Picture 1 of 1
Picture 1 of 1
The End of the World as We Know It: Scenes from a Life - Paperback - VERY GOOD
US $3.66
Condition:
Very Good
A book that does not look new and has been read but is in excellent condition. No obvious damage to the cover, with the dust jacket (if applicable) included for hard covers. No missing or damaged pages, no creases or tears, and no underlining/highlighting of text or writing in the margins. May be very minimal identifying marks on the inside cover. Very minimal wear and tear. See the seller’s listing for full details and description of any imperfections.
Shipping:
Free USPS Media MailTM.
Located in: Montgomery, Illinois, United States
Delivery:
Estimated between Tue, Oct 1 and Sat, Oct 5 to 43230
Returns:
30 days returns. Seller pays for return shipping.
Payments:
Special financing available. See terms and apply now- for PayPal Credit, opens in a new window or tab
Earn up to 5x points when you use your eBay Mastercard®. Learn moreabout earning points with eBay Mastercard
Shop with confidence
Seller assumes all responsibility for this listing.
eBay item number:266799873821
Item specifics
- Condition
- Brand
- Unbranded
- MPN
- Does not apply
- ISBN
- 9781565126022
- Book Title
- End of the World As We Know It : Scenes from Alife
- Publisher
- Algonquin Books of Chapel Hill
- Item Length
- 8.2 in
- Publication Year
- 2008
- Format
- Trade Paperback
- Language
- English
- Item Height
- 0.6 in
- Genre
- Family & Relationships, Biography & Autobiography, Psychology
- Topic
- Abuse / General, Personal Memoirs, General, Dysfunctional Families, Interpersonal Relations
- Item Weight
- 8 Oz
- Item Width
- 5.5 in
- Number of Pages
- 227 Pages
About this product
Product Identifiers
Publisher
Algonquin Books of Chapel Hill
ISBN-10
1565126025
ISBN-13
9781565126022
eBay Product ID (ePID)
63077932
Product Key Features
Book Title
End of the World As We Know It : Scenes from Alife
Number of Pages
227 Pages
Language
English
Topic
Abuse / General, Personal Memoirs, General, Dysfunctional Families, Interpersonal Relations
Publication Year
2008
Genre
Family & Relationships, Biography & Autobiography, Psychology
Format
Trade Paperback
Dimensions
Item Height
0.6 in
Item Weight
8 Oz
Item Length
8.2 in
Item Width
5.5 in
Additional Product Features
Intended Audience
Trade
Reviews
A gifted writer['s]...memorable account of his terribly flawed family....Searing....It stays with you., ""Captivating..."The End of the World as We Know It" is barbed and canny, with a sharp eye for the infliction of pain."", "A gifted writer['s]...memorable account of his terribly flawed family. ...Searing...It stays with you."--USA Today, "Goolrick adeptly uses a slow, teasing way of revealing himself to the reader...Anecdotes of captivating vitality...."The End of the World As We Know It" is barbed and canny, with a sharp eye for the infliction of pain."--"The New York Times", A devastating debut...Worthy of William STyron and Flannery O'Connor....Gripping and emotionally insightful., "A devastating debut memoir about a Southern childhood. A simple summary of the storyline of this memoir might inspire an eye-roll: Do we really need another tale about someone growing up in a South of days-gone-by, surrounded by eccentric relatives and neighbors, with a little alcoholism and incest thrown in for good measure? But Goolrick takes that tired scenario and makes it magical. He recounts a Virginia childhood worthy of William Styron and Flannery O'Connor. The deformed weirdos, a staple of Southern grotesque, are here, including severely retarded aunt Dodo, who one day asked young Robert to kiss her passionately. Here, too, are cocktail parties that would have inspired Douglas Sirk: Goolrick describes the lavish fetes his parents threw, the lovely chiffon dresses his mother wore. But something was off-kilter, at even the grandest parties. The chiffon dresses always wound up with cigarette burns, and the hectic entertaining was artifice and pretense, a frantic effort to cover up alcoholism and other, more hideous, family secrets. The author interweaves scenes from his childhood with scenes from his adult life: his mother's attempt to get dry, his own breakdown and drinking problem, his mother's death. One of the most gripping and emotionally insightful passages is of his father's funeral, where Goolrick makes clear how hard it is to bury a man