Hanya Yanagihara Livres

Moving to New York to pursue creative ambitions, four former classmates share decades marked by love, loss, addiction, and haunting elements from a brutal childhood.

In 1950, a young doctor called Norton Perina signs on with the anthropologist Paul Tallent for an expedition to the remote Micronesian island of Ivu'ivu in search of a rumoured lost tribe. They succeeed, finding not only the tribe but also a group of forest dwellers they dub 'The Dreamers.' Who turn out to be fantastically long-lived but progressively more senile. Perina suspects the source of their longevity is a hard-to-find turtle; unable to resist the possibility of eternal life, he kills one and smuggles some meat back to the States. He scientifically proves his thesis, earning worldwide fame and the Nobel Prize, but he soon discovers that its miraculous property comes at a terrible price.

From the author of the classic A Little Life comes a bold novel that spans three centuries and explores different versions of the American experience through themes of love, family, loss, and the elusive promise of utopia. In an alternate 1893 America, New York is part of the Free States, where individuals can love freely. Here, a young heir resists an arranged marriage, drawn instead to a charming but impoverished music teacher. Fast forward to 1993 Manhattan, where a young Hawaiian man navigates life with his wealthy, older partner while concealing a troubled past and the fate of his father amid the AIDS crisis. In 2093, a world ravaged by plagues and totalitarianism sees a powerful scientist’s granddaughter grappling with her grandfather's absence and the mystery of her husband's disappearances. These interconnected narratives weave an intricate tapestry of recurring motifs: a townhouse in Greenwich Village, the cost of illness, the divide between wealth and poverty, and the complexities of race and family. Ultimately, the novel delves into the human experience, exploring fear, love, shame, and the longing for an earthly paradise, while confronting the painful reality that such a paradise may never exist. This emotionally charged work showcases the profound desire to protect loved ones and the heartache that arises when we cannot.

The fraught relationship between roommates captivates us, as seen in iconic shows like Friends and The Golden Girls, which explore the awkwardness and unexpected friendships that arise from living with strangers. This volume collects a range of stories from people of all ages, sharing their hilarious, disastrous, and sometimes poignant experiences of forging lifelong bonds or rivalries. From unique settings like a thirty-person beach house and a billionaire's yacht to more familiar environments such as sleepaway camps and college dorms, these narratives reveal the complexities of cohabitation. Readers will encounter a diverse cast of characters, including The Amateur Taxidermist, The Alcoholic Genius, and The Naked Nanna, each contributing to a rich tapestry of roommate experiences. This collection offers an eye-opening glimpse into modern living arrangements, inviting readers to reflect on their own roommate stories while setting aside their frustrations over dirty dishes and passive-aggressive notes.