- Paperback: 352 pages
- Publisher: Picador; New edition edition (13 Mar 1987)
- Language English
- ISBN-10: 0330297511
- ISBN-13: 978-0330297516
- Product Dimensions: 19.2 x 13 x 2.4 cm
- Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
- Amazon Bestsellers Rank: 69,218 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
The Names
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More About the Author
Product Description
Product Description
Set against the backdrop of a lush and exotic Greece, The Names is considered the book which began to drive "sharply upward the size of his readership" (Los Angeles Times Book Review). Among the cast of DeLillo's bizarre yet fully realized characters in The Names are Kathryn, the narrator's estranged wife; their son, the six-year-old novelist; Owen, the scientist; and the neurotic narrator obsessed with his own neuroses. A thriller, a mystery, and still a moving examination of family, loss, and the amorphous and magical potential of language itself, The Names stands with any of DeLillo's more recent and highly acclaimed works.
"The Names not only accurately reflects a portion of our contemporary world but, more importantly, creates an original world of its own."--Chicago Sun-Times
"DeLillo sifts experience through simultaneous grids of science and poetry, analysis and clear sight, to make a high-wire prose that is voluptuously stark."--Village Voice Literary Supplement
"DeLillo verbally examines every state of consciousness from eroticism to tourism, from the idea of America as conceived by the rest of the world to the idea of the rest of the world as conceived by America, from mysticism to fanaticism."--New York Times --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
"The Names not only accurately reflects a portion of our contemporary world but, more importantly, creates an original world of its own."--Chicago Sun-Times
"DeLillo sifts experience through simultaneous grids of science and poetry, analysis and clear sight, to make a high-wire prose that is voluptuously stark."--Village Voice Literary Supplement
"DeLillo verbally examines every state of consciousness from eroticism to tourism, from the idea of America as conceived by the rest of the world to the idea of the rest of the world as conceived by America, from mysticism to fanaticism."--New York Times --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
Book Description
‘Compelling . . . strange and wonderful and frightening’ New Yorker DeLillo’s seventh novel is an exotic thriller. Set mostly in Greece, it concerns a mysterious ‘language cult’ seemingly behind a number of unexplained murders. Obsessed by news of this ritualistic violence, an American risk analyst is drawn to search for an explanation. We follow his progress on an obsessive journey that begins to take over his life and the lives of those closest to him. In addition to offering a series of precise character studies, The Names explores the intersection of language and culture, the perception of America from both inside and outside its borders, and the impact that narration has on the facts of a story. Meditative and probing, DeLillo wonders: how does one cope with the fact that the act of articulation is simultaneously capable of defining and circumscriptively restricting access to the self? ‘A serious and complicated novel which deserves praise . . . an outstandingly well-written and constructed book’ Guardian
--This text refers to an alternate
Paperback
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Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
A stunning piece of writing. DeLillo takes on the weighty topics of language, culture, history and society and somehow comes up with a fascinating thriller. His dry, perfectly phrased sentences are surprisingly funny and a joy to read. Best living American author?
14 of 35 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
DeLillo is the patient archeologist, brushing away the dust to reveal a rich and intertextual narrative which explores the landscapes of history, philosophy, morality and religion. Yet in all this the author reserves the right not to judge his characters, but to observe and contextualise; the upshot being a thickening in the sauce of the stories mysteries and a deepening of focus away from plot, to character, subtext and setting. With the precision of a brain surgeon (where so many authors are gynecologists) DeLillo dissects the souls of his characters in all their complexity and absurdity. Like the ancient alphabets which the story deals with, DeLillo has carved a haunting mythology which will outlive us all. The Names is a historical lament for our time which will continue to be read in a far away future.
0 of 8 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
Don DeLilo is a terrific author, and this is an intriguing and complex novel. However I am writing this review in order to complain about Amazon's service. This was one of three books I ordered in a batch from Amazon. They were poorly packaged and all were damaged in some way. This is the third time this has happened this year. I complained and got no response. Very poor delivery, very poor customer service. Is it beyond Amazon to adequately package books?
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