The Dog of the North
A Novel
(Sprache: Englisch)
"From the National Book Award longlisted author of The Portable Veblen, a great journey in a borrowed van that's long on joy in a dark, dark world"--
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"From the National Book Award longlisted author of The Portable Veblen, a great journey in a borrowed van that's long on joy in a dark, dark world"--
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1My plan was to catch the ten o'clock train from Salinas to Santa Barbara, seeing as I had no car and a few problems to deal with there. It is never convenient to be without a car in California, but I was pretty sure I would be able to borrow my grandfather's Honda station wagon once I arrived. And Burt Lampey would pick me up. Though I had to leave suddenly, the timing was good, as I'd been living in a motel for the past three weeks and was looking for a good excuse to quit my job. You might say the Santa Barbara crises had been timed perfectly for my circumstances. Extricating myself from Santa Cruz, the site of my most recent failures, was very welcome, actually a relief. So I took a bus to Watsonville, transferring to another that would take me through Castroville to the station, and, seeing as how chaotic things had been recently, the thought of being a passenger with nothing to do for the day but sit still while in motion was something to look forward to.
Even so, I was on edge. After all, I'd be facing two unpleasant situations through which great anger was sure to be directed at me. I was used to being the object of anger, especially recently, but that didn't make it any easier.
Adding to my general unease were thoughts of what I was leaving behind. In the past twenty-four hours I'd abruptly left my job, burning a bridge that I was happy to cross for the last time, and I'd confronted my husband, Sherman: I know all about Bebe Sinatra and the cocaine.
True, I took the cowardly way and wrote emails, but they were masterpieces of obfuscation. In no way did they reveal the depth of my disgust at what precipitated this rupture. They were the whimper rather than the bang at the end of my world, but I could not move forward if I were to permit myself the full brunt of my feelings.
As the bus neared Salinas, I started to breathe evenly. A hair glinted on my sleeve; I pulled it off and let it fly out the slightly opened window into the
... mehr
fields of brussels sprouts and artichokes flanking the highway. A rotten smell, like that from the neglected vegetable bin at the bottom of my last refrigerator, was blowing in. Despite the fact that I was finished with Sherman, I wondered where he was and what he was doing, and if I'd always wonder, no matter how humiliating the final days of our time together. For instance, last month, pouring Sherman's dirty clothes into the washer, I discovered a slightly worn pink thong. "Yuck, what's this?" I said.
"Oh. I found a bag of stuff at a bus stop. Thought maybe you might like it."
Repulsed, I held up the abbreviated scrap. "But the back part went up somebody else's buttock crevice."
"Can't you just say crack like everybody else?" Sherman said with disgust, peeling back yet another layer of his true feelings toward me.
"Sure. Whose crack was it anyway?" Nothing but anguish would compel me to say a thing like that.
Eventually I boarded the train and settled in. Just after the Zephyr left the station, the train door whooshed open, ushering in a cloud of patchouli oil and the sound of jingling metal objects. A woman came up the aisle and purposefully took the seat across from me. Small brass bells and coins had been sewn onto her billowy patchwork skirt. She then made eye contact and asked if I d like to have my palm read for twenty dollars.
Twenty dollars was a lot to me, but there I was, heading off into a great unknown. Once I dealt with the issues in Santa Barbara, my future was up for grabs. I was like the strand of hair blowing out the window, uprooted, alone. If ever there was a time I might want my palm read, this was it. So I agreed to it and she took my right hand and began to study the fleshy side, tracing her finger along some of the lines. At last she said, "I can see that in your past lives you experienced many episodes of aggression. Here"-she pointed to a place where t
"Oh. I found a bag of stuff at a bus stop. Thought maybe you might like it."
Repulsed, I held up the abbreviated scrap. "But the back part went up somebody else's buttock crevice."
"Can't you just say crack like everybody else?" Sherman said with disgust, peeling back yet another layer of his true feelings toward me.
"Sure. Whose crack was it anyway?" Nothing but anguish would compel me to say a thing like that.
Eventually I boarded the train and settled in. Just after the Zephyr left the station, the train door whooshed open, ushering in a cloud of patchouli oil and the sound of jingling metal objects. A woman came up the aisle and purposefully took the seat across from me. Small brass bells and coins had been sewn onto her billowy patchwork skirt. She then made eye contact and asked if I d like to have my palm read for twenty dollars.
