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A gripping literary novel from a striking new voice in American fiction. New York City. By day, JT Savage is a labourer on the Upper East Side; by night an insomniac in an East Village tenement. His had been a superficially normal childhood in Yonkers, New York; a time of beers by the river, of working in his friend's father's garage, of studying to go to college. Then, one night, everything changed. 'August and then some' is a taut and gripping family drama, in which horrifying secrets kept between father and daughter, and mother and son, explode during one tragic night. Set over the course of two summers, it is a novel of revenge and the difficulty of repentance and forgiveness. Jaggedly beautiful and intensely realised, tightly plotted yet expansive, this debut novel is the coming-of-age of a striking new voice in American fiction.
A singular, life-altering night in Yonkers shatters the facade of a young man's upbringing, setting him on a collision course with the buried secrets of his own family. JT Savage navigates the stark divide between his grueling daytime labor on the Upper East Side and his restless, insomniac nights in an East Village tenement. As he grapples with the fallout of a past tragedy, he is forced to confront the volatile dynamics between parents and children that have long remained hidden. The narrative unfolds across two distinct summers, utilizing a dual-timeline structure to examine the lingering consequences of revenge and the arduous path toward potential forgiveness.
This debut novel presents a stark, grounded look at the complexities of family loyalty and the long-term psychological impact of hidden violence. The narrative structure suggests a deliberate pacing that prioritizes character interiority over rapid plot progression, allowing the tension to build through the revelation of past events. Readers likely encounter a gritty, realistic portrayal of New York City that mirrors the protagonist's internal state of restlessness and isolation. The thematic focus on the difficulty of forgiveness provides a somber, reflective quality that defines the work's overall tone.
Page Count:
272
Publication Date:
2011-01-01
Publisher:
Fourth Estate
ISBN-10:
0007183003
ISBN-13:
9780007183005
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