Sunset Terrace: A Novel - Hardcover

Donner, Rebecca

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 1931561346 ISBN 13: 9781931561341

Publisher: MacAdam/Cage, 2003

Synopsis

During the summer of 1983, Elaine and her daughters Hannah and Daisy move into Sunset Terrace, a squalid, low-rent apartment building in Los Angeles that houses single mothers. They have been on the road for three years, moving from town to town in a flight from tragedy ever since Hannah discovered her father dead in his study.

While Elaine struggles to make ends meet and construct a new life for herself in California, Hannah - a shy, lonely girl whose only companion in the shuffle of schools has been her pet turtle - develops an earnest affection for Bridget, a vivacious, foul-mouthed nine-year-old in apartment one who was abandoned as an infant in a supermarket parking lot. Now living with a foster family, Bridget quickly becomes Hannah's best friend, teaching her how to climb a chain-link fence and steal candy.

As the summer wears on, Elaine becomes captivated by Bridget as well, encouraging her to come over for dinner and sleepovers, taking on the role of a surrogate mother. Compelled by pity for the wayward girl, Elaine is blind to Bridget's dangerous influence on Hannah, who at the summer's end takes part in a malicious game that irrevocably alters the course of all of their lives.

About this title

From the Inside Flap:

"Donner's writing is nothing short of gorgeous....This is a remarkable debut." - Baltimore Sun

"Donner's finely observed portraits of the Sunset Terrace denizens...show a rare gift, perfectly capturing both the era and milieu." - Publishers Weekly

"Rebecca Donner has captured with painful accuracy the way that longing and love between girls can get tangled until it becomes an impossible knot. This is a gripping story, told with compassion, humor, and a clarity of vision that marks the debut of a writer to watch." - Dani Shapiro, author of "Family History" and "Slow Motion"

About the Author:

Rebecca Donner was born in Vancouver, British Columbia, and received degrees from the University of California at Berkeley and Columbia University. She was the literary director of the Sunday Night Fiction Series at New York City's KGB Bar from 1998 to 2002, and is the editor of On The Rocks: The KGB Bar Fiction Anthology.

About this edition

• Publisher: MacAdam/Cage
• Publication date: 2003
• ISBN 10: 1931561346
• ISBN 13: 9781931561341
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 311