you haven't forgiven. The language is lush and poetic while never becoming purple. Goolrick is clearly a victim of his parents' brutal abuse, but he has broken out of the categories of 'victim' and 'survivor' to become a powerful truth-teller." --"Kirkus Reviews," starred review, A devastating debut memoir about a Southern childhood. A simple summary of the storyline of this memoir might inspire an eye-roll: Do we really need another tale about someone growing up in a South of days-gone-by, surrounded by eccentric relatives and neighbors, with a little alcoholism and incest thrown in for good measure? But Goolrick takes that tired scenario and makes it magical. He recounts a Virginia childhood worthy of William Styron and Flannery O'Connor. The deformed weirdos, a staple of Southern grotesque, are here, including severely retarded aunt Dodo, who one day asked young Robert to kiss her passionately. Here, too, are cocktail parties that would have inspired Douglas Sirk: Goolrick describes the lavish fetes his parents threw, the lovely chiffon dresses his mother wore. But something was off-kilter, at even the grandest parties. The chiffon dresses always wound up with cigarette burns, and the hectic entertaining was artifice and pretense, a frantic effort to cover up alcoholism and other, more hideous, family secrets. The author interweaves scenes from his childhood with scenes from his adult life: his mother's attempt to get dry, his own breakdown and drinking problem, his mother's death. One of the most gripping and emotionally insightful passages is of his father's funeral, where Goolrick makes clear how hard it is to bury a man you haven't forgiven. The language is lush and poetic while never becoming purple. Goolrick is clearly a victim of his parents' brutal abuse, but he has broken out of the categories of 'victim' and 'survivor' to become a powerful truth-teller.
TitleLeading
The
Synopsis
It was the 1950s, a time of calm, a time when all things were new and everything seemed possible. A few years before, a noble war had been won, and now life had returned to normal. For one little boy, however, life had become anything but "normal." To all appearances, he and his family lived an almost idyllic life. The father was a respected professor, the mother a witty and elegant lady, someone everyone loved. They were parents to three bright, smiling children: two boys and a girl. They lived on a sunny street in a small college town nestled neatly in a leafy valley. They gave parties, hosted picnics, went to church-just like their neighbors. To all appearances, their life seemed ideal. But it was, in fact, all appearances. Lineage, tradition, making the right impression-these were matters of great importance, especially to the mother. But behind the facade this family had created lurked secrets so dark, so painful for this one little boy, that his life would never be the same. It is through the eyes of that boy-a grown man now, revisiting that time-that we see this seemingly serene world and watch as it slowly comes completely and irrevocably undone. Beautifully written, often humorous, sometimes sweet, ultimately shocking, this is a son's story of looking back with both love and anger at the parents who gave him life and then robbed him of it, who created his world and then destroyed it. As author Lee Smith, who knew this world and this family, observed, "Alcohol may be the real villain in this pain-permeated, exquisitely written memoir of childhood-but it is also filled with absolutely dead-on social commentary of this very particular time and place. A brave, haunting, riveting book.", In the tradition of Rick Bragg's "All Over but the Shoutin'," Goolrick has crafted a classic memoir of childhood and the secrets a heart can't forget. With devastating honesty and razor-sharp wit, he looks back with love, and with anger, at the parents who both created his world and destroyed it., In the Goolrick home there was a law: Never talk about the family in the outside world, never reveal the slightest crack in the facade. To all appearances, they lived an almost idyllic life. Two respected, charming parents everyone loved. Three bright, smiling children. A lovely home on a quiet street nestled in a small college town. But behind the facade this family had created lurked secrets so dark, so painful for one little boy, that his life would