If you’re a big reader and frequent a lot of bookish sites, you may not have been able to avoid hearing about one of the buzziest books this year—Matthew Thomas’s debut novel, We Are Not Ourselves. The author supposedly received a huge advance and the book has garnered raves from many publications, including The New York Times and Publishers Weekly.
And now you have a chance to win a hardcover copy here.
First, the official description:
Born in 1941, Eileen Tumulty is raised by her Irish immigrant parents in Woodside, Queens, in an apartment where the mood swings between heartbreak and hilarity, depending on whether guests are over and how much alcohol has been consumed.
When Eileen meets Ed Leary, a scientist whose bearing is nothing like those of the men she grew up with, she thinks she’s found the perfect partner to deliver her to the cosmopolitan world she longs to inhabit. They marry, and Eileen quickly discovers Ed doesn’t aspire to the same, ever bigger, stakes in the American Dream.
Eileen encourages her husband to want more: a better job, better friends, a better house, but as years pass it becomes clear that his growing reluctance is part of a deeper psychological shift. An inescapable darkness enters their lives, and Eileen and Ed and their son Connell try desperately to hold together a semblance of the reality they have known, and to preserve, against long odds, an idea they have cherished of the future.
Through the Learys, novelist Matthew Thomas charts the story of the American Century, particularly the promise of domestic bliss and economic prosperity that captured hearts and minds after WWII. The result is a riveting and affecting work of art; one that reminds us that life is more than a tally of victories and defeats, that we live to love and be loved, and that we should tell each other so before the moment slips away.
Epic in scope, heroic in character, masterful in prose, We Are Not Ourselves heralds the arrival of a major new talent in contemporary fiction.
To enter, leave a comment answering this question: What does your version of the American Dream look like?
Giveaway ends next Tuesday, September 16, 9 p.m. PST. US addresses only, please, per the publisher’s request. Winner will be randomly selected and have 48 hours after notification to claim prize before an alternate winner is chosen. Good luck!
7 Comments
Jenna Evans
September 9, 2014 at 4:33 amI have heard so many good things about this book. I suppose my version of the American dream is being able to do whatever you want with your life for the most part, and balancing work, children, yourself etc….
Thanks for the giveaway!
Robert Weisberg
September 9, 2014 at 7:27 amSince we can’t count on eternal economic improvement from one generation to the next, the American Dream has to be one of ethical, moral, and compassionate improvement.
Rhonda
September 9, 2014 at 8:42 amA home food on the table health care for all.
Karen Upson Dodge
September 9, 2014 at 10:14 amMy idea of the American Dream includes tolerance, love, compassion, health & gratitude. We would all take care of the impoverished in our own backyards.
Gretchen Beetner
September 9, 2014 at 10:22 amI would say my version is to have family and friends I love, a comfortable home, enough money to not lose sleep over how bills will be paid with enough left over to enable me to travel and have life experiences that hopefully expand my horizons.
Paulette
September 9, 2014 at 9:16 pmOpportunity and fulfillment. I
Vicki
September 16, 2014 at 3:50 amMy idea of the American Dream is to live like they did when I was a child. You didn’t have to lock your doors, you weren’t afraid to be outside after dark, didn’t have to worry about money or health care. Life was slower, people were kinder, and they cared about and could count on each other.