that stirs up trouble and sends his life spinning in an unexpected direction. Bringing his trademark wit and emotional sensitivity to Jack’s story, Russo writes about matters close to every reader’s heart, and his delivery, as always, is impeccable.
TOP PICK FOR BOOK CLUBS
Suspenseful, compelling and ultimately unforgettable, Dan Chaon’s Await Your Reply follows the stories of three very different characters who share a common desire—to escape from the dead-end circumstances that confine them. Anxious to make an exit from her insular hometown, Lucy Lattimore takes off with a dynamic teacher from her high school, who tempts her with promises of money and travel. Lucy’s narrative is paralleled by that of Ryan Schuyler, a college dropout who looks up his long-lost father—a crook living in the Michigan woods—and becomes involved in the identity theft business. Rounding out the novel is the story of Miles Cheshire and his search for his schizophrenic twin brother, who may be the culprit behind the death of their mother. Richly rewarding, Chaon’s newest novel is a standout thanks to rich characterization, innovative plotting and prose that’s poetic yet edgy.
New paperback releases for reading groups
POLAND PAST AND PRESENT
In her acclaimed debut novel, A Long, Long Time Ago and Essentially True, Brigid Pasulka deftly mixes history and romance to tell the tale of two lovers living in Poland during World War II. The novel’s protagonist, a young man named the Pigeon, falls for the beautiful Anielica and, to demonstrate his adoration, builds a home for her family. He sides with the resistance during the war, harboring his Jewish relatives and protecting his village. After the war, he becomes engaged to Anielica, and they move to Krakow in hopes of a better life. But their dreams soon wither in the face of the new Communist regime. The story of their granddaughter, Beata, brings the novel full circle. Beata, who hasn’t inherited Anielica’s beauty, has no prospects for marriage in modern-day Krakow. When family secrets come to light, she realizes that she must build her own future, and—empowered by the past—she does just that. Rich with detail, Pasulka’s novel is a profound exploration of politics, history and the role of the individual within both.
BACK TO THE CAPE
In his poignant seventh novel, That Old Cape Magic (Vintage, $15, 272 pages, ISBN 9781400030910), Richard Russo explores middle age and family life in ways that feel fresh and perceptive. An English professor stuck in a mediocre marriage, 57-year-old Jack Griffin finds himself at odds with his life. Thirty years ago, he gave up a career as a screenwriter in Los Angeles to marry his wife, Joy, and settle in New England. But now Jack is tired of academia and longs to return to his old vocation. As he tries to cope with the memory of his dead father, he must contend with his feisty 85-year-old mother, who hounds him by phone from her nursing home. Past and present collide when Jack travels to Cape Cod—the scene of many childhood vacations and his own honeymoon—for a friend’s wedding, an event that stirs up trouble and sends his life spinning in an unexpected direction. Bringing his trademark wit and emotional sensitivity to Jack’s story, Russo writes about matters close to every reader’s heart, and his delivery, as always, is impeccable.
TOP PICK FOR BOOK CLUBS
Suspenseful, compelling and ultimately unforgettable, Dan Chaon’s Await Your Reply follows the stories of three very different characters who share a common desire—to escape from the dead-end circumstances that confine them. Anxious to make an exit from her insular hometown, Lucy Lattimore takes off with a dynamic teacher from her high school, who tempts her with promises of money and travel. Lucy’s narrative is paralleled by that of Ryan Schuyler, a college dropout who looks up his long-lost father—a crook living in the Michigan woods—and becomes involved in the identity theft business. Rounding out the novel is the story of Miles Cheshire and his search for his schizophrenic twin brother, who may be the culprit behind the death of their mother. Richly rewarding, Chaon’s newest novel is a standout thanks to rich characterization, innovative plotting and prose that’s poetic yet edgy.