{"product_id":"9781616203818","title":"The Explanation for Everything : A Novel","description":"\u003cstrong\u003eThe Explanation for Everything\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eAuthor(s): Lauren Grodstein\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eAs she did in the bestselling novel \u003ci\u003eA Friend of the Family,\u003c\/i\u003e Lauren Grodstein has written another provocative morality tale, this time dissecting the permeable line between faith and doubt.\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e College professor Andy Waite is picking up the pieces of a shattered life. Between his research in evolutionary biology and caring for his young daughters, his days are reassuringly safe, if a bit lonely. But when Melissa Potter—charismatic, unpredictable, and devout—asks him to advise her study of intelligent design, he agrees. Suddenly, the world that Andy has fought to rebuild is rocked to its foundations.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e “A well-crafted story of wayward souls searching for forgiveness,  healing and personal truth.” —\u003ci\u003eFamily Circle\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e “Grodstein handles everything with a subtle wit, managing to skewer both  the ultraconservative and the ultraliberal without making either seem  absolutely wrong . . . Reminiscent of Carolyn Parkhurst’s \u003ci\u003eDogs of Babel\u003c\/i\u003e.” —\u003ci\u003eBooklist\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e “Finding or losing God proves to be an equally destabilizing tectonic shift,  and this novel is full of them . . . Their cumulative force will leave you happily unsteady, and moved.” —\u003ci\u003eThe Washington Post\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e “A master storyteller . . . Tackles the tough topics: healing after loss, the relevance and possibility of the  divine in our lives, the gilded shackles of academic life, and life in Southern New Jersey—all while always being terrifically entertaining.” —Ben Schrank, author of \u003ci\u003eLove Is a Canoe\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e “Engrossing . . . You’ll likely close the book with a new perspective on faith, justice, mercy, and the difficulty of holding a moral high ground.” —\u003ci\u003eBust\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e “A novel of ideas and a deeply felt story of love, loss, hope, and the healing powers  of forgiveness . . . A provocative, moving story, and a beautifully written one.” —Dani Shapiro, author of \u003ci\u003eDevotion\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eReview(s):\u003cbr\u003e\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cp\u003e“[Grodstein has] fashioned in her smart, assured third novel, \u003cem\u003eThe Explanation for Everything\u003c\/em\u003e, . . . a gripping tale of a biologist who finds himself approaching midlife and suddenly finding faith . . . Grodstein’s real gift is her emotional precision . . . Finding or losing God proves to be an equally destabilizing tectonic shift, and this novel is full of them . . . Their cumulative force will leave you happily unsteady, and moved.” \u003cstrong\u003e—\u003cem\u003eThe Washington Post\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“Very smart and touching and unexpected.” \u003cstrong\u003e—Tom Perrotta, author of \u003cem\u003eThe Leftovers\u003c\/em\u003e and \u003cem\u003eLittle Children\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“At once a novel of ideas and a deeply felt story of love, loss, hope, and the healing powers of forgiveness, \u003cem\u003eThe Explanation for Everything\u003c\/em\u003e is a provocative, moving story, and a beautifully written one.” —\u003cstrong\u003eDani Shapiro, author of \u003cem\u003eDevotion\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“Engrossing . . . You’ll likely close the book with a new perspective on faith, justice, mercy, and the difficulty of holding a moral high ground.” —\u003cem\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eBust\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/em\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“Why do any of us act the way we do? Is it our beliefs or our biology that shapes us? Lauren Grodstein considers this eternal question through the story of Andrew Waite, scientist, father, widower, struggling to raise two daughters, living with the ghost of his wife, facing a test of his faith in science. There are no easy answers here, just the honest complexity of human beings trying their best to be good people. \u003cem\u003eThe Explanation for Everything\u003c\/em\u003e is moving, beautiful, and wonderfully funny.” —\u003cstrong\u003eVictor LaValle, author of \u003cem\u003eThe Devil in Silver\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“Lauren Grodstein proves herself a master storyteller. \u003cem\u003eThe Explanation for Everything\u003c\/em\u003e tackles the tough topics: healing after loss, the relevance and possibility of the divine in our lives, the gilded shackles of academic life, and life in Southern New Jersey—all while always being terrifically entertaining. I want everyone I love to read it.” —\u003cstrong\u003eBen Schrank, author of \u003cem\u003eLove is a Canoe\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“A well-crafted story of wayward souls searching for forgiveness, healing and personal truth.” —\u003cem\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eFamily Circle\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/em\u003e“Grodstein handles everything with a subtle wit, managing to skewer both the ultraconservative and the ultraliberal without making either seem absolutely wrong. Both the tone and the plot of the grieving professor finding answers in science are reminiscent of Carolyn Parkhurst’s \u003cem\u003eDogs of Babel\u003c\/em\u003e.” —\u003cem\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eBooklist\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/em\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“Her narrative sparkles with irony and wry observation . . . Grodstein’s portrait of Andy is spot-on, as is that of the evangelical student, Sheila, Rosenblum and the minor characters. A rumination on love and loss, faith in reason and faith in the divine.” —\u003cem\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eKirkus Reviews\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/em\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cstrong\u003ePraise for \u003cem\u003eA Friend of the Family\u003c\/em\u003e:\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“Unfolds with suspense worthy of Hitchcock . . . [Grodstein] is a terrific storyteller.” —\u003cem\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eThe New York Times Book Review\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/em\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“Gripping . . . [Grodstein] has succeeded in shattering the image of surburban happiness.” —\u003cem\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eChicago Tribune\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/em\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\"Horrifyingly plausible and deeply poignant, \u003cem\u003eA Friend of the Family\u003c\/em\u003e will leave you shaken and chastened--and grateful for the warning.” —\u003cem\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eThe Washington Post Book World\u003c\/strong\u003e \u003c\/em\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\"Involving at every level: character, plot, language. one of the more complicated portraits of a father’s love for his son we’ve ever read . . . highly recommended.” —\u003cem\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eMcSweeney's\u003c\/strong\u003e \u003c\/em\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“Grodstein’s harsh, honest prose makes this haunting tale worthwhile.” —\u003cem\u003e\u003cstrong\u003ePeople\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/em\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cem\u003e\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eISBN:  9781616203818\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e ","brand":"Algonquin Books","offers":[{"title":"Paperback \/ softback","offer_id":40869012734158,"sku":"9781616203818","price":14.95,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0600\/7029\/7806\/products\/O_a0838286-83fc-4abc-abc1-c473180ff8f4.jpg?v=1644225502","url":"https:\/\/pickwickbookshop.com\/products\/9781616203818","provider":"Pickwick Bookshop","version":"1.0","type":"link"}