{"product_id":"severance-9781250214997","title":"Severance","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eMaybe it's the end of the world, but not for Candace Chen, a millennial, first-generation American and office drone meandering her way into adulthood in Ling Ma's offbeat, wryly funny, apocalyptic satire, \u003ci\u003eSeverance\u003c\/i\u003e.\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003eA stunning, audacious book with a fresh take on both office politics and what the apocalypse might bring. \u003cb\u003e--\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cb\u003eMichael Schaub, \u003ci\u003eNPR.org\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\"A satirical spin on the end times-- kind of like \u003ci\u003eThe Office\u003c\/i\u003e meets \u003ci\u003eThe Leftovers.\" \u003c\/i\u003e--\u003ci\u003e\u003cb\u003eEstelle Tang, \u003c\/b\u003e \u003cb\u003eElle\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cb\u003eNAMED A BEST BOOK OF THE YEAR BY: \u003c\/b\u003e\u003cb\u003eNPR * \u003ci\u003eThe New Yorker \u003c\/i\u003e(Books We Loved) * \u003c\/b\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eElle * \u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eM\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003earie Claire * \u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cb\u003eAmazon Editors * \u003c\/b\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eThe Paris Review\u003c\/i\u003e (Staff Favorites) * \u003c\/b\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eRefinery29 *\u003c\/i\u003e \u003c\/b\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eBustle *\u003c\/i\u003e \u003c\/b\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eBuzzfeed *\u003c\/i\u003e \u003c\/b\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eBookPage *\u003c\/i\u003e \u003c\/b\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eBookish \u003c\/i\u003e* \u003c\/b\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eMental Floss * \u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eChicago Review of Books * \u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eHuffPost * \u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eElectric Literature * \u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e \u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eA.V. Club * \u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eJezebel * \u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eVulture * Literary Hub * Flavorwire\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cb\u003eWinner of the \u003c\/b\u003e\u003cb\u003eNYPL Young Lions Fiction Award * \u003c\/b\u003e\u003cb\u003eWinner of the Kirkus Prize for Fiction * \u003c\/b\u003e\u003cb\u003eWinner of the VCU Cabell First Novelist Award * \u003c\/b\u003e\u003cb\u003eFinalist for the PEN\/Hemingway Award for Debut Novel * \u003c\/b\u003e\u003cb\u003eA \u003ci\u003eNew York Times \u003c\/i\u003eNotable Book of 2018 * \u003c\/b\u003e\u003cb\u003eAn Indie Next Selection\u003c\/b\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eCandace Chen, a millennial drone self-sequestered in a Manhattan office tower, is devoted to routine. With the recent passing of her Chinese immigrant parents, she's had her fill of uncertainty. She's content just to carry on: She goes to work, troubleshoots the teen-targeted Gemstone Bible, watches movies in a Greenpoint basement with her boyfriend. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eSo Candace barely notices when a plague of biblical proportions sweeps New York. Then Shen Fever spreads. Families flee. Companies cease operations. The subways screech to a halt. Her bosses enlist her as part of a dwindling skeleton crew with a big end-date payoff. Soon entirely alone, still unfevered, she photographs the eerie, abandoned city as the anonymous blogger NY Ghost. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eCandace won't be able to make it on her own forever, though. Enter a group of survivors, led by the power-hungry IT tech Bob. They're traveling to a place called the Facility, where, Bob promises, they will have everything they need to start society anew. But Candace is carrying a secret she knows Bob will exploit. Should she escape from her rescuers? \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eA send-up and takedown of the rituals, routines, and missed opportunities of contemporary life, Ling Ma's \u003ci\u003eSeverance \u003c\/i\u003eis a moving family story, a quirky coming-of-adulthood tale, and a hilarious, deadpan satire. Most important, it's a heartfelt tribute to the connections that drive us to do more than survive.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eBinding Type:\u003c\/b\u003e Paperback\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublisher:\u003c\/b\u003e Picador USA\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublished:\u003c\/b\u003e 05\/07\/2019\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eISBN:\u003c\/b\u003e 9781250214997\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePages:\u003c\/b\u003e 304\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eWeight:\u003c\/b\u003e 0.56lbs\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eSize:\u003c\/b\u003e 8.20h x 5.40w x 0.80d","brand":"Ling Ma","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":36648696250524,"sku":"9781250214997","price":16.15,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0473\/0804\/6492\/products\/img_375a9385-0589-45f5-a344-cb84e80d961e.jpg?v=1603870777","url":"https:\/\/pastforward.org\/products\/severance-9781250214997","provider":"Past Forward","version":"1.0","type":"link"}