Book
Long Island compromise : a novel / Taffy Brodesser-Akner.
"In 1983, a wealthy businessman named Carl Fletcher is kidnapped from his driveway in the nicest part of Long Island, brutalized, and held for ransom. He is returned to his wife and kids less than a week later, only slightly the worse for wear, and the family begins the hard work of trying to move on with their lives and resume their prized places in the saga of the American dream, coming to understand that though their money may have been what put them in danger, it is also what guaranteed them their safety in the end. But forty years later, when Carl's mother dies and the family comes home to mourn her, it becomes clear that nobody ever really got over anything. Carl's wife, Ruth, has spent her potential protecting her husband's emotional health. Their three grown children are each a mess: Nathan cannot seem to advance at his law firm and may have made a terrible investment with his trust fund; Beamer, a Hollywood screenwriter, will consume anything-substance, foodstuff, women-in order to numb his own perpetual terror; and Jenny has spent her life so bent on proving that she is not a product of the family's pathology that she comes to define it. Then there's Carl himself, the prickly, still-terrified father, who has been secretly seeking closure to the matter of his kidnapping for years, and the unthinkable act he commits that will alter the family's path forever"-- Provided by publisher.
Record details
- ISBN: 9780593133491 (hardcover)
- Physical Description: 444 pages ; 25 cm
- Edition: First edition.
- Publisher: New York : Random House, [2024]
- Copyright: ©2024
Search for related items by subject
| Subject: | Extortion > Fiction. Families > Fiction. Family secrets > Fiction. Kidnapping > Fiction. Life change events > Fiction. Ransom > Fiction. Rich people > Fiction. Secrecy > Fiction. Long Island (N.Y.) > Fiction. |
| Genre: | Domestic fiction. Satirical fiction. Novels. |
Available copies
- 2 of 2 copies available at Tsuga Consortium.
Holds
- 0 current holds with 2 total copies.
Other Formats and Editions
Show Only Available Copies
| Location | Call Number / Copy Notes | Barcode | Shelving Location | Status | Due Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cookstown Branch | FIC Brode | 31681010380368 | FICTION | Available | - |
| Lakeshore Branch | FIC Brode | 31681010380376 | FICTION | Available | - |
- Baker & Taylor
In denial that theyâre all still affected by their wealthy businessman fatherâs kidnapping back in 1980, the Fletcher siblings, as they hover at the delicate precipice of another kind of survival, must face desperate questions about how much their familyâs wealth has played a part in both their successes and failures. - Baker & Taylor
"In 1983, a wealthy businessman named Carl Fletcher is kidnapped from his driveway in the nicest part of Long Island, brutalized, and held for ransom. He is returned to his wife and kids less than a week later, only slightly the worse for wear, and the family begins the hard work of trying to move on with their lives and resume their prized places in the saga of the American dream, coming to understand that though their money may have been what put them in danger, it is also what guaranteed them their safety in the end. But forty years later, when Carl's mother dies and the family comes home to mourn her, it becomes clear that nobody ever really got over anything. Carl's wife, Ruth, has spent her potential protecting her husband's emotional health. Theirthree grown children are each a mess: Nathan cannot seem to advance at his law firm and may have made a terrible investment with his trust fund; Beamer, a Hollywood screenwriter, will consume anything-substance, foodstuff, women-in order to numb his own perpetual terror; and Jenny has spent her life so bent on proving that she is not a product of the family's pathology that she comes to define it. Then there's Carl himself, the prickly, still-terrified father, who has been secretly seeking closure to thematter of his kidnapping for years, and the unthinkable act he commits that will alter the family's path forever"-- - Random House, Inc.
NATIONAL BESTSELLER ⢠An exhilarating novel about one American family and the dark moment that shatters their suburban paradise, from the New York Times bestselling author of Fleishman Is in Trouble
New York Times Book Review Editorsâ Choice ⢠New York Magazineâs Beach Read Book Club Pick ⢠Belletrist Book Club Pick
A BEST BOOK OF THE YEAR: The New York Times Book Review, Oprah Daily, The New Yorker, Time, The Washington Post, NPR, Vogue, Town & Country, New York Post, Harperâs Bazaar, Elle, Parade, Kirkus Reviews
âJoins the pantheon of great American novels.ââLos Angeles Times
âExuberant and absorbing . . . a big old-fashioned social novel.ââThe Atlantic
âWere we gangsters? No. But did we know how to start a fire?â
In 1980, a wealthy businessman named Carl Fletcher is kidnapped from his driveway, brutalized, and held for ransom. He is returned to his wife and kids less than a week later, only slightly the worse, and the family moves on with their lives, resuming their prized places in the saga of the American dream, comforted in the realization that though their money may have been what endangered them, it is also what assured them their safety.
But now, nearly forty years later, itâs clear that perhaps nobody ever got over anything, after all. Carl has spent the ensuing years secretly seeking closure to the matter of his kidnapping, while his wife, Ruth, has spent her potential protecting her husbandâs emotional health. Their three grown children arenât doing much better: Nathanâs chronic fear wonât allow him to advance at his law firm; Beamer, a Hollywood screenwriter, will consume anythingâsubstance, foodstuff, womenâin order to numb his own perpetual terror; and Jenny has spent her life so bent on proving that sheâs not a product of her familyâs pathology that she has come to define it. As they hover at the delicate precipice of a different kind of survival, they learn that the family fortune has dwindled to just about nothing, and they must face desperate questions about how much their wealth has played a part in both their livesâ successes and failures.
Long Island Compromise spans the entirety of one familyâs history, winding through decades and generations, all the way to the outrageous present, and confronting the mainstays of American Jewish life: tradition, the pursuit of success, the terror of history, fear of the future, old wivesâ tales, evil eyes, ambition, achievement, boredom, dybbuks, inheritance, pyramid schemes, right-wing capitalists, beta-blockers, psychics, and the mostly unspoken love and shared experience that unite a family forever.