Twenty dollars was a lot to me, but there I was, heading off into a great unknown. Once I dealt with the issues in Santa Barbara, my future was up for grabs. I was like the strand of hair blowing out the window, uprooted, alone. If ever there was a time I might want my palm read, this was it. So I agreed to it and she took my right hand and began to study the fleshy side, tracing her finger along some of the lines. At last she said, "I can see that in your past lives you experienced many episodes of aggression. Here"-she pointed to a place where t
... weniger
Autoren-Porträt von Elizabeth Mckenzie
Elizabeth McKenzie
Bibliographische Angaben
- Autor: Elizabeth Mckenzie
- 2023, 336 Seiten, Masse: 15,4 x 23,3 cm, Gebunden, Englisch
- Verlag: Penguin Random House
- ISBN-10: 0593300696
- ISBN-13: 9780593300695
- Erscheinungsdatum: 17.03.2023
Sprache:
Englisch
Pressezitat
The plot gallops along . . . As the caper wanes, McKenzie allows Penny a modicum of closure. This is the sweet, yet cautionary note the book ends on. The past is a sinkhole, it seems to say. It ll swallow you, if you re not careful, and your Land Cruiser, too. Erin Somers, The New York Times Book ReviewI m in love with a grieving misfit driving around with a donkey-shaped piñata in an old van held together by duct tape. Her name is Penny Rush . . . The great miracle of McKenzie s writing . . . is how she manages to transform misery into gentle humor . . . The irresistible sound of The Dog of the North is Penny s voice, composed of mingled strains of good cheer and naked lament . . . darkly hilarious. Ron Charles, The Washington Post
A vibrant novel that combines slapstick comedy with poignancy. The New Yorker
Gloriously entertaining. An exuberant comedy of human behaviour at its nuttiness. It is so engaging that I read it in great gulps, immersed in the sheer eccentricity of her world. Kate Saunders, The Times (London)
[A] delightful narrative...Sadly, no matter how many times you try to pause so it won't be over, it still ends with a decent outcome for its protagonist, thank heaven, because by that time you will be fully in love with Penny. McKenzie has created a wonderful addition to the crew of damaged characters beloved by readers, so very endearing and real. Kirkus (starred)
Endearing and quirky . . . With the anxious and well-meaning Penny at the helm, McKenzie brings sincerity to the otherwise zany proceedings. This whirlwind tale has heart to spare. Publishers Weekly
Zany and fun . . . Penny is always sharp, ready for the other shoe to drop, and lovable. This spinning, upside-down rollercoaster of a novel is a delightful portrait of the definitive chaos of love and family and perfect for fans of Carl Hiassen and George Saunders. Booklist
For
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readers who like their books odd, haunting, strange and surprising . . . Through Penny s eyes, we see the beauty in the seemingly broken, in the flawed stories we tell ourselves and what happens when those stories delightfully shatter. Freya Sachs, BookPage
What a wonderfully weird yet deeply familiar world Elizabeth McKenzie has sketched in The Dog of the North! These pages are full of the absurdly funny alongside the absurdly tragic hairpieces, talking fish, disappeared parents, a scalpel-happy grandmother, gastrointestinal disasters the strangeness is not mere quirk. McKenzie s brilliance lies in her deadpan gaze and cool wit, which shows us how inherently odd reality itself is. Families are odd. Homes are odd. California is odd. Dogs and hair and steak and trout are odd. Look up from this book and feel understood in your own inexplicable oddity. A joy, a pleasure, and an addictive read with an ultimately hopeful core that recalls Haruki Murakami, Sayaka Murata, Richard Brautigan, and Miranda July. Sanjena Sathian, author of Gold Diggers
Elizabeth McKenzie has a unique gift for turning the messiness of families and their unfinished business into poignant comedy. You will fall in love with this extended clan of misfits, even after they break your heart. Charlie Jane Anders, author of Victories Greater than Death
Darkly absurd and slyly insightful, Elizabeth McKenzie's The Dog of the North charms and delights even as it wrestles with childhood trauma, bodily indignity, and sudden death. This is a whirlwind picaresque, a genuinely comic novel, and most surprising and most satisfying a potent, poignant investigation into grief and the myriad ways we flailingly, failingly attempt to avoid the pains of loss. Miranda Popkey, author of Topics of Conversation
Sometimes the modern world seems like an inescapable hellscape. Then I remember that Elizabeth McKenzie is writing novels, and I feel better again. The Dog of the North is exactly as much fun as The Big Lebowski or one of Charles Portis's comic jaunts, filled with dialogue so fun you'll want to say it aloud and a blissful parade American eccentrics. Trust me there's a guy who tries to invent something called Steak in a Trout . Ed Park, author of Personal Days
