The Mandibles Lib/E

Product Description With dry wit and psychological acuity, this near-future novel explores the aftershocks of an economically devastating U.S. sovereign debt default on four generations of a once-prosperous American family. Down-to-earth and perfectly realistic in scale, this is not an over-the-top Blade Runner tale. It is not science fiction. In 2029, the United States is engaged in a bloodless world war that will wipe out the savings of millions of American families. Overnight, on the international currency exchange, the "almighty dollar" plummets in value, to be replaced by a new global currency, the "bancor." In retaliation, the president declares that America will default on its loans. "Deadbeat Nation" being unable to borrow, the government prints money to cover its bills. What little remains to savers is rapidly eaten away by runaway inflation. The Mandibles have been counting on a sizable fortune filtering down when their ninety-seven-year-old patriarch dies. Once the inheritance turns to ash, each family member must contend with disappointment, but also--as the U.S. economy spirals into dysfunction--the challenge of sheer survival. Recently affluent, Avery is petulant that she can't buy olive oil, while her sister, Florence, absorbs strays into her cramped household. An expat author, their aunt, Nollie, returns from abroad at seventy-three to a country that's unrecognizable. Her brother, Carter, fumes at caring for their demented stepmother, now that an assisted living facility isn't affordable. Only Florence's oddball teenage son, Willing, an economics autodidact, will save this formerly august American family from the streets. The Mandibles is about money. Thus it is necessarily about bitterness, rivalry, and selfishness--but also about surreal generosity, sacrifice, and transformative adaptation to changing circumstances. Review [A] hilarious, brilliant new novel.-- "Elle" [Shriver has] a sharp social eye and a blistering comic streak, and her focus on nailing down the economic nitty-gritty of her plot is only one piece of the great, disconcerting fun she has in sending the world as we know it so vividly to hell. -- "New Yorker" A provocative and very funny page-turner.-- "Wall Street Journal" Known for tackling big contemporary issues head-on, Shriver deals skilfully here with the implications of economic meltdown.-- "Financial Times (London)" Prescient, imaginative, and funny, it also asks deep questions. -- "Economist (London)" Shriver's imaginative novel works as a mishmash of literary fiction and dystopian satire.-- "Publishers Weekly" The story unfolds matter of factly, and narrator George Newbern mirrors that same tone. As the world falls apart around them...Newbern captures the family members' schemes for survival and hopes for a better future, followed by their shock when they discover that the money isn't coming. Newbern uses his talented voice and sharp intellect to create a world in which the characters tiptoe between the comic and tragic. This smart, oddball tale is as entertaining as it is thought provoking.-- "AudioFile" This is a sharp, smart, snarky satire of every conspiracy theory and hot-button political issue ever spun...based on an all-too-plausible reality.-- "Booklist (starred review)" About the Author Lionel Shriver is also the author of the novels Big Brother, The New Republic, the National Book Award finalist So Much for That, the New York Times bestseller The Post-Birthday World, and the Orange Prize winner We Need to Talk about Kevin. Her journalism has appeared in the Guardian, the New York Times, the Wall Street Journal, and many other publications. She lives in London and Brooklyn. George Newbern is an Earphones Award-winning narrator and a television and film actor best known for his roles as Brian MacKenzie in Father of the Bride and Father of the Bride Part II, as well as Danny in Friends. As a voice actor, he is notable for his role as Superman on the Ca