{"product_id":"tenth-of-december-stories-9780812984255","title":"Tenth of December: Stories","description":"\u003cb\u003eNATIONAL BOOK AWARD FINALIST - NAMED ONE OF THE TEN BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR BY \u003ci\u003eTHE NEW YORK TIMES BOOK REVIEW\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003cb\u003eNAMED ONE OF THE BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR BY\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e \u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003ePeople - The New York Times Magazine - \u003c\/i\u003eNPR - \u003ci\u003eEntertainment Weekly - New York - The Telegraph - BuzzFeed - Kirkus Reviews - BookPage - Shelf Awareness\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e \u003c\/b\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eIncludes an extended conversation with David Sedaris \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eOne of the most important and blazingly original writers of his generation, George Saunders is an undisputed master of the short story, and \u003ci\u003eTenth of December\u003c\/i\u003e is his most honest, accessible, and moving collection yet. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e In the taut opener, \"Victory Lap,\" a boy witnesses the attempted abduction of the girl next door and is faced with a harrowing choice: Does he ignore what he sees, or override years of smothering advice from his parents and act? In \"Home,\" a combat-damaged soldier moves back in with his mother and struggles to reconcile the world he left with the one to which he has returned. And in the title story, a stunning meditation on imagination, memory, and loss, a middle-aged cancer patient walks into the woods to commit suicide, only to encounter a troubled young boy who, over the course of a fateful morning, gives the dying man a final chance to recall who he really is. A hapless, deluded owner of an antiques store; two mothers struggling to do the right thing; a teenage girl whose idealism is challenged by a brutal brush with reality; a man tormented by a series of pharmaceutical experiments that force him to lust, to love, to kill--the unforgettable characters that populate the pages of \u003ci\u003eTenth of December\u003c\/i\u003e are vividly and lovingly infused with Saunders's signature blend of exuberant prose, deep humanity, and stylistic innovation. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e Writing brilliantly and profoundly about class, sex, love, loss, work, despair, and war, Saunders cuts to the core of the contemporary experience. These stories take on the big questions and explore the fault lines of our own morality, delving into the questions of what makes us good and what makes us human. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e Unsettling, insightful, and hilarious, the stories in \u003ci\u003eTenth of December\u003c\/i\u003e--through their manic energy, their focus on what is redeemable in human beings, and their generosity of spirit--not only entertain and delight; they fulfill Chekhov's dictum that art should \"prepare us for tenderness.\" \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eNEW YORK TIMES \u003c\/i\u003eBESTSELLER\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\"The best book you'll read this year.\"\u003cb\u003e--\u003ci\u003eThe New York Times Magazine\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e \u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003e \u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e \"A feat of inventiveness . . . This eclectic collection never ceases to delight with its at times absurd, surreal, and darkly humorous look at very serious subjects. . . . George Saunders makes you feel as though you are reading fiction for the first time.\"\u003cb\u003e--Khaled Hosseini, author of \u003ci\u003eThe Kite Runner\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e \u003cb\u003e \u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e \"The best short-story writer in English--not 'one of, ' not 'arguably, ' but the Best.\"\u003cb\u003e--Mary Karr, \u003ci\u003eTime \u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e \u003cb\u003e \u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e \"A visceral and moving act of storytelling . . . No one writes more powerfully than George Saunders about the lost, the unlucky, the disenfranchised.\"\u003cb\u003e--Michiko Kakutani, \u003ci\u003eThe New York Times\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e \u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003e \u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e \"Saunders's startling, dreamlike stories leave you feeling newly awakened to the world.\"\u003cb\u003e--\u003ci\u003ePeople\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e \u003cb\u003e \u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e \u003cb\u003eGEORGE SAUNDERS WAS NAMED ONE OF THE 100 MOST INFLUENTIAL PEOPLE IN THE WORLD BY \u003ci\u003eTIME\u003c\/i\u003e MAGAZINE\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eBinding Type:\u003c\/b\u003e Paperback\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublisher:\u003c\/b\u003e Random House Trade\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublished:\u003c\/b\u003e 01\/07\/2014\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eISBN:\u003c\/b\u003e 9780812984255\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePages:\u003c\/b\u003e 288\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eWeight:\u003c\/b\u003e 0.60lbs\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eSize:\u003c\/b\u003e 7.90h x 5.20w x 0.80d\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eReview Citations: \u003c\/strong\u003e\u003ci\u003eEntertainment Weekly\u003c\/i\u003e 01\/17\/2014 pg. 71\u003cbr\u003e\u003ci\u003eNew York Times Book Review\u003c\/i\u003e 02\/02\/2014 pg. 24\u003cbr\u003e\u003ci\u003eEntertainment Weekly\u003c\/i\u003e 11\/28\/2014 pg. 66\u003cbr\u003e\u003ci\u003eChristian Century\u003c\/i\u003e 12\/10\/2014 pg. 30\u003cbr\u003e","brand":"George Saunders","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":36644453908636,"sku":"9780812984255","price":15.3,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0473\/0804\/6492\/products\/img_530889bb-89fd-461b-9d46-17ac71ffdc01.jpg?v=1603858669","url":"https:\/\/pastforward.org\/products\/tenth-of-december-stories-9780812984255","provider":"Past Forward","version":"1.0","type":"link"}