{"product_id":"the-birthday-party-9781945492655","title":"The Birthday Party","description":"\u003cb\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003e2023 International Booker Prize, Longlist\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eNew York Times\u003c\/i\u003e Editors' Choice\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003e\"A real-time study in crippling self-consciousness, the fragility of normalcy, and the reality of violence.\"\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cb\u003e--\u003ci\u003eThe New York Times\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cp\u003eBuried deep in rural France, little remains of the isolated hamlet of the Three Lone Girls, save a few houses and a curiously assembled quartet: Patrice Bergogne, inheritor of his family's farm; his wife, Marion; their daughter, Ida; and their neighbor, Christine, an artist. While Patrice plans a surprise for his wife's fortieth birthday, inexplicable events start to disrupt the hamlet's quiet existence: anonymous, menacing letters, an unfamiliar\u003cbr\u003ecar rolling up the driveway. And as night falls, strangers stalk the houses, unleashing\u003cbr\u003ea nightmarish chain of events. \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eTold in rhythmic, propulsive prose that weaves seamlessly from one consciousness to the next over the course of a day, Laurent Mauvignier's \u003ci\u003eThe Birthday Party\u003c\/i\u003e is a deft unraveling of the stories we hide from others and from ourselves, a gripping tale of the violent irruptions of the past into the present, written by a major contemporary French writer.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eAbout the Author\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cp\u003eLaurent Mauvignier was born in Tours in 1967. He is the author of several novels in French and is the winner of four literary prizes, including the Prix Wepler.\u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eDaniel Levin Becker is an American writer, translator and musical critic. He is the youngest member of the Oulipo.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cbr\u003e","brand":"Transit Books","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":50610245697810,"sku":"9781945492655","price":13.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0831\/4771\/8930\/files\/img_7f4316d3-35eb-4413-8f3c-4f79820b407a.jpg?v=1732337301","url":"https:\/\/surprise-castle.myshopify.com\/products\/the-birthday-party-9781945492655","provider":"Surprise Castle","version":"1.0","type":"link"}