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Did You Ever Have a Family

Audiobook
1 of 1 copy available
1 of 1 copy available
NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER
  • LONGLISTED FOR THE NATIONAL BOOK AWARD, MAN BOOKER PRIZE, PEN/ROBERT W. BINGHAM PRIZE, AND ANDREW CARNEGIE MEDAL FOR EXCELLENCE • AN ALA NOTABLE BOOK

    Hailed as "masterly" by The New York Times Book Review, "a brilliantly constructed debut set in the aftermath of catastrophic loss" (2015 Man Booker Prize Judges).

    The stunning debut novel from bestselling author Bill Clegg is a magnificently powerful story about a circle of people who find solace in the least likely of places as they cope with a horrific tragedy.
    On the eve of her daughter's wedding, June Reid's life is upended when a shocking disaster takes the lives of her daughter, her daughter's fiancé, her ex-husband, and her boyfriend, Luke—her entire family, all gone in a moment. June is the only survivor.

    Alone and directionless, June drives across the country, away from her small Connecticut town. In her wake, a community emerges, weaving a beautiful and surprising web of connections through shared heartbreak.

    From the couple running a motel on the Pacific Ocean where June eventually settles into a quiet half-life, to the wedding's caterer whose bill has been forgotten, to Luke's mother, the shattered outcast of the town—everyone touched by the tragedy is changed as truths about their near and far histories finally come to light.

    Elegant and heartrending, and one of the most accomplished fiction debuts of the year, Did You Ever Have a Family is an absorbing, unforgettable tale that reveals humanity at its best through forgiveness and hope. At its core is a celebration of family—the ones we are born with and the ones we create.
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      • AudioFile Magazine
        The choice to narrate his own work is the sole flaw in Bill Clegg's near-perfect debut novel. It's a beautifully crafted story of hope and survival in the face of an almost unimaginable family tragedy that captures listeners from the opening paragraphs to the poignant ending. The characters, even the supporting ones, are fully realized and offer a range of personalities at once unique and accessible. Clegg's presentation offers little range of pace or inflection and fails to provide the differentiation that would lift the narration to the rich level his prose. However, this distraction absolutely does not warrant abandoning the audiobook. Any listener who answers "yes" to the question posed in the title will find stepping away from this exceptional audiobook is not an option. M.O.B. © AudioFile 2015, Portland, Maine

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    • English

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