Night of the Animals: A Novel - Softcover

Broun, Bill

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0062400800 ISBN 13: 9780062400802

Publisher: Ecco, 2017

Synopsis

In this imaginative debut, the tale of Noah’s Ark is brilliantly recast as a story of fate and family, set in a near-future London.

Over the course of a single night in 2052, a homeless man named Cuthbert Handley sets out on an astonishing quest: to release the animals of the London Zoo. When he was a young boy, Cuthbert’s grandmother had told him he inherited a magical ability to communicate with the animal world—a gift she called the Wonderments. Ever since his older brother’s death in childhood, Cuthbert has heard voices. These maddening whispers must be the Wonderments, he believes, and recently they have promised to reunite him with his lost brother and bring about the coming of a Lord of Animals . . . if he fulfills this curious request.

Cuthbert flickers in and out of awareness throughout his desperate pursuit. But his grand plan is not the only thing that threatens to disturb the collective unease of the city. Around him is greater turmoil, as the rest of the world anxiously anticipates the rise of a suicide cult set on destroying the world’s animals along with themselves.

Meanwhile, Cuthbert doggedly roams the zoo, cutting open the enclosures, while pressing the animals for information about his brother. Just as this unlikely yet loveable hero begins to release the animals, the cult’s members flood the city’s streets. Has Cuthbert succeeded in harnessing the power of the Wonderments, or has he only added to the chaos—and sealed these innocent animals’ fates?

Night of the Animals is an enchanting and inventive tale that explores the boundaries of reality, the ghosts of love and trauma, and the power of redemption.

About this title

From the Back Cover

Over the course of a single night in 2052, a homeless man named Cuthbert Handley sets out on an astonishing quest: to release the animals of the London Zoo. Ever since his older brother’s death in childhood, Cuthbert has heard voices, a gift his grandmother called the Wonderments, or an inherited ability to communicate with the animal world. Recently, they have promised to reunite him with his lost brother and bring about the coming of a Lord of Animals...if he fulfills this curious request.

Cuthbert doggedly roams the zoo, cutting open the enclosures, while pressing the animals for information about his brother. Around his desperate pursuit is greater turmoil, as the rest of the world anxiously anticipates the rise of a suicide cult set on destroying the world’s animals along with themselves. Will Cuthbert succeed in harnessing the power of the Wonder-ments, or will he only add to the chaos and seal these innocent animals’ fates? Night of the Animals is an enchanting and inventive page-turner that explores the boundaries of reality, the ghosts of love and trauma, and the power of redemption.

About the Author

BILL BROUN has worked as a newspaper and magazine journalist in both the US and the UK. He was appointed a resident fellow at Yale University in 2002, where he lectured in English and journalism, and currently serves as Associate Professor of English at East Stroudsburg University. Born in Los Angeles to an English father and an American mother, he now lives in Hellertown, Pennsylvania.

About this edition

• Publisher: Ecco
• Publication date: 2017
• ISBN 10: 0062400800
• ISBN 13: 9780062400802
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 560