Items related to The Center of Everything
Synopsis
Evelyn Bucknow lives with her single mother, Tina, in a small apartment in Kansas. Though warm and loving, Tina is young, immature, and prone to hasty decisions that create a precarious financial situation for her increasingly anxious daughter. When a failed romance with her married boss leaves Tina jobless and desperate, Evelyn turns to her grandmother to distance herself from her mother's irresponsibility.
"synopsis" may belong to another edition of this title.
Review
Laura Moriarty's debut novel is a simple story, but effectively told. Ten-year-old Evelyn Bucknow lives with her not very responsible young mother, Tina, on the outskirts of a small Kansas town. The Center of Everything follows a clean arc: How Evelyn, a gifted but poor student, negotiates the pitfalls of her background to become a college student. The book shows the scary tenuousness of poverty. When Tina's car breaks down, their life falls apart like a flimsy cardboard edifice. Evelyn can't get to school, Tina can't get to work, and unseemly relationships with men who own cars develop. The novel's other theme is the importance of teaching; when one of her teachers tells her she's gifted, Evelyn's life is changed. "She takes off her glasses, still looking at me. I take off my glasses too, because for a moment I think she is going to place them on my eyes, the way you place a crown on someone's head when they become queen. Welcome to being smart." As she heads into adolescence, Evelyn sees her best friend fall in love and become pregnant, just as Tina did when she was a teenager. Evelyn resists these traps, not without some lovelorn, lonely moments. The Center of Everything careens dangerously near fingerwagging at times, but the book's salvation comes from unexpected quarters: Evelyn's mom Tina. At the outset, she seems beleaguered and lost, but as the book progresses she develops a wry resiliency. We get to watch Evelyn and Tina grow up together, and it's a rare sight. --Claire Dederer
About the Author
Laura Moriarty received her master's degree from the University of Kansas and was awarded the George Bennett Fellowship for Creative Writing at Phillips Exeter Academy. She is the author of The Center of Everything. She lives in Lawrence, Kansas.
"About this title" may belong to another edition of this title.
- PublisherThorndike Press
- Publication date2003
- ISBN 10 0786255633
- ISBN 13 9780786255634
- BindingHardcover
- Edition number1
- Number of pages610
- Rating
Buy New
Learn more about this copy
US$ 96.70
Shipping:
US$ 4.25
Within U.S.A.
Other Popular Editions of the Same Title
Top Search Results from the AbeBooks Marketplace
Stock Image
The Center of Everything
Seller: ThriftBooks-Atlanta, AUSTELL, GA, U.S.A.
Seller rating 5 out of 5 stars
Hardcover. Condition: Very Good. No Jacket. May have limited writing in cover pages. Pages are unmarked. ~ ThriftBooks: Read More, Spend Less 2.35. Seller Inventory # G0786255633I4N00
Quantity: 1 available
Stock Image
The Center of Everything
Published by
Thorndike Press, 2003
ISBN 10: 0786255633
ISBN 13: 9780786255634
Used
Hardcover
First Edition
Seller: Better World Books, Mishawaka, IN, U.S.A.
Seller rating 5 out of 5 stars
Condition: Very Good. 1st Edition. Former library book; may include library markings. Used book that is in excellent condition. May show signs of wear or have minor defects. Seller Inventory # 13782617-6
Quantity: 2 available
Stock Image
The Center of Everything
Seller: ThriftBooks-Dallas, Dallas, TX, U.S.A.
Seller rating 5 out of 5 stars
Hardcover. Condition: Fair. No Jacket. Former library book; Readable copy. Pages may have considerable notes/highlighting. ~ ThriftBooks: Read More, Spend Less 2.35. Seller Inventory # G0786255633I5N10
Quantity: 1 available
Stock Image
The Center of Everything
Seller: ThriftBooks-Atlanta, AUSTELL, GA, U.S.A.
Seller rating 5 out of 5 stars
Hardcover. Condition: Good. No Jacket. Missing dust jacket; Pages can have notes/highlighting. Spine may show signs of wear. ~ ThriftBooks: Read More, Spend Less 2.35. Seller Inventory # G0786255633I3N01
Quantity: 1 available
Stock Image
The Center of Everything
Published by
Thorndike Press, 2003
ISBN 10: 0786255633
ISBN 13: 9780786255634
Used
Hardcover
First Edition
Seller: Better World Books, Mishawaka, IN, U.S.A.
Seller rating 5 out of 5 stars
Condition: Good. 1st Edition. Former library book; may include library markings. Used book that is in clean, average condition without any missing pages. Seller Inventory # 3474523-6
Quantity: 2 available
Stock Image
The Center of Everything (Thorndike Press Large Print Basic Series)
Seller: Unique Books For You, Aurora, IL, U.S.A.
Seller rating 5 out of 5 stars
Hardcover. Condition: Good. Minor shelf/edge wear. Former library copy with the usual stamps/stickers/markings. No dust jacket. Seller Inventory # 8607
Quantity: 1 available
Stock Image
The Center of Everything
Seller: Books Unplugged, Amherst, NY, U.S.A.
Seller rating 5 out of 5 stars
Condition: Good. Buy with confidence! Book is in good condition with minor wear to the pages, binding, and minor marks within 0.85. Seller Inventory # bk0786255633xvz189zvxgdd
Quantity: 1 available
Stock Image
The Center of Everything
Seller: GF Books, Inc., Hawthorne, CA, U.S.A.
Seller rating 5 out of 5 stars
Condition: Good. Book is in Used-Good condition. Pages and cover are clean and intact. Used items may not include supplementary materials such as CDs or access codes. May show signs of minor shelf wear and contain limited notes and highlighting. 0.85. Seller Inventory # 0786255633-2-4
Quantity: 1 available
Stock Image
The Center of Everything
Seller: GoldBooks, Denver, CO, U.S.A.
Seller rating 5 out of 5 stars
Hardcover. Condition: very good. Very Good Copy. Customer Service Guaranteed. Seller Inventory # think_very_0786255633
Quantity: 1 available
Stock Image
The Center of Everything
Seller: Campbell Bookstore, Austin, TX, U.S.A.
Seller rating 5 out of 5 stars
Condition: very good. Seller Inventory # UsedCamp0786255633
Quantity: 1 available