A Cure for Suicide
by Jesse Ball
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Pub Date 27 Aug 2015 | Archive Date 3 Aug 2015
Description
'Ball's talents, both as a storyteller and a writer of prose, tend to
burst the borders of his structures. His language is chastely lyrical,
with a discreet masculinity... He is often appealingly funny, in an
absurdist manner.' James Wood, New Yorker
From the acclaimed author of Silence Once Begun comes a beguiling new novel.
A man and a woman have moved into a small house in a small village. The
woman is an 'examiner', the man, her 'claimant'. The examiner is both doctor
and guide, charged with teaching the claimant a series of simple functions: this is
a chair, this is a fork, this is how you meet people. She makes notes in her
journal about his progress. He is showing improvement, but his dreams are
troubling. One day, the examiner brings him to a party, and here he meets Hilda,
a charismatic but volatile woman whose surprising assertions throw everything
the claimant has learned into question. What is this village? Why is he here? And
who is Hilda? A fascinating novel of love, illness, despair and betrayal, A Cure for
Suicide is the most captivating novel yet from this audacious and original writer.
From the acclaimed author of Silence Once Begun comes a beguiling new novel.
A man and a woman have moved into a small house in a small village. The
woman is an 'examiner', the man, her 'claimant'. The examiner is both doctor
and guide, charged with teaching the claimant a series of simple functions: this is
a chair, this is a fork, this is how you meet people. She makes notes in her
journal about his progress. He is showing improvement, but his dreams are
troubling. One day, the examiner brings him to a party, and here he meets Hilda,
a charismatic but volatile woman whose surprising assertions throw everything
the claimant has learned into question. What is this village? Why is he here? And
who is Hilda? A fascinating novel of love, illness, despair and betrayal, A Cure for
Suicide is the most captivating novel yet from this audacious and original writer.
A Note From the Publisher
PLEASE NOTE THESE PUBLICATION DETAILS REFER TO THE TEXT PUBLISHING EDITION BEING RELEASED IN THE UK.
PERMISSION CANNOT BE GRANTED FOR REQUESTS FROM OTHER TERRITORIES.
PERMISSION CANNOT BE GRANTED FOR REQUESTS FROM OTHER TERRITORIES.
PLEASE NOTE THESE PUBLICATION DETAILS REFER TO THE TEXT PUBLISHING EDITION BEING RELEASED IN THE UK.
PERMISSION CANNOT BE GRANTED FOR REQUESTS FROM OTHER TERRITORIES.
Advance Praise
“This dystopian novel from Ball is both a puzzle box and a haunting love story...Each section illuminates the characters and situations from the previous portions, which draws the reader into the material more effectively and heartbreakingly than a traditional structure would allow...Whatever the source of this book’s elusive magic, it should cement Ball’s reputation as a technical innovator whose work delivers a powerful emotional impact.”– Publishers Weekly (Starred)
'As in his elegant, enigmatic previous novels, The Curfew (2011) and Silence Once Begun (2014), Ball imagines a spare, spooky, muffled realm of continual surveillance and absolute control...Ball slyly exposes the survival-focused aspects of human interactions, from small talk to shared meals...a tragic love affair further complicates the disquieting and profound mystery of it all.' –Booklist
'A poet by trade, Ball understands the economy of language better than most fiction writers today. His poignant Silence Once Begun uses each word and margin with precision, so his next book promises to interest those with a penchant for brevity. [A Cure for Suicide] begins with a man who’s relearning everything the way a child might, asking questions like, ‘What is a painting?’ ‘What is imagination?’ But soon, urged on by unpleasant dreams, he discovers the truth behind his state.”
–”18 Brilliant Books You Won’t Want To Miss This Summer,” The Huffington Post
Praise for Silence Once Begun
'A piercing tragedy in a language that combines subtlety and simplicity in such a way that it causes a reader to go carefully, not wanting to miss a word.' New York Times
'Immediately and completely absorbing, sucking you in and—a too brief couple of hours later—spitting you right back out again.' Adelaide Advertiser
'A suspenseful, philosophical novel masquerading as reportage. Its preoccupations are complex, but it's written with great clarity...The resonances between the narratives—the recourse to silence, inexplicable disappearances, the
ineffable qualities of love and loss—are treated with delicacy and restraint.' Weekend
Australian
'Jesse Ball is a novel-writing maverick...Silence Once Begun, Ball's fourth novel, is a
fitting addition to an idiosyncratic body of work...Here he bridges the dichotomy [of the personal and the political] with searing force...Ball indulges our natural curiosity about what's real and simultaneously repudiates the idea that it matters. This is a writer too interested in the transformative power of language to come down on one banal side or the other.' Sydney Morning Herald
'As in his elegant, enigmatic previous novels, The Curfew (2011) and Silence Once Begun (2014), Ball imagines a spare, spooky, muffled realm of continual surveillance and absolute control...Ball slyly exposes the survival-focused aspects of human interactions, from small talk to shared meals...a tragic love affair further complicates the disquieting and profound mystery of it all.' –Booklist
'A poet by trade, Ball understands the economy of language better than most fiction writers today. His poignant Silence Once Begun uses each word and margin with precision, so his next book promises to interest those with a penchant for brevity. [A Cure for Suicide] begins with a man who’s relearning everything the way a child might, asking questions like, ‘What is a painting?’ ‘What is imagination?’ But soon, urged on by unpleasant dreams, he discovers the truth behind his state.”
–”18 Brilliant Books You Won’t Want To Miss This Summer,” The Huffington Post
Praise for Silence Once Begun
'A piercing tragedy in a language that combines subtlety and simplicity in such a way that it causes a reader to go carefully, not wanting to miss a word.' New York Times
'Immediately and completely absorbing, sucking you in and—a too brief couple of hours later—spitting you right back out again.' Adelaide Advertiser
'A suspenseful, philosophical novel masquerading as reportage. Its preoccupations are complex, but it's written with great clarity...The resonances between the narratives—the recourse to silence, inexplicable disappearances, the
ineffable qualities of love and loss—are treated with delicacy and restraint.' Weekend
Australian
'Jesse Ball is a novel-writing maverick...Silence Once Begun, Ball's fourth novel, is a
fitting addition to an idiosyncratic body of work...Here he bridges the dichotomy [of the personal and the political] with searing force...Ball indulges our natural curiosity about what's real and simultaneously repudiates the idea that it matters. This is a writer too interested in the transformative power of language to come down on one banal side or the other.' Sydney Morning Herald
Available Editions
| EDITION | Paperback |
| ISBN | 9781925240030 |
| PRICE | £10.99 (GBP) |
