From the author of the widely acclaimed debut novel "Seating
Arrangements, " winner of the Dylan Thomas Prize and the Los
Angeles Times""Book Prize for First Fiction: a gorgeously written,
fiercely compelling glimpse into the demanding world of
professional ballet and its magnetic hold over two generations.
"Astonish Me" is the irresistible story of Joan, a young American
dancer who helps a Soviet ballet star, the great Arslan Rusakov,
defect in 1975. A flash of fame and a passionate love affair
follow, but Joan knows that, onstage and off, she is destined to
remain in the background. She will never possess Arslan, and she
will never be a prima ballerina. She will rise no higher than the
corps, one dancer among many.
After her relationship with Arslan sours, Joan plots to make a new
life for herself. She quits ballet, marries a good man, and settles
in California with him and their son, Harry. But as the years pass,
Joan comes to understand that ballet isn't finished with her yet,
for there is no mistaking that Harry is a prodigy. Through Harry,
Joan is pulled back into a world she thought she'd left
behind--back into dangerous secrets, and back, inevitably, to
Arslan.
Combining a sweeping, operatic plot with subtly observed
characters, Maggie Shipstead gives us a novel of stunning intensity
and deft psychological nuance. Gripping, dramatic, and brilliantly
conjured, "Astonish Me" confirms Shipstead's range and ability and
raises provocative questions about the nature of talent, the
choices we must make in search of fulfillment, and how we square
the yearning for comfort with the demands of art.
"From the Hardcover edition."
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