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Norumbega Park begins with a vision. Richie Palumbo, the most prosaic of men, gets lost one night in 1969 while driving home with his family. He finds himself in the town of Norumbega - a hidden town, remote and gorgeous, at the far edges of Boston's western suburbs. He sees an old, venerable house there, and without quite knowing why, decides he must have it. The repercussions of Richie's wild dream - to own a house in this town - lead to a forty year odyssey for his family. For Jack, his son, Norumbega becomes a sexual playground, until he meets one ungraspable girl and begins a lifelong pursuit of her. For Joannie, his daughter, the challenges of living here lead her to pursue the contemplative life. For Stella, Richie's wife, life in Norumbega leads to a surprising growth as both a sexual and spiritual being.
Norumbega Park - by Anthony Giardina, the critically acclaimed author of White Guys - is a novel about class and parental dreams, sex and spirituality, the way visions conflict with stubborn reality, and a family's ability to open up for others a world they could never fully grasp for themselves.
"Starred Review. This is a superb novel on every level, for Giardina fully fleshes out his characters as he scrutinizes their personal, family and social lives." - Kirkus Reviews
"There are moments of grace and beauty... and Giardina (White Guys) effectively portrays the cloistered world of contemporary nuns. However, the characters' malaise and dissatisfaction becomes claustrophobic." - Publishers Weekly
This information about Norumbega Park was first featured
in "The BookBrowse Review" - BookBrowse's membership magazine, and in our weekly "Publishing This Week" newsletter. Publication information is for the USA, and (unless stated otherwise) represents the first print edition. The reviews are necessarily limited to those that were available to us ahead of publication. If you are the publisher or author and feel that they do not properly reflect the range of media opinion now available, send us a message with the mainstream reviews that you would like to see added.
Any "Author Information" displayed below reflects the author's biography at the time this particular book was published.
Anthony Giardina is the author of four previous novels, most recently White Guys and one collection of stories. His short fiction and essays have appeared in Harper's Magazine, Esquire, GQ, and The New York Times Magazine, and his plays have been widely produced. He is a regular visiting professor at the Michener Center of the University of Texas. He lives in Northampton, Massachusetts. Visit him online at www.anthonygiardina.com.
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