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Kelsey Ford: From the Stacks: J. M. Ledgard's Submergence (0 comment)
Our blog feature, "From the Stacks," features our booksellers’ favorite older books: those fortuitous used finds, underrated masterpieces, and lesser known treasures. Basically: the books that we’re the most passionate about handselling. This week, we’re featuring Kelsey F.’s pick, Submergence by J. M. Ledgard...
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  • Kelsey Ford: Powell's Picks Spotlight: Grady Hendrix's 'How to Sell a Haunted House' (0 comment)

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A Little Life

by Hanya Yanagihara
A Little Life

  • Comment on this title
  • Synopses & Reviews

ISBN13: 9780804172707
ISBN10: 0804172706



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Staff Pick

In an alternate universe, A Little Life would be the love-child of Hanya Yanagihara and Donna Tartt, and this is a beautiful thing. The story setup is reminiscent of The Secret History, but the language and themes are all Yanagihara. Spanning five decades, this is a hefty novel at 700 pages, but one that you will wish would never end. Focusing on a quartet of friends who move to New York together after college, A Little Life explores themes of love, coming of age, rewarding work, passion, family, and, of course, friendship: the good, the bad, and the ugly. The tortured Jude is the main character, who has lived through hell and back, in the way that only Yanagihara can depict hell. This book conveys such deep sorrow, pain, and hopelessness, but Yanagihara somehow makes you love those things. I am begging everyone to read this book. It broke my heart into a million tiny jagged pieces, but I loved every excruciating minute of it. Recommended By Dianah H., Powells.com

Tremendous. Devastating. Torturous. Hard-to-take hurts-your-heart scenes of the deep and dark sides of humanity. I could not stop reading this novel with its wonderful, flawless writing and memorable, haunting characters. I dare you to read A Little Life! Recommended By Adrienne C., Powells.com

Six months later, I am still thinking about this unutterably haunting and painful book filled with such love, tenderness, and kindness. The story follows four college friends into adulthood. At its core, it is about the devastating long-term effects of childhood abuse and internalized trauma and shame. Yet it is also about the exquisite power of love and friendship. Recommended By Nan S., Powells.com

A rich and detailed examination of four friends that meet in college. At the center is Jude, a lawyer with a past he doesn't talk about. He wears long sleeves in hot weather, walks with a limp, and lives with chronic pain. With steely compassion and an unflinching gaze, Yanagihara shows us how these friends interact over the years and how Jude's past continues to affect him. This is a big book with a bigger heart. Recommended By Mary Jo S., Powells.com

Synopses & Reviews

Publisher Comments

ONE OF THE BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR
The New York Times - The Washington Post - The Wall Street Journal - NPR - Vanity Fair - Vogue - Minneapolis Star Tribune - St. Louis Post-Dispatch - The Guardian - O, The Oprah Magazine - Slate - Newsday - Buzzfeed - The Economist - Newsweek - People - Kansas City Star - Shelf Awareness - Time Out New York - Huffington Post - Book Riot - Refinery29 - Bookpage - Publishers Weekly - Kirkus


WINNER OF THE KIRKUS PRIZE
A MAN BOOKER PRIZE FINALIST
A NATIONAL BOOK AWARD FINALIST


A Little Life follows four college classmates — broke, adrift, and buoyed only by their friendship and ambition — as they move to New York in search of fame and fortune. While their relationships, which are tinged by addiction, success, and pride, deepen over the decades, the men are held together by their devotion to the brilliant, enigmatic Jude, a man scarred by an unspeakable childhood trauma. A hymn to brotherly bonds and a masterful depiction of love in the twenty-first century, Hanya Yanagihara’s stunning novel is about the families we are born into, and those that we make for ourselves.

Review

“Piercing. . . . [Yanagihara is] an author with the talent to interrogate the basest and most beautiful extremes of human behaviour with sustained, bruising intensity.” The Times Literary Supplement

Review

“Exquisite. . . . The book shifts from a generational portrait to something darker and more tender: an examination of the depths of human cruelty, counterbalanced by the restorative powers of friendship.” The New Yorker

Review

“The most ambitious chronicle of the social and emotional lives of gay men to have emerged for many years.” The Atlantic

Review

“Capacious and consuming. . . . Immersive.” The Boston Globe

Review

“Hypnotic. . . . An intimate, operatic friendship between four men.” The Economist

About the Author

Hanya Yanagihara lives in New York City.

5 4

What Our Readers Are Saying

Share your thoughts on this title!
Average customer rating 5 (4 comments)

`
Rachael , September 27, 2016
When I bought this book at Powells the cashier looked at me and asked me if I was ready. I didn't quite understand what he meant. After finishing A Little Life, I get it. I never wanted to put this book down but at places it was so emotionally evoking that I had too. The character development and story telling is perfect and thorough and wonderful. I'd call this a must read.

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Clover88 , July 19, 2016 (view all comments by Clover88)
Tragic. Moving. Devastating. Uplifting. Four beautifully developed characters and a story of true friendship and loyalty over decades. I had to put it down and walk around the house to decompress occasionally, but otherwise, read it in a few intense days without a break and could not get it out of my mind for months after. Read it and find someone to read it with you, because you are going to want to talk about this book for hours after.

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VA Mom , May 29, 2016 (view all comments by VA Mom)
Absolutely loved this book, and didn't want to put it down. Such beautiful language in his writing, and such tragedy in the story. Highly recommend.

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davndan , January 27, 2016 (view all comments by davndan)
This grand story of brotherhood and love is at turns breathtaking and heartbreaking. For a lengthy novel it flew by and I didn't want it to end. The story revolves around Jude, a broken, self loathing but lovable man and three of his enduring friends. Reading it I found myself at times laughing out loud with tears following close behind. This book was definitely at the top of my best books of 2015 list. I highly recommend it!

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Product Details

ISBN:
9780804172707
Binding:
Trade Paperback
Publication date:
01/26/2016
Publisher:
Anchor Books
Pages:
736
Height:
8.00
Width:
5.19
Thickness:
1.16
Author:
Hanya Yanagihara
Subject:
Literature-A to Z

Ships free on qualified orders.
Add to Cart
$18.00
New Trade Paperback
Ships in 1 to 3 days
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QtyStore
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This title in other editions

  • New, Hardcover, $35.00
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