PublishedAllen & Unwin, October 2023 |
ISBN9781761470011 |
FormatSoftcover, 400 pages |
Dimensions23.4cm × 15.3cm |
No life is simple, and no life is without sorrow. No life is perfect. Two middle-aged men meet on an internet date. Each has been scarred by a previous relationship; each has his own compelling reasons for giving up on the idea of finding love. But still they both turn up for the dinner, feel the spark and the possibility of something more.
Feel the fear of failing again, of being hurt and humiliated and further annihilated by love. How can they take the risk of falling in love again. How can they not?A tender, affecting novel of love, of hope, of forgiveness by one of our most fearless and truthful interpreters of the human heart, the acclaimed bestselling author of The Slap and Damascus. Praise for Christos Tsiolkas:'I've admired the risk and power of all his novels, but this might be the riskiest of all-so personal, so delicate and true-and I love it.' - Charlotte Wood.'A scorching, mythic work with a heart of the sweetest intimacy.'- Helen Garner.' The audacity of Tsiolkas is still a thrill. And, dare one say it, necessary.' - Nigel Featherstone.' Tsiolkas has proved himself a heroic writer, ready to enter the fray and wrestle with intractable moral and political questions. A powerful parable of our times.' - The Saturday Paper on Damascus.' Every time I was 10 pages in a new book, I thought, "It's not Damascus", and put it aside for another day . . .' - Stephen Romei, Weekend Australian on Damascus.'I finished Barracuda on a high: moved, elated, immersed . . . This is the work of a superb writer who has completely mastered his craft but lost nothing of his fiery spirit in so doing. It is a big achievement.' - TheGuardian.' Once in a while a novel comes along that reminds me why I love to read: The Slap is such a book . . . Tsiolkas throws open the window on society, picks apart its flaws, embraces its contradictions and recognises its beauty, all the time asking the reader, Whose side are you on? Honestly, one of the three or four truly great novels of the new millennium.' - John Boyne, author of The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas.' The Slap is nothing short of a tour de force, and it confirms Christos Tsiolkas's reputation as one of the most significant contemporary storytellers at work today . . . Here is a novel of immense power and scope.' - Colm Tibn, author of Brooklyn.
David has a background in mental health and management in the not-for-profit sector. He enjoys assisting customers with their reading choices particularly around issues to do with leadership, HR management and mental health & psychology.
Tsiolkas writes, 'Something must be abandoned in order for something to be affirmed'.
In this beautifully crafted story of three men, two of the men find the courage to abandon the disappointments and the searing pain of betrayed love to affirm the possibility of re-discovering love in mid-life. A love that is humbler, softened with self-knowledge, and tempered with the steel of determination. A third man abandons the possibility of love to affirm his duty.
Tsiolkas weaves his astute observations of people with his trademark incisiveness to cut through the delusions we hold about ourselves and Australian society through this story which is a love story but so much more.
It is a book that continues to echo long after the final page is read.
