2012 Puddly Awards
 
 
Follow us on TwitterFollow us on FacebookFollow us on TumblrSubscribe to RSS


Recently Viewed clear list


Interviews | January 24, 2012

Jill Owens: IMG Ben Marcus: The Powells.com Interview



Ben MarcusBen Marcus's books The Age of Wire and String and Notable American Women were considered "experimental" fiction because of his unconventional use of... Continue »
  1. $18.17 Sale Hardcover add to wish list

    The Flame Alphabet

    Ben Marcus 9780307379375

spacer
Free Shipping!

Ships free on qualified orders.
$7.95
Used Trade Paper
Ships in 1 to 3 days
Add to Wishlist
Qty Store Section
1 Burnside Self Help- Memoirs
1 Local Warehouse Literature- A to Z

The Liars' Club: a Memoir

by Mary Karr

The Liars' Club: a Memoir Cover

ISBN13: 9780143035749
ISBN10: 0143035746
Condition: Standard
All Product Details

Only 2 left in stock at $7.95!

 

Awards

Winner of the PEN/Martha Albrand Award

Synopses & Reviews

Publisher Comments:

A tenth anniversary edition of the landmark memoir, with a new introduction by the author.

When it was published in 1995, Mary Karr's The Liars' Club took the world by storm and raised the art of the memoir to an entirely new level, as well as bringing about a dramatic revival of the form. Karr's comic childhood in an east Texas oil town brings us characters as darkly hilarious as any of J. D. Salinger's — a hard-drinking daddy, a sister who can talk down the sheriff at twelve, and an oft-married mother whose accumulated secrets threaten to destroy them all. Now with a new introduction that discusses her memoir's impact on her family, this unsentimental and profoundly moving account of an apocalyptic childhood is as "funny, lively, and un-put-downable" (USA Today) today as it ever was.

Review:

"Astonishing...one of the most dazzling and moving memoirs to come along in years." Michiko Kakutani, The New York Times

Review:

"This book is so good I thought about sending it out for a backup opinion...it's like finding Beethoven in Hoboken. To have a poet's precision of language and a poet's insight into people applied to one of the roughest, toughest, ugliest places in America is an astonishing event." Molly Ivins, The Nation

Review:

"The essential American story...a beauty." Jonathan Yardley, The Washington Post Book World

Review:

"Overflows with sparkling wit and humor....Truth beats powerfully at the heart of this dazzling memoir." San Francisco Chronicle

Review:

"9mm humor, gothic wit, and a stunning clarity of memory within a poet's vision....Karr's unerring scrutiny of her childhood delivers a story confoundingly real." The Boston Sunday Globe

Synopsis:

The author, a prize-winning poet and critic, looks back at her upbringing in a swampy East Texas refinery town. She recalls her painter mother, seven times married, whose outlaw spirit could tip into psychosis; a fist-swinging father who spun tales with his cronies--dubbed the Liars' Club; and a neighborhood rape when she was eight.

About the Author

Mary Karr's poems and essays have won Pushcart prizes and have appeared in magazines such as the New Yorker, the Atlantic, and Parnassus. She was a Bunting Fellow at Radcliffe College, and is now the Jesse Truesdale Peck Professor of English Literature at Syracuse.

What Our Readers Are Saying

Add a comment for a chance to win!
Average customer rating based on 2 comments:

Nancy Payne, January 2, 2012 (view all comments by Nancy Payne)
Growing up in East Texas (or anywhere else)in a dysfunctional family brings "fun" and very dark memories as Mary Karr describes her childhood. You won't be able to put it down!
Was this comment helpful? | Yes | No
Ashlyn, August 24, 2009 (view all comments by Ashlyn)
I forgot I had this book and I picked it up and couldn't stop reading it, it's not a light-hearted book, but it's really good!
Was this comment helpful? | Yes | No
(2 of 2 readers found this comment helpful)
View all 2 comments

Product Details

ISBN:
9780143035749
Author:
Karr, Mary
Publisher:
Penguin Books
Subject:
Literary
Subject:
Women
Subject:
Family
Subject:
Poets, American
Subject:
Personal Memoirs
Subject:
General Biography
Subject:
Poets, American -- 20th century.
Subject:
Karr, Mary - Homes and haunts - Texas -
Subject:
Biography-Literary
Copyright:
Edition Description:
Revised
Publication Date:
20050631
Binding:
TRADE PAPER
Grade Level:
from 12
Language:
English
Illustrations:
b/w photos on pages 1, 175, and 273
Pages:
352
Dimensions:
7.70x5.08x.64 in. .51 lbs.
Age Level:
from 18

Other books you might like

  1. $10.99 Google eBooks add to wish list

    Sinners Welcome: Poems

    Mary Karr 9780061877780
  2. $12.38 Google eBooks add to wish list
  3. $13.50 New Trade Paper add to wish list

    American Youth

    Phil LaMarche 9780812977400
  4. $6.95 Used Trade Paper add to wish list

    Cherry: A Memoir

    Mary Karr 9780141002071
  5. $1.50 Used Trade Paper add to wish list

    Schindler's list

    Thomas Keneally 9780140067842
  6. $12.99 Google eBooks add to wish list

    The Kite Runner

    Khaled Hosseini 9781101217238

Related Aisles

The Liars' Club: a Memoir Used Trade Paper
0 stars - 0 reviews
$7.95 In Stock
Product details 352 pages Penguin Books - English 9780143035749 Reviews:
"Review" by , "Astonishing...one of the most dazzling and moving memoirs to come along in years."
"Review" by , "This book is so good I thought about sending it out for a backup opinion...it's like finding Beethoven in Hoboken. To have a poet's precision of language and a poet's insight into people applied to one of the roughest, toughest, ugliest places in America is an astonishing event."
"Review" by , "The essential American story...a beauty."
"Review" by , "Overflows with sparkling wit and humor....Truth beats powerfully at the heart of this dazzling memoir."
"Review" by , "9mm humor, gothic wit, and a stunning clarity of memory within a poet's vision....Karr's unerring scrutiny of her childhood delivers a story confoundingly real."
"Synopsis" by , The author, a prize-winning poet and critic, looks back at her upbringing in a swampy East Texas refinery town. She recalls her painter mother, seven times married, whose outlaw spirit could tip into psychosis; a fist-swinging father who spun tales with his cronies--dubbed the Liars' Club; and a neighborhood rape when she was eight.

spacer
spacer
  • back to top
Follow us on...


Powell's City of Books is an independent bookstore in Portland, Oregon, that fills a whole city block with more than a million new, used, and out of print books. Shop those shelves — plus literally millions more books, DVDs, and eBooks — here at Powells.com.