never be the same. With devastating honesty and razor-sharp wit, Goolrick looks back at this seemingly serene time and at the parents who gave him life and then robbed him of it, who created his world and then destroyed it., It was the 1950s, a time of calm, a time when all things were new and everything seemed possible. A few years before, a noble war had been won, and now life had returned to normal. For one little boy, however, life had become anything but "normal." To all appearances, he and his family lived an almost idyllic life. The father was a respected professor, the mother a witty and elegant lady, someone everyone loved. They were parents to three bright, smiling children: two boys and a girl. They lived on a sunny street in a small college town nestled neatly in a leafy valley. They gave parties, hosted picnics, went to church--just like their neighbors. To all appearances, their life seemed ideal. But it was, in fact, all appearances. Lineage, tradition, making the right impression--these were matters of great importance, especially to the mother. But behind the facade this family had created lurked secrets so dark, so painful for this one little boy, that his life would never be the same. It is through the eyes of that boy--a grown man now, revisiting that time--that we see this seemingly serene world and watch as it slowly comes completely and irrevocably undone. Beautifully written, often humorous, sometimes sweet, ultimately shocking, this is a son's story of looking back with both love and anger at the parents who gave him life and then robbed him of it, who created his world and then destroyed it. As author Lee Smith, who knew this world and this family, observed, "Alcohol may be the real villain in this pain-permeated, exquisitely written memoir of childhood--but it is also filled with absolutely dead-on social commentary of this very particular time and place. A brave, haunting, riveting book."
Item description from the seller
Popular categories from this store
Seller feedback (6,369,341)
- y***o (18)- Feedback left by buyer.Past monthVerified purchaseThis is an outstanding seller to deal with. Fair prices that are more than reasonable in this economy. The product is in better condition than described, a true value for my money. Packaged and shipped well shows seller has concern for the products he sells to arrive in excellent condition. The seller is friendly and communicates timely with his customers. I highly recommend this seller and would do business again anytime. Thank you.
- y***e (1006)- Feedback left by buyer.Past monthVerified purchaseCOVER TORN FROM SIDE OF PAGES BUT I WILL GLUE BACK! This is an outstanding seller to deal with. Fair prices that are more than reasonable in this economy. The product is in better condition than described, a true value for my money. Packaged and shipped well shows seller has concern for the products he sells to arrive in excellent condition. The seller is friendly and communicates timely with his customers. I highly recommend this seller and would do business again anytime. Thank you!
- s***t (535)- Feedback left by buyer.Past monthVerified purchaseThis is outstanding seller to deal with. Fair prices that are more than reasonable. The product is in better condition than described, a true value for my money. Packaged and shipped well shows seller has concern for the products they sell and arrives in excellent condition. The seller is very friendly and communicates well with customers. I highly recommend this seller and would do business again anytime without hesitation.
Product ratings and reviews
Most relevant reviews
- Jul 04, 2018
"Depressing and disappointing"
Verified purchase: YesCondition: Pre-OwnedSold by: worldofbooksusa
- Jan 04, 2018
Disapointed
Verified purchase: YesCondition: Pre-OwnedSold by: discover-books
- Jun 08, 2022
Compelling Read
Verified purchase: YesCondition: Pre-OwnedSold by: discover-books
More to explore :
- World Paperbacks,
- Michael Ende Paperbacks Books,
- Vintage Paperbacks Vintage Paperback World Antiquarian & Collectible Books,
- Vintage Paperback World Antiquarian & Collectible Books,
- World War II Nonfiction Paperbacks Books,
- Paperbacks,
- Nonfiction World War I Paperbacks Books in English,
- Paperbacks Books,
- World History Paperback Study Guides & Test Prep,
- Webster's New World Paperback Dictionaries & Reference Books