Sunday's Silence: A Novel - Softcover

Nahai, Gina B.

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1508493987 ISBN 13: 9781508493983

Publisher: CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform, 2015

Synopsis

How different is Iran from Appalachia? Iranian-born writer Nahai's first two novels, Cry of the Peacock and Moonlight on the Avenue of Faith, were set in her native land, to great effect and rave reviews. Now, in a thoughtfully executed third novel, Nahai takes on Appalachia, illuminating another region whose people are united by a fundamentalist faith, their beliefs as exotic to, and misunderstood by, most Western readers as those of the people of Iran. Foreign correspondent Adam Watkins is stationed in Lebanon when he receives news that Little Sam Jenkins, the father he barely knew, has died of snakebite. A snake-handling preacher who had survived nine decades of hard living and 446 snakebites, Sam finally succumbed to the venom of a snake given to him by Blue, a gorgeous Kurdish woman born in Iraq, and herself a skilled snake-handler who never fit in with the Holy Rollers. Adam, having tried for 18 years to create a new life for himself, returns home looking for answers: What drove Sam? And was Blue merely testing Sam's faith, or did she intend to kill him? A strong sense of geography and religious history provides the backdrop as Nahai explores the enigma of charisma, opening a window on an insular world and rendering the "other" America explicable. Alternating with Adam's story is the first-person account of Blue, her voice charged with the mythic, seductive power of a Scheherazade. Faith versus fanaticism, fear as a motivating force for seeking salvation these themes are examined, as events both tragic and redemptive unfold. This multifaceted work expands Nahai's fictional universe in new and curiously fitting directions. Agent, Barbara Lowenstein. (Nov. 1)Forecast: Moonlight on the Avenue of Faith was a bestseller on the West Coast and has been translated into 16 languages. The Appalachia setting of Nahai's latest may startle her fans and lead to slow sales at first, but strong reviews should attract new readers.

About this title

Review:

"Chicago Tribune"

A bold, passionate tale of fanaticism and seduction. Sensitively and vividly rendered. Exotic, mythic, a tale told by a Scheherazade.

"San Francisco Chronicle"

"Sunday's Silence" is exactly the kind of book that Americans need to be reading right now, a book in which East and West collide, not only in war but in love.

"Los Angeles Times"

Exquisite....Nahai is especially adroit in her storytelling...Because [she] is not interested in sensationalizing....extreme religious notions, Sunday's Silence demands that we pay them attention and lets us understand a little bit better their powerful lure.

"Chicago Tribune"A bold, passionate tale of fanaticism and seduction. Sensitively and vividly rendered. Exotic, mythic, a tale told by a Scheherazade.

"San Francisco Chronicle""Sunday's Silence" is exactly the kind of book that Americans need to be reading right now, a book in which East and West collide, not only in war but in love.

"Los Angeles Times"Exquisite....Nahai is especially adroit in her storytelling...Because [she] is not interested in sensationalizing....extreme religious notions, Sunday's Silence demands that we pay them attention and lets us understand a little bit better their powerful lure.

"Chicago Tribune" A bold, passionate tale of fanaticism and seduction. Sensitively and vividly rendered. Exotic, mythic, a tale told by a Scheherazade.

"Los Angeles Times" Exquisite....Nahai is especially adroit in her storytelling...Because [she] is not interested in sensationalizing....extreme religious notions, Sunday's Silence demands that we pay them attention and lets us understand a little bit better their powerful lure.

"San Francisco Chronicle" "Sunday's Silence" is exactly the kind of book that Americans need to be reading right now, a book in which East and West collide, not only in war but in love.

About the Author:

Gina Nahai lives in Beverly Hills with her husband and three children. She is the author of THE CRY OF THE PEACOCK and MOONLIGHT ON THE AVENUE OF FAITH.

About this edition

• Publisher: CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform
• Publication date: 2015
• ISBN 10: 1508493987
• ISBN 13: 9781508493983
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 320