A Perfectly Good Man
by Patrick Gale
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Pub Date May 31 2016 | Archive Date Jun 28 2016
Description
The bestselling British novel about love, marriage, family, secrets, and how the power of faith can transform lives even in the midst of inconsolable loss
After being paralyzed in a rugby accident, twenty-year-old, wheelchair-bound Lenny Barnes feels he has nothing left to live for and is putting his affairs in order before committing suicide. As lively Mazey Day celebrations take place in the Cornish town of Penzance, Lenny summons a parish priest to his home. Father Barnaby Johnson is shocked to discover that he has been called in not to comfort but to deliver last rites. Lenny’s death will reverberate not only in Barnaby’s life but in the lives of his family and those around them, from Barnaby’s wife, Dorothy, to Modest Carlsson, a parishioner and former teacher whose affair with an underage student cost him his job, his marriage, and, quite possibly, his soul.
Narrated in a nonlinear style from the characters’ shifting perspectives and ages, this spellbinding, exquisitely crafted novel exposes the fault lines in relationships as it limns the consequences of our actions.
The novel that author Patrick Gale describes as “an echo chamber” to his international bestseller Notes from an Exhibition, A Perfectly Good Man reveals another family in crisis and asks what it truly means to be good. This Richard & Judy Book Club pick is a story of warmth, wisdom, and compassion on crises of faith, the power of prayer, morality, and what it means to be a parent.
After being paralyzed in a rugby accident, twenty-year-old, wheelchair-bound Lenny Barnes feels he has nothing left to live for and is putting his affairs in order before committing suicide. As lively Mazey Day celebrations take place in the Cornish town of Penzance, Lenny summons a parish priest to his home. Father Barnaby Johnson is shocked to discover that he has been called in not to comfort but to deliver last rites. Lenny’s death will reverberate not only in Barnaby’s life but in the lives of his family and those around them, from Barnaby’s wife, Dorothy, to Modest Carlsson, a parishioner and former teacher whose affair with an underage student cost him his job, his marriage, and, quite possibly, his soul.
Narrated in a nonlinear style from the characters’ shifting perspectives and ages, this spellbinding, exquisitely crafted novel exposes the fault lines in relationships as it limns the consequences of our actions.
The novel that author Patrick Gale describes as “an echo chamber” to his international bestseller Notes from an Exhibition, A Perfectly Good Man reveals another family in crisis and asks what it truly means to be good. This Richard & Judy Book Club pick is a story of warmth, wisdom, and compassion on crises of faith, the power of prayer, morality, and what it means to be a parent.
Advance Praise
“Warm and humane . . . beautifully written.” —The Times (London)
“A moving account of a man’s struggle with faith, marriage, and morality.” —The Sunday Times
“Gale is an effortlessly elastic storyteller. A writer with heart, soul, and a dark and naughty wit, one whose company you relish and trust . . . A novel which managed to upset and uplift me in equal measure—and kept me guessing—right through to its slightly bitter and heartfelt end.” —TheObserver
“Marvelous.” —The Mail on Sunday
“The final chapter left me with a lump in my throat.” —The Guardian
“A moving account of a man’s struggle with faith, marriage, and morality.” —The Sunday Times
“Gale is an effortlessly elastic storyteller. A writer with heart, soul, and a dark and naughty wit, one whose company you relish and trust . . . A novel which managed to upset and uplift me in equal measure—and kept me guessing—right through to its slightly bitter and heartfelt end.” —TheObserver
“Marvelous.” —The Mail on Sunday
“The final chapter left me with a lump in my throat.” —The Guardian
Available Editions
| EDITION | Other Format |
| ISBN | 9781504036528 |
| PRICE | |
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