The Path of Minor Planets: A Novel - Softcover

Greer, Andrew Sean

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0312306059 ISBN 13: 9780312306052

Publisher: Picador, 2002

Synopsis

From the Pulitzer Prize–winning author of Less and Less Is Lost comes The Path of Minor Planets, an exploration of chances taken and lost, of love found and broken, and of time's subtle gravitational pull on the lives of everyday and extraordinary people.

In 1965, on a small island in the South Pacific, a group of astronomers gather to witness the passing of a comet, but when a young boy dies during a meteor shower, the lives of the scientists and their loved ones change in subtle yet profound ways.

Denise struggles for respect in her professional life, married Eli becomes increasingly attracted to Denise and her quixotic mind, and young Lydia attempts to escape the scientists' long-casting shadows.

Praise for The Path of Minor Planets

“Greer pinpoints the ‘tiny hidden madnesses in ordinary people’ with unerring accuracy, and, in prose littered with sparks, makes palpable the longing for the celestial.” ―The New Yorker

“Greer successfully captures the spirits of both men and women here, and manages to hold a great deal together without slipping . . . A strong vision so consistently gorgeous.” ―Kirkus Reviews

About this title

About the Author

Andrew Sean Greer is the bestselling author of several works of fiction, including the Pulitzer Prize-winning novel Less, and The Confessions of Max Tivoli, which was named a Best Book of the Year by both the San Francisco Chronicle and the Chicago Tribune. He is also the recipient of the Northern California Book Award, the California Book Award, the New York Public Library Young Lions Award, the O Henry Award for Short Fiction, and fellowships from the National Endowment for the Arts and the New York Public Library. Greer lives in San Francisco.

Reviews

After witnessing a child fall to his death during a comet sighting on an island in the South China Sea, two astronomers try to shake off the pull of gravity in a love affair. Eli is married to a woman he adores but doesn't understand; Denise's sheltered, brainy childhood has left her "angry and terrified, jealous of other people's lives—their youths spent making love in old cars and graveyards." Over almost three decades, the lovers approach and retreat again, their desire elusive even to themselves. In this début novel, Greer pinpoints the "tiny hidden madnesses in ordinary people" with unerring accuracy, and, in prose littered with sparks, makes palpable the longing for the celestial.
Copyright © 2005 The New Yorker

Edition details

• Publisher: Picador
• Publication date: 2002
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0312306059
• ISBN 13: 9780312306052
• Binding: Paperback
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 288