Items related to All is Song
It is late summer in London. Leonard Deppling returns to the capital from Scotland, where he has spent the past year nursing his dying father. Missing from the funeral was his younger brother William, who lives in the north of the city with his wife and two young sons. Leonard is alone, and rootless - separated from his partner, and on an extended sabbatical from work. He moves in with William, hoping to renew their friendship, and to unite their now diminished family.
William is a former lecturer and activist - serious, defiantly unworldly and forever questioning - a man who believes that happiness and freedom come only from knowing oneself, and who spends his life examining the extent of his ignorance: running informal meetings and symposiums with ex-students and local residents.
Leonard realises he must once again drop his expectations about the norms of brotherhood and return to the 'island of understanding' the two have shared for so long. As the summer progresses he is able to observe William and his strange life, and comes to share the anxieties of his late father, and of William's wife, that his behaviour will lead to disaster - as it nearly did many years before.
But it seems William has already set his own fate in motion, when news comes of a young student who has followed one of his arguments to a shocking conclusion. Rather than submit, William embraces the danger in the only way he knows how - a decision which threatens to consume not only himself, but his entire family.
Set against the backdrop of growing national unrest, tabloid frenzies and an escalating fuel crisis, All Is Song is a novel about filial and moral duty, and about the choice of questioning above conforming. It is a work of remarkable perception, intensity and resonance from one of Britain's most promising young writers.
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Review:
"Intense, rewarding and bracingly serious" (Adrian Turpin Financial Times)
"Profoundly beautiful, cathartic writing." (Catherine Taylor Daily Telegraph)
"A fine study of the nature and strength of family ties and the morality, or otherwise, of conforming where it matters" (Kate Saunders The Times)
"This beautifully written composition does that rare thing, of provoking free thought, while scrutinising the far-reaching repercussions of such rebellious activity" (Freya McClelland Independent)
"Harvey's slow, intense thoughtfulness feels positively Woolfean at times. She thinks deeply, and writes beautifully about these thoughts." (Lucy Atkins Sunday Times)
Book Description:
"Profoundly beautiful, cathartic writing." (Catherine Taylor Daily Telegraph)
"A fine study of the nature and strength of family ties and the morality, or otherwise, of conforming where it matters" (Kate Saunders The Times)
"This beautifully written composition does that rare thing, of provoking free thought, while scrutinising the far-reaching repercussions of such rebellious activity" (Freya McClelland Independent)
"Harvey's slow, intense thoughtfulness feels positively Woolfean at times. She thinks deeply, and writes beautifully about these thoughts." (Lucy Atkins Sunday Times)
A fiercely intelligent and moving second novel from the author of the acclaimed The Wilderness.
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- PublisherJonathan Cape
- Publication date2012
- ISBN 10 0224096338
- ISBN 13 9780224096331
- BindingPaperback
- Number of pages288
- Rating
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All is Song
Published by
Vintage Publishing, United Kingdom, London
(2012)
ISBN 10: 0224096338
ISBN 13: 9780224096331
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Paperback
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Book Description Paperback. Condition: Very Good. It is late summer in London. Leonard Deppling returns to the capital from Scotland, where he has spent the past year nursing his dying father. Missing from the funeral was his older brother William, who lives in the north of the city with his wife and three young sons. Leonard is alone, and rootless - separated from his partner, and on an extended sabbatical from work. He moves in with William, hoping to renew their friendship, and to unite their now diminished family. William is a former lecturer and activist - serious, defiantly unworldly and forever questioning - a man who believes that happiness and freedom come only from knowing oneself, and who spends his life examining the extent of his ignorance: running informal meetings with ex-students. Leonard realises he must drop his expectations about the norms of brotherhood and return to the 'island of understanding' the two have inhabited for so long. Yet for all his attempts at closeness, Leonard comes to share his late father's anxieties about the eccentricities of William's behaviour. But it seems William has already set his own fate in motion, when news comes of a young student who has followed one of his arguments to a shocking conclusion. Rather than submit, William embraces the danger in the only way he knows how - a decision which threatens to consume not only himself, but his entire family. Set against the backdrop of tabloid frenzies and an escalating national crisis, All Is Song is a novel about filial and moral duty, and about the choice of questioning above conforming. It is a work of remarkable perception, intensity and resonance from one of Britain's most promising young writers. The book has been read, but is in excellent condition. Pages are intact and not marred by notes or highlighting. The spine remains undamaged. Seller Inventory # GOR003753953
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