You Deserve Nothing

Maksik, Alexander

ISBN 10: 1452605475 ISBN 13: 9781452605470

Publisher: Tantor Media Inc, 2011

Synopsis

William Silver is a talented and charismatic young teacher whose unconventional methods raise eyebrows among his colleagues and superiors. His students, however, are devoted to him. His teaching of Camus, Faulkner, Sartre, Keats, and other kindred souls breathes life into their sense of social justice and their capacities for philosophical and ethical thought. But unbeknownst to his adoring pupils, Silver proves incapable of living up to the ideals he encourages in others. Emotionally scarred by failures in his personal life and driven to distraction by the City of Light's overpowering carnality and beauty, Silver succumbs to a temptation that will change the course of his life. His fall will render him a criminal in the eyes of some and all too human in the eyes of others. In Maksik's stylish prose, Paris is sensual, dazzling, and dangerously seductive. It serves as a fitting backdrop for a dramatic tale about the tension between desire and action, and about the complex relationship that exists between our public and private selves.

About this title

Review

'One of the most engaged reads I've had in years. YOU DESERVE NOTHING is that rare and fearless debut novel that feels like anything but.' (Alice Sebold, author of THE LOVELY BONES)

'Alexander Maksik's You Deserve Nothing is a bracing, challenging, enthralling debut. It is a novel that rings true from first page to last, refusing the false notion of easy choices, inhabiting, rather, the moral maze of lived life. Here is a gifted writer who understands why the artful telling of a difficult story is a brave and important thing to do. Read this book.' (John Burnham Schwartz, Author of The Commoner, Reservation Road, and Northwest Corner)

'A provocative, constantly surprising, and original novel written with precision and grace. Maksik is unflinching in his exploration of the sexual awakening of the young, and the moral complexity of adulthood. This is a thrilling debut.' (Susanna Moore author of IN THE CUT and THE BIG GIRLS)

'The best stories are by nature confrontational, implicitly asking readers to assess their own lives and assumptions, asking readers not only what they might do in difficult situations but more so what they are doing daily and what it all means. By this yardstick, Alexander Maksik's first novel, You Deserve Nothing, is a thoroughly engaging, passionate, and challenging read that finely walks the line between morality and amorality. In a society, and at a time, when individual identity is so closely tied to collective narcissism, Maksik's novel asks what are the true sources of self-worth? And how shall we live?' (Tom Jenks, editor, Narrative magazine)

'The phrase 'brilliant debut' is much overused in our world, but Alexander Maksik's You Deserve Nothing is truly one of those rarest of creatures, a brilliant debut. Maksik's superb novel takes on the most fundamental question--how are we supposed to live?--with a freshness and urgency that are nothing short of masterful. This is a gorgeous, troubling, unflinching book, as honest and rich a depiction of life's contradictions as I've encountered in many years' (Ben Fountain, author of Brief Encounters with Che Guevarra)

'Alexander Maksik deftly evokes the beauty and pathos of Paris. The story of Will, Gilad and Marie, each compelled towards his or her own moral and sexual awakening, is at once dark and luminous. This is a book to be read all at once with a glass of wine in a cafe or a cup of tea while tucked safely in bed' (A.M. Homes)

'YOU DESERVE NOTHING is a powerful, absorbing novel and Alexander Maksik is an unusually gifted writer' (Tom Perrotta Author of Little Children, Election and The Leftovers)

'An extraordinary read' (Viv Groksop, Red Magazine)

'Rivetingly plotted and beautifully written' (New York Times)

'Superb' (Sunday Times)

Book Description

Dark, compelling story of an illicit affair between a young teacher and his female student for fans of Donna Tartt.

About this edition

• Publisher: Tantor Media Inc
• Publication date: 2011
• ISBN 10: 1452605475
• ISBN 13: 9781452605470
• Binding: Audio CD