The Dog of The North filled me with joy, a glorious feeling in these times. I laughed out loud on every page and underlined most of the book passages to return to. The novel in several different dimensions is about caretaking, a role that most people stumble into, don t plan on, and suddenly, wham, there you are doing this task for which you may or may not be prepared. Each person in the book in her/his own way is taking care at some level, even if he/she is wrong headed (or insane) in the approach. Thank you, thank you, Elizabeth McKenzie! Jane Hamilton, author of The Excellent Lombards
Compassionate, funny, quirky, and beautifully written, Elizabeth McKenzie's The Dog of the North is a novel of our moment. McKenzie spins an exquisitely-wrought tale about the contemporary precariat, health woes, fraying relationships, and the durability of friendship, which she sets within the early midlife walkabout. A triumph! Yxta Maya Murray, author of Art Is Everything
Even funnier, even more romantic than McKenzie's wonderful last, The Portable Veblen, this is a screwball comedy worthy of a Preston Sturgis screenplay. You will be surprised, delighted, and grateful to be aboard The Dog of the North with the admirable Penny Rush as she faces every challenge her wild and crazy family can throw at her. A book that lifts the spirits. Karen Joy Fowler, author of Booth
What a wonderfully weird yet deeply familiar world Elizabeth McKenzie has sketched in The Dog of the North! These pages are full of the absurdly funny alongside the absurdly tragic hairpieces, talking fish, disappeared parents, a scalpel-happy grandmother, gastrointestinal disasters the strangeness is not mere quirk. McKenzie s brilliance lies in her deadpan gaze and cool wit, which shows us how inherently odd reality itself is. Families are odd. Homes are odd. California is odd. Dogs and hair and steak and trout are odd. Look up from this book and feel understood in your own inexplicable oddity. A joy, a pleasure, and an addictive read with an ultimately hopeful core that recalls Haruki Murakami, Sayaka Murata, Richard Brautigan, and Miranda July. Sanjena Sathian, author of Gold Diggers
Elizabeth McKenzie has a unique gift for turning the messiness of families and their unfinished business into poignant comedy. You will fall in love with this extended clan of misfits, even after they break your heart. Charlie Jane Anders, author of Victories Greater than Death
Darkly absurd and slyly insightful, Elizabeth McKenzie's The Dog of the North charms and delights even as it wrestles with childhood trauma, bodily indignity, and sudden death. This is a whirlwind picaresque, a genuinely comic novel, and most surprising and most satisfying a potent, poignant investigation into grief and the myriad ways we flailingly, failingly attempt to avoid the pains of loss. Miranda Popkey, author of Topics of Conversation
Sometimes the modern world seems like an inescapable hellscape. Then I remember that Elizabeth McKenzie is writing novels, and I feel better again. The Dog of the North is exactly as much fun as The Big Lebowski or one of Charles Portis's comic jaunts, filled with dialogue so fun you'll want to say it aloud and a blissful parade American eccentrics. Trust me there's a guy who tries to invent something called Steak in a Trout . Ed Park, author of Personal Days
The Dog of The North filled me with joy, a glorious feeling in these times. I laughed out loud on every page and underlined most of the book passages to return to. The novel in several different dimensions is about caretaking, a role that most people stumble into, don t plan on, and suddenly, wham, there you are doing this task for which you may or may not be prepared. Each person in the book in her/his own way is taking care at some level, even if he/she is wrong headed (or insane) in the approach. Thank you, thank you, Elizabeth McKenzie! Jane Hamilton, author of The Excellent Lombards
Compassionate, funny, quirky, and beautifully written, Elizabeth McKenzie's The Dog of the North is a novel of our moment. McKenzie spins an exquisitely-wrought tale about the contemporary precariat, health woes, fraying relationships, and the durability of friendship, which she sets within the early midlife walkabout. A triumph! Yxta Maya Murray, author of Art Is Everything
Even funnier, even more romantic than McKenzie's wonderful last, The Portable Veblen, this is a screwball comedy worthy of a Preston Sturgis screenplay. You will be surprised, delighted, and grateful to be aboard The Dog of the North with the admirable Penny Rush as she faces every challenge her wild and crazy family can throw at her. A book that lifts the spirits. Karen Joy Fowler, author of Booth
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