{"product_id":"white-elephant-9780062857767","title":"White Elephant","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eA turf war between neighbors leads to a small-town crisis in this sharply observed debut novel perfect for fans of Tom Perrotta, Meg Wolitzer, and Celeste Ng.\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe white elephant looms large over the town of Willard Park: a newly-constructed behemoth of a home, it towers over the quaint houses, including Allison and Ted Millers' tiny hundred year old home. When owner Nick Cox cuts down the Millers' precious red maple--in an effort to make his unsightly property more appealing to buyers--their once serene town becomes a battleground.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eWhile tensions between Ted and Nick escalate, other dysfunctions abound: Allison finds herself compulsively drawn to the man who threatens to upend her quietly organized life. A lawyer with a pot habit and a serious mid-life crisis skirts his responsibilities. And in a quest for popularity, a teenage girl gets caught up in a not-so-harmless prank. Newcomers and longtime residents alike clash in conflicting pursuits of the American Dream, with trees mysteriously uprooted, fingers pointed, and lines drawn.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eWhite Elephan\u003c\/em\u003et is a tangled-web tale of a community on the verge and its all-too-human inhabitants, who long to connect but can't seem to find the words. It's a story about opposing sides struggling to find a middle ground--a parable for our times.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eAbout the Author\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eLangsdorf, Julie:\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e - \u003cp\u003eJulie Langsdorf's short stories and essays have appeared in Lit Hub and Electric Literature among other publications. She has two children and lives in Washington, D.C.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"HarperCollins Publishers","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":50318013923602,"sku":"9780062857767","price":14.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0831\/4771\/8930\/files\/img_caf83960-0c6e-4667-adc3-ed709fca2489.jpg?v=1727545400","url":"https:\/\/surprise-castle.myshopify.com\/products\/white-elephant-9780062857767","provider":"Surprise Castle","version":"1.0","type":"link"}