{"product_id":"as-close-to-us-as-breathing-9780316384131","title":"As Close to Us as Breathing","description":"\u003cb\u003eA multigenerational family saga about the long-lasting reverberations of one tragic summer by \"a wonderful talent [who] should be read widely\" (Edward P. Jones).\u003c\/b\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e In 1948, a small stretch of the Woodmont, Connecticut shoreline, affectionately named \"Bagel Beach,\" has long been a summer destination for Jewish families. Here sisters Ada, Vivie, and Bec assemble at their beloved family cottage, with children in tow and weekend-only husbands who arrive each Friday in time for the Sabbath meal. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e During the weekdays, freedom reigns. Ada, the family beauty, relaxes and grows more playful, unimpeded by her rule-driven, religious husband. Vivie, once terribly wronged by her sister, is now the family diplomat and an increasingly inventive chef. Unmarried Bec finds herself forced to choose between the family-centric life she's always known and a passion-filled life with the married man with whom she's had a secret years-long affair. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e But when a terrible accident occurs on the sisters' watch, a summer of hope and self-discovery transforms into a lifetime of atonement and loss for members of this close-knit clan. Seen through the eyes of Molly, who was twelve years old when she witnessed the accident, this is the story of a tragedy and its aftermath, of expanding lives painfully collapsed. Can Molly, decades after the event, draw from her aunt Bec's hard-won wisdom and free herself from the burden that destroyed so many others? \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e Elizabeth Poliner is a masterful storyteller, a brilliant observer of human nature, and in \u003ci\u003eAs Close to Us as Breathing\u003c\/i\u003e she has created an unforgettable meditation on grief, guilt, and the boundaries of identity and love.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eBinding Type:\u003c\/b\u003e Paperback\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublisher:\u003c\/b\u003e Lee Boudreaux \/ Back Bay Books\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublished:\u003c\/b\u003e 11\/01\/2016\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eISBN:\u003c\/b\u003e 9780316384131\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePages:\u003c\/b\u003e 368\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eWeight:\u003c\/b\u003e 0.60lbs\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eSize:\u003c\/b\u003e 8.20h x 5.50w x 0.90d","brand":"Elizabeth Poliner","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":43418180780213,"sku":"9780316384131","price":13.59,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0473\/0804\/6492\/files\/img_a67e6e22-4707-4f36-a831-5b54ab256d92.jpg?v=1703002905","url":"https:\/\/pastforward.org\/products\/as-close-to-us-as-breathing-9780316384131","provider":"Past Forward","version":"1.0","type":"link"}