What ifβwhoosh, right now, with no explanationβa number of us simply vanished? Would some of us collapse? Would others of us go on, one foot in front of the other, as we did before the world turned upside down?
Thatβs what the bewildered citizens of Mapleton, who lost many of their neighbors, friends and lovers in the event known as the Sudden Departure, have to figure out. Because nothing has been the same since it happenedβnot marriages, not friendships, not even the relationships between parents and children.
Kevin Garvey, Mapletonβs new mayor, wants to speed up the healing process, to bring a sense of renewed hope and purpose to his traumatized community. Kevinβs own family has fallen apart in the wake of the disaster: his wife, Laurie, has left to join the Guilty Remnant, a homegrown cult whose members take a vow of silence; his son, Tom, is gone, too, dropping out of college to follow a sketchy prophet named Holy Wayne. Only Kevinβs teenaged daughter, Jill, remains, and sheβs definitely not the sweet βAβ student she used to be. Kevin wants to help her, but heβs distracted by his growing relationship with Nora Durst, a woman who lost her entire family on October 14th and is still reeling from the tragedy, even as she struggles to move beyond it and make a new start.
With heart, intelligence and a rare ability to illuminate the struggles inherent in ordinary lives, Tom Perrotta has written a startling, thought-provoking novel about love, connection and loss.
Media Buzz
Fresh Air - NPR - May 25, 2012 Weekend Edition Sunday - August 28, 2011 Fresh Air - NPR - August 25, 2011
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