Shortlisted for the Commonwealth Writers' Prize and Costa Novel of the Year, this international bestseller has become a reading group classic. We don't want to tell you too much about this book. It is a truly special story and we don't want to spoil it. Nevertheless, you need to know something, so we will just say this: It is extremely funny, but the African beach scene is horrific. The story starts there, but the book doesn't. And it's what happens afterwards that is most important. Once you have read it, you'll want to tell everyone about it. When you do, please don't tell them what happens either. The magic is in how it unfolds.
About the Author
Chris Cleave's debut novel INCENDIARY was an international bestseller published in 20 countries. It won the 2006 Somerset Maugham Award, was shortlisted for the 2006 Commonwealth Writers Prize, won the United States Book-of-the-Month Club's First Fiction award 2005, won the Prix Special du Jury at the French Prix des Lecteurs 2007, and will be released in early 2008 as a major motion picture. Inspired by his early childhood in West Africa, THE OTHER HAND is Chris Cleave's second novel. He is married with two children, and lives in London. He keeps a website at www.chriscleave.com.
Reviews
'A powerful piece of art... shocking, exciting and deeply affecting...[a] superb novel... Besides sharp, witty dialogue, an emotionally charged plot and the vivid characters' ethical struggles, THE OTHER HAND delivers a timely challenge to reinvigorate our notions of civilized decency.' -- Independent 20080822 'Searingly eloquent.' -- Daily Mail 20080822 'It would be hard not to romp through it.' -- Financial Times 20080823 'An ambitious and fearless gallop from the jungles of Africa via a shocking encounter on a Nigerian beach to the media offices of London and domesticity in leafy suburbia...Cleave immerses the reader in the worlds of his characters with an unshakable confidence. ' -- Guardian 20080809 'totally believable... the author has a knack of explaining human suffering... I look forward to his next offering.' -- Daily Express 20080830 'impresses as a feat of literary engineering... the plot exerts a fearsome grip.' -- Telegraph 20080913 'You stay in thrall to the bittersweet end.' -- Scotland on Sunday 20080809 'By turns funny, sad and shocking' -- Sainsburys Magazine 20080804 'Warm, witty and beautifully written.' -- Sunday Tribune 20080803 'In a novel that tackles serious and uncomfortable subject matter, Cleave's writing makes one laugh and despair in equal measure. (4 stars)' -- Time Out 20080828 'A better book than Chris Cleave's THE OTHER HAND may be published this year, but I wouldn't bet on it. This exquisitely written story of a Nigerian refugee and a British glossy magazine editor is the most powerful novel I've read in a long time... it's also a very funny book about brave, funny people who the reader quickly grows to love... But the heart of the book is Little Bee; naive yet insightful and sophisticated, damaged yet capable of great courage and humour, she is an unforgettable character. I finished THE OTHER HAND in tears, and I still can't get it out of my head. Just read it.' -- The Gloss 20080728 'I felt the same excitement discovering this as I did Marina Lewycka's A Short History of Tractors in Ukrainian and Paul Torday's Salmon Fishing in the Yemen. There is an urgency here, an inability to put it down and a deep sense of loss once finished. It is a very special book indeed. Profound, deeply moving and yet light in touch, it explores the nature of loss, hope, love and identity with atrocity its backdrop. Read it and think deeply.' -- Sarah Broadhurst, Bookseller 20080320 'Stunning... a haunting work of art.' -- Newsweek on INCENDIARY 20051101 'Chris Cleave has the ability to create moving and beautiful scenes within a terrifying backdrop. I couldn't put it down; it's subversive, thought-provoking and well-written.' -- Observer, Books of the Year on INCENDIARY 20051101 'Richly sardonic and often disarmingly poignant... How can one fail to be impressed and moved?' -- Guardian on INCENDIARY 20050720 'Cleave's heroine is by turns funny, sad, flawed, sympathetic, both damaged and indomitable, and triumphantly convincing.' -- Sunday Telegraph on INCENDIARY 20050901
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Reviews
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Don't be put off by the vague cover blurb. This is an absolutely amazing book. The focus of the novel is the issue of refugees and some of the scenes and concepts are quite confronting, but it is a very readable book and also has quite a lot of humour and warmth. It certainly got me thinking about the issues that it raised and I can't wait to read Cleave's first novel, Incendiary, now. This book is definitely in my personal top 10. A very well written book about an important subject.
I found this book quite disturbing, depressing, and you can hardly 'romp' through a book with quite so much savage violence as this one. Romp is a word for chick lit. It does have some lighter moments and inspiring episodes, so it's not all doom and gloom. Neither does it offer the wry humour of 'A Short History of Tractors in Ukranian' or 'Salmon Fishing in the Yemen'. The book's blurb doesn't want to give away any of the plot, so neither shall I, but I didn't want to pass it on to a friend to read either. Make sure you have a 'light' read to follow on from this one, you'll need it.
Wow! I loved this book. It was a cheeky and vibrant romp through the western world in the boots of the third. This is the book that I wish I could have written. It portrays the human condition with both authenticity and compassion. It did not just move me to tears, it bulldozed me to the realisation of human suffering, but somehow made me laugh along the way. Brilliant.
This book slowly and steadily draws you into the story so that you are caught up in the lives of the central characters. The author has created vastly different yet believable characters who have realistic flaws and, in doing so, allows the reader to identify with and understand their dilemmas, tragedies and hopes. I truely recommend this book to every reader who likes fiction books . A beautiful novel that will leave you with tears in your eyes.
This is a story that could be happening right next door to where you live and you wouldn't even know it. Fantastic story that could easily be true. The blurb on the back cover was intriguing enough to make me want to buy this book immediately and it doesn't let you down. Well written and contemporary for our times.
This book slowly and steadily draws you into the story so that you are caught up in the lives of the central characters. The author has created vastly different yet believable characters who have realistic flaws and, in doing so, allows the reader to identify with and understand their dilemmas, tragedies and hopes. A beautiful novel that will leave you with tears in your eyes.
I absolutely loved this novel! When I started reading this book, I had no idea where the story was headed. It portrays beautifully a courage of two women who hardly know each other. When certain circumstances bring them together they become friends for life. This astonishing novel shows how lives can be changed so dramatically when friends believe in you more than you believe in yourself and are able to provide encouragement and trust when the chips are down. A beautiful reading!
I absolutely loved this novel! When I started reading this book, I had no idea where the story was headed. It portrays beautifully a courage of two women who hardly know each other. When certain circumstances bring them together they become friends for life. This astonishing novel shows how lives can be changed so dramatically when friends believe in you more than you believe in yourself and are able to provide encouragement, trust and belief in life when the chips are down. A beautiful reading!
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