Matthew Thomas erforscht in seinem einzigen Roman komplexe Familiendynamiken und persönliche Identität mit einem Stil, der für seine Tiefe und psychologische Präzision gelobt wird. Sein Werk befasst sich mit universellen Themen wie Liebe, Verlust und der Suche nach Sinn. Der Autor gestaltet meisterhaft Charaktere und ihre inneren Kämpfe und zieht die Leser in eine emotional resonante Erzählung.
The memoir explores the profound journey of love and loss experienced by Matthew Thomas, who reflects on his marriage to Anne and the impact of her death. Through heartfelt anecdotes, he shares their life together, marked by joy, travel, and deep connection, while grappling with grief and the quest for meaning. This tribute not only honors their relationship but also delves into a humanistic faith that offers solace beyond traditional beliefs, creating an inspiring narrative of resilience and reconciliation.
The narrative offers an intense glimpse into the high-stakes world of law enforcement along America's southern border, highlighting the dangers and challenges faced by officers. Readers are immersed in the gripping realities of border patrol, showcasing the urgency and complexity of their mission to maintain safety and order in a tumultuous environment.
Destined to be a classic, this "powerfully moving" (Chad Harbach, The Art of Fielding), multigenerational debut novel of an Irish-American family is nothing short of a “masterwork” (Joshua Ferris, Then We Came to the End). Born in 1941, Eileen Tumulty is raised by her Irish immigrant parents in Woodside, Queens, in an apartment where the mood swings between heartbreak and hilarity, depending on whether guests are over and how much alcohol has been consumed. When Eileen meets Ed Leary, a scientist whose bearing is nothing like those of the men she grew up with, she thinks she’s found the perfect partner to deliver her to the cosmopolitan world she longs to inhabit. They marry, and Eileen quickly discovers Ed doesn’t aspire to the same, ever bigger, stakes in the American Dream. Eileen encourages her husband to want more: a better job, better friends, a better house, but as years pass it becomes clear that his growing reluctance is part of a deeper psychological shift. An inescapable darkness enters their lives, and Eileen and Ed and their son Connell try desperately to hold together a semblance of the reality they have known, and to preserve, against long odds, an idea they have cherished of the future. Through the Learys, novelist Matthew Thomas charts the story of the American Century, particularly the promise of domestic bliss and economic prosperity that captured hearts and minds after WWII. The result is a riveting and affecting work of art; one that reminds us that life is more than a tally of victories and defeats, that we live to love and be loved, and that we should tell each other so before the moment slips away. Epic in scope, heroic in character, masterful in prose, We Are Not Ourselves heralds the arrival of a major new talent in contemporary fiction.
Eileen wächst als Kind irischer Einwanderer in Queens auf und wünscht sich nichts sehnlicher, als den engen Verhältnissen ihrer Herkunft zu entfliehen. Als sie dem jungen Wissenschaftler Ed Leary begegnet, scheint das Ersehnte so nah: ein schönes Haus, eine kleine Karriere, eine glückliche Familie. Thomas erzählt von ganz gewöhnlichen Menschen auf ihrer verzweifelten Suche nach Glück und Selbstverwirklichung. Doch der amerikanische Traum erweist sich bisweilen als Chimäre und so erfahren auch Eileen, Ed und ihr Sohn, wie schnell alles scheinbar Erreichte ins Wanken geraten kann.
