CENSUS - Softcover

Ball, Jesse

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0062676148 ISBN 13: 9780062676146

Publisher: EccoPress, 2019

Synopsis

NAMED A RECOMMENDED BOOK OF 2018 BY

The New York Times - The Chicago Reader - Nylon - The Boston Globe - The Huffington Post - The Rumpus - The AV Club - Southern Living - The Millions - Buzzfeed - Esquire - Publishers Weekly

A powerful and moving new novel from an award-winning, acclaimed author: in the wake of a devastating revelation, a father and son journey north across a tapestry of towns

When a widower receives notice from a doctor that he doesn't have long left to live, he is struck by the question of who will care for his adult son--a son whom he fiercely loves, a boy with Down syndrome. With no recourse in mind, and with a desire to see the country on one last trip, the man signs up as a census taker for a mysterious governmental bureau and leaves town with his son.

Traveling into the country, through towns named only by ascending letters of the alphabet, the man and his son encounter a wide range of human experience. While some townspeople welcome them into their homes, others who bear the physical brand of past censuses on their ribs are wary of their presence. When they press toward the edges of civilization, the landscape grows wilder, and the towns grow farther apart and more blighted by industrial decay. As they approach "Z," the man must confront a series of questions: What is the purpose of the census? Is he complicit in its mission? And just how will he learn to say good-bye to his son?

Mysterious and evocative, Census is a novel about free will, grief, the power of memory, and the ferocity of parental love, from one of our most captivating young writers.

About this title

Review

"[Ball's] most personal and best to date... [A] point -- about the beautiful varieties of perception, of experience -- made without sentimentality, burns at the core of the book, and of much of Ball's work, which rails against the tedium of consensus, the cruelty of conformity."--New York Times

"With echoes of Paul Auster and Cormac McCarthy, Jesse Ball's road novel is anything but traditional. The prolific, award-winning author tells the story of a father and his son who has Down syndrome, bringing out their connection in luminous and unexpected ways."--Entertainment Weekly

"Strange and wonderful ... A melancholy and grief-filled book, Census also serves a healthy helping of compassion. I highly recommend it for fans of Paul Auster and Samantha Hunt."--LitHub

"Ball is too smart... to rely on cheap tricks of sentimentality...the result is an understated feat."--Washington Post

"Ball writes dystopia and fabulism with a hushed, poetic grace; as with his other work, Census promises to be beautifully and precisely wrought."--AV Club

"Emotionally riveting and shot through with the most pressing issues of our time, Ball's exploration of humanity in modern America is not to be missed."--Popsugar

"[Ball is] a writer of an elegantly poetic bent... Explore with Ball, fall into his quirky rhythms, and you'll discover a burning plea for empathy. It will break your heart."--Entertainment Weekly

"Ball's poignant dedication to his late older brother Adam, who had Down syndrome, adds yet another layer of complexity to this surreal and powerful story....grounded by the most enduring theme of familial love."
--Esquire

"Each new book from Jesse Ball reveals a new facet of his abilities as a writer; each one takes bold structural risks even as it ventures into heart-rending territories."--Vol 1Brooklyn

"Heart-breaking."--BBC.com

From the Back Cover

When a widower learns that he doesn't have long to live, he is struck by the question of who will care for his adult son, who has Down syndrome. With a desire to see the country on one last trip with his son, the man signs up as a census taker for a mysterious governmental bureau.

Traveling farther into the country, through towns named by letters of the alphabet, the man and his son encounter a wide range of human experience. While some townspeople welcome the pair into their homes, others are wary of their presence. As they approach Z, the man must ask: What is the purpose of the census? And just how will he learn to say goodbye to his son?

Wrenching and beautiful, Census is a novel about free will, the power of memory, and the ferocity of parental love. It is also an indictment of the cruelties of our society by a major writer.

About this edition

• Publisher: EccoPress
• Publication date: 2019
• ISBN 10: 0062676148
• ISBN 13: 9780062676146
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 272