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Original Essays | September 17, 2013
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More copies of this ISBNThis title in other editionsThe Unnamedby Joshua Ferris
Staff Pick
The Unnamed is a very different (and much darker) book than Then We Came to the End, but Ferris's clarity of voice, urgency of purpose, fascinating characters, and even hints of humor remain. A marvelous and heartbreaking meditation on the mind and body and the nature of identity.
Joshua Ferris gives us a terrific character study in The Unnamed. When Tim, a high-powered lawyer, is struck by an unknown disease, he watches, helpless and terrified, as his life falls apart. When there are no answers from the doctors, the question remains: Is he going insane? An amazing story that will absolutely grip you. Wow! Review-A-Day"The Unnamed...points out how our busy lives have left us unable to experience the moment. 'He had promised himself not to take anything for granted and now he couldn't recall the moment that promise had given way to the everyday.'" April Henry, the Oregonian (read the entire Oregonian review) Synopses & ReviewsPublisher Comments:He was going to lose the house and everything in it.
The rare pleasure of a bath, the copper pots hanging above the kitchen island, his family-again he would lose his family. He stood inside the house and took stock. Everything in it had been taken for granted. How had that happened again? He had promised himself not to take anything for granted and now he couldn't recall the moment that promise had given way to the everyday. Tim Farnsworth is a handsome, healthy man, aging with the grace of a matinee idol. His wife Jane still loves him, and for all its quiet trials, their marriage is still stronger than most. Despite long hours at the office, he remains passionate about his work, and his partnership at a prestigious Manhattan law firm means that the work he does is important. And, even as his daughter Becka retreats behind her guitar, her dreadlocks and her puppy fat, he offers her every one of a father's honest lies about her being the most beautiful girl in the world. He loves his wife, his family, his work, his home. He loves his kitchen. And then one day he stands up and walks out. And keeps walking. The Unnamed is a dazzling novel about a marriage and a family and the unseen forces of nature and desire that seem to threaten them both. It is the heartbreaking story of a life taken for granted and what happens when that life is abruptly and irrevocably taken away. Review:"In Ferris's remarkable second novel (after Then We Came to the End), a life of privilege comes to ruin as a result of a strange and mysterious illness. Attorney Tim Farnsworth thought he had recovered from a disorder that compels him to walk to the point of exhaustion. But now his walking disease has returned and shows no sign of going into remission. His wife, Jane, supportive beyond measure, does everything she can to keep Tim safe during his walks, including making routine midnight trips to pick him up. As the disorder takes increasing control over their lives, however, the sacrifices they make for each other drive them further apart. Ferris manages to inject a bizarre whimsy into a devastatingly sad story, with each of Tim's outings revealing a new aspect of his marriage. The novel's circular aspects, with would-be happy endings spiraling back into chaos and then descending further, integrate Ferris's themes of family, sickness, and the uncertain division between body and mind into a vastly satisfying and original book." Publishers Weekly (Starred Review) (Copyright Reed Business Information, Inc.)
Review:"Wherever Ferris goes, we would do well to follow, in order to learn about ourselves." Tennessean
Review:"Ferris is an intrepid writer — he doesn't provide a solution (there's no cure for Tim) but he does explore all of the consequences. Highly recommended." Library Journal
Review:"What starts as a compelling enough story...develops into a metaphoric exploration of the relationship between body and mind, the notion of free will, and the nature of identity." Philadelphia Inquirer
Review:"Ferris has now given us two unforgettable novels: a brilliant office satire and a profound metaphysical meditation on love in the face of absurdity." Chicago Tribune
Review:"With his devastating metaphoric take on the yearning for connection and the struggles of commitment, Ferris brilliantly channels the suburban angst of Yates and Cheever for the new millennium. (Starred Review)" Booklist
Review:"Audacious, risky and powerfully bleak, with the author's unflinching artistry its saving grace." Kirkus Reviews
Review:"Surprisingly, almost tenderly, and despite his unrelenting refusal to churn out a predictable happy ending, he turns The Unnamed into a most unorthodox love story about commitment and sacrifice." Miami Herald
Synopsis:This dazzling novel tells the story of marriage, family, and the unseen forces of nature and desire that seem to threaten them both. It is the heartbreaking story of a life taken for granted and what happens when that life is abruptly and irrevocably taken away.
VideoAbout the AuthorJoshua Ferris's first novel, Then We Came to the End, was a National Book Award finalist, Barnes & Noble Discover Award winner and New York Times bestseller. He lives in New York.
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