The Sacrificial Circumcision of the Bronx - Softcover

Nersesian, Arthur

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1933354607 ISBN 13: 9781933354606

Publisher: Akashic Books, 2008

Synopsis

Fiction. THE SACRIFICIAL CIRCUMCISION OF THE BRONX is the highly anticipated follow-up to THE SWING VOTER OF STATEN ISLAND - the first two installments in Arthur Nersesian's series The Five Books of Moses, which offers an alternate history of New York. Robert Moses designed contemporary New York's infrastructure. In this novel, Robert has looted his brother Paul's share of the Moses family fortune, repeatedly blocked his attempts at gaining public office, thwarted his career in the private sector, and set in motion events that decimate Paul's home life. Paul Moses' rage metamorphoses into an act of terrorism committed against his brother and against a city that he once cherished. Although it stands on its own merits, THE SACRIFICIAL CIRCUMCISION OF THE BRONX is also a memory play that follows Uli Sarkisian - the hero of THE SWING VOTER OF STATEN ISLAND - en route to solving a massive historical crime, while struggling to escape from becoming one of its victims.

About this title

About the Author:

Arthur Nersesian (born 1958) is an American novelist, playwright, and poet. Neresian is of Armenian and Irish descent. He was born and raised in New York City. His novels include The Fuck-up, Manhattan Loverboy, dogrun, Chinese Takeout, Suicide Casanova and Unlubricated. He has also published a collection of plays, East Village Tetralogy. He has written three books of poems and one book of plays. In 2005, Nersesian received the Anahid Literary Prize for Armenian Literature for his novel Unlubricated. Nersesian is the managing editor of the literary magazine, The Portable Lower East Side, and was an English teacher at Hostos Community College, City University of New York, in the South Bronx.

From Publishers Weekly:

The sum is greater than the parts in Nersesian's frustrating second of a five-novel series (after The Swing Voter of Staten Island). A dual narrative charts the lives of Paul Moses and his infamous power broker brother, Robert: Paul follows his girlfriend into the Mexican revolution, and his involvement sets his life's course; his adulthood is marked by a series of setbacks stemming from his connection with the anarchist movement. Robert, meanwhile, is a mama's boy who uses family wealth and connections to begin his ascent to power. A second narrative takes place in the postapocalyptic America of The Swing Voter of Staten Island and features a former FBI agent as he tries to escape a subterranean purgatory while his mind is invaded by the memories of Paul Moses. There are some interesting elements at play, but Nersesian's prose doesn't exhibit its customary zing, and the characters never quite come alive. The novel is somewhat redeemed by the two narratives' late-book connection, but the flat nature of the bulk of the novel may prevent all but the most insistent adherents to Nersesian's dyspeptic vision from finding the experience rewarding. (Oct.)
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About this edition

• Publisher: Akashic Books
• Publication date: 2008
• ISBN 10: 1933354607
• ISBN 13: 9781933354606
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 300