The Best People in the World
A Novel
On Sale: 01/23/2007
The Best People in the World
A Novel
On Sale: 01/23/2007
Format:
About the Book
In Paducah, Kentucky, seventeen-year-old Thomas feels as reined in as the mighty Ohio, a river confined by high floodwalls protecting his small Southern hometown. But all boundaries vanish when Thomas experiences first love with Alice, his new history teacher, a woman eight years his senior—and when he meets Shiloh, a misfit vagabond and anarchist who becomes his new role model. Fleeing to rural Vermont, this unlikely trio boldly pursues freedom, intimacy, and seclusion, unfettered by commitments and rules. But a life apart from the world does not ensure a life apart from the past—and for one of them, the past that emerges will threaten tragedy.
Critical Praise
“An engrossing tale . . . The novel ultimately succeeds because of the original voice of the narrator.” — USA Today
“Tussing is a fine writer with a flair for imagery, and he’s crafted a melancholy, resonant story.” — Boston magazine
“Inventive . . . Eloquent in capturing what it’s like to be alien in your own hometown. — Rocky Mountain News
“Bleakly beautiful... Tussing skillfully crafts simultaneously visionary and demented characters... [An] odd but honest, appealing American story.” — Publishers Weekly (starred review)
“A fresh, original voice . . . Tussing fashions a sophisticated exploration of the allure of love.” — Des Moines Register
“One bright book of exuberant American life . . . Tussing has a real gift.” — New York Times Book Review
“It is very rare to find a novel so lovingly, deliberately and perfectly written . . . Read it. Now.” — Salon
“A significant literary feat... Announces the arrival of a talented young voice on the contemporary fiction scene.” — Boston Sunday Globe
“This novel is rich in character, and it offers scene after scene of crackling, revelatory dialogue among lovers and friends.” — Chicago Tribune
“[A] lovely novel . . . Tussing is a witty, affecting writer.” — Washington Post Book World
“A richly complicated and very wonderful novel . . . Ambitious and mesmerizing.” — Newsday
“A self-assured debut that lovingly depicts how the past never stops revisiting us, even if we can’t revisit it.” — Portland Oregonian
“A strong work... Tussing’s take on the irrevocability of adolescent whim and heady self-determination is chillingly real.” — Minneapolis Star Tribune
“A rewarding read... Witty, well paced, and inventive... Tussing writes beautifully.” — Christian Science Monitor
“Marks the arrival of a compelling novelist with the gifts to enhance the contemporary literary landscape.” — ThisWeek
“Plaintive and powerful imagery... Breathtaking... A hauntingly atmospheric ode to love’s enigmatic and labyrinthine nature.” — Booklist
“Filled with surprise, recklessness, melancholy, headlong romance, and hilarity. Justin Tussing is the real thing. It doesn’t happen that often.” — Ron Hansen, author of MARIETTE IN ECSTASY and ATTICUS, National Book Award Finalist
“[A] beautiful, fearless novel... By turns comic and mysterious and wild, ultimately this is a heartbreaking book.” — Sarah Shun-lien Bynum, author of MADELEINE IS SLEEPING, National Book Award finalist
“Undeniably original imagination . . . An impressive work of fiction by a writer blessed with a distinctive voice.” — BookPage
“Defies categorization... The twists and turns are never predictable, and the open-ended denouement will leave readers wanting more.” — Pittsburgh Tribune Review
-Resources
Product Details
- ISBN: 9780060815356
- ISBN 10: 0060815353
- Imprint: Harper Perennial
- On Sale: 01/23/2007
- Pages: 368
- List Price:17.50 CAD
- BISAC1 : FICTION / Literary
- BISAC2 : FICTION / Historical
- BISAC3 : FICTION / Coming of Age
- BISAC4 : FICTION / Romance / Contemporary