SHORTLISTED FOR THE NATIONAL BOOK AWARD A NEW YORK TIMES Selection for BEST 10 BOOKS OF THE YEARA WASHINGTON POST NOTABLE BOOK A PICK FOR THE NEW YORK PUBLIC LIBRARY’S 2018 BEST BOOKSTHE PERFECT HOLIDAY GIFT FOR READERS“A page turner…An absorbing and emotionally riveting story about what it’s like to live during times of crisis. “—The New York Times Book Review A dazzling new novel of … New York Times Book Review
A dazzling new novel of friendship and redemption in the face of tragedy and loss set in 1980s Chicago and contemporary Paris, by the acclaimed author Rebecca Makkai
In 1985, Yale Tishman, the development director for an art gallery in Chicago, is about to pull off an amazing coup, bringing in an extraordinary collection of 1920s paintings as a gift to the gallery. Yet as his career begins to flourish, the carnage of the AIDS epidemic grows around him. One by one, his friends are dying and after his friend Nico’s funeral, the virus circles closer and closer to Yale himself. Soon the only person he has left is Fiona, Nico’s little sister.
Thirty years later, Fiona is in Paris tracking down her estranged daughter who disappeared into a cult. While staying with an old friend, a famous photographer who documented the Chicago crisis, she finds herself finally grappling with the devastating ways AIDS affected her life and her relationship with her daughter. The two intertwining stories take us through the heartbreak of the eighties and the chaos of the modern world, as both Yale and Fiona struggle to find goodness in the midst of disaster.
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Haunting is the best way to describe this book – it has stayed with me long after I finished.
Yale and Fiona are two of a large group of close friends living in Chicago. The story begins in 1985 when AIDS is just becoming a reality, and, suddenly, so many of their friends are dying.
The writing is superb – I felt I was one of the gang, attending demonstrations, parties, funerals. It’s a sad story – we’ve all lost someone to this disease – but this book is not a downer. More, it’s a reminder to respect what and whom we have in our lives.
Well written with well developed characters. I have read about the AIDS epidemic of the 1980s but this book made me feel for those who suffered through its decimation of the gay community.
This book took a bit of time to get into, but once I did I was hooked. A very affecting story that is extraordinarily realistic, and will haunt you for some time after you have read it. Really enjoyed how all the characters came together in the end.
Full review coming soon.
Extraordinary