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The Laments

by George Hagen

ISBN: 081297218X
ISBN-13: 9780812972184
Format: Paperback

Summary

The Lament family is the focus for this novel by a South African writer now living in Brooklyn. The story begins when a baby named Will is adopted by Howard and Julia Lament, who then produce twin boys. Howard's engineering job takes the family to various parts of the globe, ending up finally in a New Jersey suburb. The novel follows Will's life as he struggles to discover who he is in the context of both the very eccentric Lament family and the rest of the world.

Customer Reviews

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Media Reviews

"Newcomer Hagen's understanding of the mix of love, banality, humor, and sadness that are the features of family life is deep and nearly flawless: a lovely book."

   -- Kirkus

"As a light, charming first novel about a memorably eccentric family it has obvious appeal; this is an enjoyable, inviting book liable to attract attention....Mr. Hagen has shaped an affectionate family portrait in which the characters come vividly to life....The Lament parents are especially memorable....Each of them sees new opportunity eternally on the horizon in ways that have the potential to make this a story of crushing disappointment. But Mr. Hagen somehow endows it with brightness and finds a universality here, too."    -- Janet Maslin

   -- New York Times

"[There is an admirable and enviable range and ambition in THE LAMENTS, and something lucidly democratic in the novel's insistence that a wandering life grants perspectives and perceptions that stay-at-homes can't achieve....[T]he appearance of George Hagen on the literary scene is a gain for readers everywhere."    -- Jonathan Wilson

   -- New York Times Book Review

Bibliographic Details

Publisher: Random House Inc
Published date: 2005
Size: 5 x 7.25 inches
Weight: 0.6 pounds
Pages: 377

Publisher's Notes

Secretly switched at birth and then adopted into the Laments family, Will journeys through three continents with his parents and fractious twin brothers while struggling with multiple relationships and a faltering sense of identity. A first novel.

Other Editions

Hardcover - Random House Inc (2004) - from $1.00
Paperback Reprint - Random House Inc (2005) - from $1.00

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The Laments: A Novel

Hagen, George

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