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Flesh and Blood
 
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Flesh and Blood (Paperback)

by Michael Cunningham (Author)
4.5 out of 5 stars See all reviews (13 customer reviews)

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Product details

  • Paperback: 480 pages
  • Publisher: Penguin Books Ltd; New edition edition (27 Jun 1996)
  • Language English
  • ISBN-10: 0140246444
  • ISBN-13: 978-0140246445
  • Product Dimensions: 19.8 x 12.8 x 3 cm
  • Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars See all reviews (13 customer reviews)
  • Amazon.co.uk Sales Rank: 237,705 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

    Popular in this category:

    #6 in  Books > Fiction > Authors, A-Z > C > Cunningham, Michael

Product Description

Product Description
Constantine and Mary Stassos strive to embody the American dream. Bringing up a family in 1950s New Jersey, their hopes are channelled through Billy, Susan and Zoe. But as the children grow, move away and affirm their sexual identities, the repercussions of family life permeate their relationships.

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Customer Reviews

13 Reviews
5 star:
 (8)
4 star:
 (3)
3 star:
 (2)
2 star:    (0)
1 star:    (0)
 
 
 
 
 
Average Customer Review
4.5 out of 5 stars (13 customer reviews)
 
 
 
 
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

 
10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars "A chaos of yearning...love...hunger...bottomless grief.", 11 Aug 2005
By Mary Whipple (New England) - See all my reviews
(TOP 10 REVIEWER)   
This review is from: Flesh and Blood (Paperback)
An intense family drama which begins in 1935 and ends in 2035, the novel revolves around Constantine Stassos, a Greek who emigrates to the U.S. and eventually marries Mary Cuccio, an Italian girl who also wants to escape her home. He eventually fathers three children--Susan, who marries young to escape her father; Billy, who goes off to Harvard and an alternative lifestyle; and Zoe, who leaves for a hippie life in New York. When the children end up as parents themselves, their children's lives are also traced, as they, too, look for independence and a form of escape.

Filled with passion, as each character tries to define his/her own life, often using love and sex as their springboards to new lives, the characters reflect the eras in which they live. This is both a strength and limitation in the novel: a wonderful sense of universality pervades the struggles of the characters through the various generations, but their specific struggles are typical of their periods and easy to predict.

The characters themselves are well developed, but though they all possess unique qualities and eccentricities, they are also examples of cultural stereotypes. Constantine is an up-by-the-bootstraps success as a developer, but he is less successful as a husband. Mary tries to be the perfect wife and mother and becomes frustrated. Susan, a brittle striver in a tepid marriage, has one perfect child. Billy is gay, and Zoe dabbles in drugs and free love. Constantine's grandchildren are a perfect preppie and an interracial child living in a single parent household.

The most vivid character in the novel ironically, is not a member of the family. S/he is Cassandra, Zoe's transvestite guardian angel, a character so vibrant and so full of life that she dominates the scenes in which she appears and is almost solely responsible for any humor in the novel. (A scene in which Mary has a phone conversation with her, not knowing she is physically a male, is darkly hilarious, and Mary's first meeting with her is unforgettable.)

As the characters face discrimination, an almost-incestuous relationship, gay initiation, drugs, AIDS, divorce, illness, suicide, unplanned pregnancy, family rejection, and death, they also discover the forces which bring families together. Even those who "escape" find themselves inevitably connected to their family past. The search for love, the need for independence, the enduring connections of family, and the importance of memory enliven this generational saga. Written in beautiful prose and filled with perfect details, the novel revolves around honest characters expressing real emotion and learning real lessons. Mary Whipple

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12 of 14 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars Hard to put down, 10 Feb 2002
By A Customer
After reading "Home at the End of the World" in Hungarian I quickly ordered Flesh and Blood (not yet available in Hungary) because I liked the book so much. Now, after reading Flesh and Blood I have already ordered Hours. I think I will be sorry soon that Mr Cunningham have not written more novels so far. (As far as I know...)
I liked Flesh and Blood even better than Home at the End of the World. The problems of the characters are highly actual, the insight of the author into the minds of either a woman character or a man, either a child or an elderly person is deep and true. How do you know so well Mr Cunningham?!
This book told me a lot about people, about the truth of the poem of a big Hungarian poet :"The child I ever was is still alive...." . Although the characters are sometimes strange or antipathetical, you can easily identify with them, because they are deeply human.
The book begins with the childhood of the father and leads us through the lives of his three children and two grandchildren. Do not worry: you will not find boring details of family history, or never ending series of chronological events. You will read about the important episodes from special years or about just everyday scenes from the lives of the family members. The second half of the book is so exciting, I could hardly withstand the temptation to read the end in advance.
I recommend this book to everybody , who wants to read something between Dostojewski and Stephen King.
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2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars If you thought your family was dysfunctional, think again!, 7 Sep 2003
By jpksan (London United Kingdom) - See all my reviews
In this novel from the author of 'The Hours', Cunningham deftly follows a family for a century through their growth (apart; toghether; individually; collectively).

A marvellous observation of the maze of relationships. At once comic and heart-rendingly moving.

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Most Recent Customer Reviews

3.0 out of 5 stars Engaging but predicatble
I read this as part of a reading group.

I tend to like a good read so I enjoyed it but others in the group were fairly critical, suggesting that it was written `to a... Read more
Published 4 months ago by Mr. D. P. Jay

5.0 out of 5 stars Engrossing family saga
Covering many years and concluding well in the future, this family saga centres on the lives of three children, including the son who is gay, and their parents a Greek immigrant... Read more
Published 23 months ago by Benjamin

5.0 out of 5 stars Wonderful read A Reader from East Yorks
This is one of the best books I have ever read. I felt I was actually IN the family, part of them. Michael Cunningham writes with such marvellous insight into a famly's feelings,... Read more
Published on 23 Jul 2006 by Mr. G. Taylor Mrs Taylor

5.0 out of 5 stars A first class read!
This is the first book that I have read by Michael Cunningham, and I have since ordered more. The way with which Cunningham gets into the mind of each member of the family is both... Read more
Published on 20 Jun 2001

4.0 out of 5 stars A great, gripping read
Once I had picked this gem up, I couldn't put it down. The Stassos family is full of well devised characters that have real depth, even if you do spend most of your time... Read more
Published on 10 Feb 2000 by mlaw@tesco.net

5.0 out of 5 stars Almost a masterpiece
A cold, claustrophobic epic with the richness of sensuous prose and the richest of characters. Being a 'literary hound' I read a lot of what's good (and bad) for us, but this... Read more
Published on 14 Jun 1999

5.0 out of 5 stars Once Every Few Years A Writer Touches Your Very Core
Once every few years a writer the ilk of Hemingway, Steinbeck, seems to arise aout of nowhere. You awe that a human can create wonder from words others merely play at. Read more
Published on 3 May 1999

3.0 out of 5 stars middleweight family drama
An ambitious and absorbing book, many strong characters but too much cliche and melodrama to make it truly interesting or revelatory. Read more
Published on 10 Jan 1999

4.0 out of 5 stars ****** Flesh and Blood ******
Loved this book!

I enjoyed reading the way that this family evolved. I thought it was wise of Michael Cunningham to explore Constantine's childhood before looking at his... Read more

Published on 25 Nov 1998

5.0 out of 5 stars Poetic!
One of those books I always look for. You know, you can't put it down but you don't want to finish it. Read more
Published on 16 Jul 1998

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