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| Title | : | A Long Way Down |
| Author | : | Nick Hornby |
| Book Format | : | Hardcover |
| Book Edition | : | Deluxe Edition |
| Pages | : | Pages: 368 pages |
| Published | : | May 2nd 2006 by Riverhead Books (first published June 7th 2005) |
| Categories | : | Fiction. Contemporary. Humor. European Literature. British Literature. Novels. Adult Fiction. Adult |
Nick Hornby
Hardcover | Pages: 368 pages Rating: 3.42 | 75661 Users | 4959 Reviews
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In his eagerly awaited fourth novel, New York Times-bestselling author Nick Hornby mines the hearts and psyches of four lost souls who connect just when they've reached the end of the line.Meet Martin, JJ, Jess, and Maureen. Four people who come together on New Year's Eve: a former TV talk show host, a musician, a teenage girl, and a mother. Three are British, one is American. They encounter one another on the roof of Topper's House, a London destination famous as the last stop for those ready to end their lives.
In four distinct and riveting first-person voices, Nick Hornby tells a story of four individuals confronting the limits of choice, circumstance, and their own mortality. This is a tale of connections made and missed, punishing regrets, and the grace of second chances.
Intense, hilarious, provocative, and moving, A Long Way Down is a novel about suicide that is, surprisingly, full of life.
What's your jumping-off point?
Maureen
Why is it the biggest sin of all? All your life you're told that you'll be going to this marvelous place when you pass on. And the one thing you can do to get you there a bit quicker is something that stops you getting there at all. Oh, I can see that it's a kind of queue-jumping. But if someone jumps the queue at the post office, people tut. Or sometimes they say "Excuse me, I was here first." They don't say "You will be consumed by hellfire for all eternity." That would be a bit strong.
Martin
I'd spent the previous couple of months looking up suicides on the Internet, just out of curiosity. And nearly every single time, the coroner says the same thing: "He took his own life while the balance of his mind was disturbed." And then you read the story about the poor bastard: His wife was sleeping with his best friend, he'd lost his job, his daughter had been killed in a road accident some months before . . . Hello, Mr. Coroner? I'm sorry, but there's no disturbed mental balance here, my friend. I'd say he got it just right.
Jess
I was at a party downstairs. It was a shit party, full of all these ancient crusties sitting on the floor drinking cider and smoking huge spliffs and listening to weirdo space-out reggae. At midnight, one of them clapped sarcastically, and a couple of others laughed, and that was it-Happy New Year to you, too. You could have turned up to that party as the happiest person in London, and you'd still have wanted to jump off the roof by five past twelve. And I wasn't the happiest person in London anyway. Obviously.
JJ
New Year's Eve was a night for sentimental losers. It was my own stupid fault. Of course there'd be a low-rent crowd up there. I should have picked a classier date-like March 28, when Virginia Woolf took her walk into the river, or November 25 (Nick Drake). If anybody had been on the roof on either of those nights, the chances are they would have been like-minded souls, rather than hopeless f*ck-ups who had somehow persuaded themselves that the end of a calendar year is in any way significant.
Be Specific About Books Supposing A Long Way Down
| Original Title: | A Long Way Down |
| ISBN: | 1594481938 (ISBN13: 9781594481932) |
| Edition Language: | English |
| Characters: | Maureen, JJ, Martin Sharp, Jess Crichton |
Rating Regarding Books A Long Way Down
Ratings: 3.42 From 75661 Users | 4959 ReviewsAssessment Regarding Books A Long Way Down
Boy, is there anyone who has offered up more stinkers than Nick flippin' Hornby. And, was he so great to begin with? Even his better, earlier works were marginally good. Nothing life changing. Which is kinda the point of why he's so awful: he is intentionally trying to be life changing in every book, essay, magazine column or whatever. He thinks he can somehow find the right prose combination for some idea or mindset to click and for it to change one's life ... much like these things do toFour strangers meet at arguably the lowest point in their lives and form an unlikely bond. Unlikely because these four people are so very different from each other that under normal circumstances they would never ever cross paths.I laughed right out loud at several times while reading - not what I expected at all.I enjoyed how each character took turns telling the story - of their lives, their loves, their sorrows. As the book progressed it was like peeling the layers of an onion, the reader
I'm a Nick Hornby fan. And it's more than just enjoying his writing; I have a warm and fuzzy affection for him. So even when one of his books fails to utterly delight and transport me (How to Be Good, for example), I'm still on his side. Michiko Kakutani clearly has no such affection for Hornby. Her review of A Long Way Down is savage. Her chief complaint is that the book contrives to arrive at an implausibly sappy conclusion. Which is odd, because I think the book admirably avoids easy answers
Suicide is no laughing matter. Atleast that's what I thought till a few months back. Then I happened to watch this excellent movie called 'Hemlock Society', which was a dark comedy-drama about suicidal people. And now comes along Nick Hornby's only high-concept novel till date - 'A Long Way Down'.'A Long Way Down' is about four people who meet on New Year's Eve on top of a London building, each planning to jump off & putting an end to their seemingly miserable lives. Martin is a disgraced
I didn't get into Hornby for the same reason as everyone else, (they like Jon Cusak in High Fidelity). A Long Way Down was recommended to me by a friend and I needed a light read for the summer so I picked it up.I have never actually laughed out loud while reading a book until I read this one. Running With Scissors was the closest I came, but Augusten Burroughs was such an unrealistic and absurd character, (which is ironic because he was based on a real person), that it seemed too ridiculous to
Oh popular authors, I'm always so nervous about you. I mean, on the one hand I always figure that if so many people like you, there must be something good about you. But then, so many people like harlequin romances, and Dane Cook, and Big Brother. People are idiots. Even when they aren't, they can't always be trusted. My friend Amy actually loved Confessions of a Slacker Wife, and my husband really liked The Innocent Man, a.k.a. Was John Grisham Always This Bad And I Just Didn't Notice?, and my
[warning: minor spoilers + suicide mentions + statutory rape]edit: You know what, this book doesn't deserve my mercy. I really hated it and it still makes me angry whenever I think about it. I'm going to lower my rating to 1 star.I had to read this book for college, and when I read the synopsis, I thought it seemed quite good. I liked the idea, but the characters completely ruined this for me and not much happened as well.These characters are VERY PROBLEMATIC! Let's have a look at some quotes
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