Dept. of Speculation
Dept. of Speculation by Jenny Offill, published by Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group on October 7, 2014, is a reprint edition comprising 192 pages in English. This book presents a nuanced exploration of marriage, intimacy, and the complexities of family life. It follows a couple as they transition from youthful optimism to the challenges of parenthood and relationship strains, encapsulating the familiar trials of modern domesticity.
Readers will find a reflective narrative that delves into the intricacies of trust, knowledge, and the universal experiences that bind us. As the wife navigates the breaking point of her marriage, she draws on a wide array of references, from Kafka to Stoic philosophy, to understand her journey. This literary work offers a poignant examination of love and loss, inviting contemplation on what is gained and what is irrevocably lost in the process of living together.
Official synopsis Publisher
From the acclaimed author of Weather comes a slim, stunning portrait of a marriage–a beguiling rumination on the mysteries of intimacy, trust, faith, knowledge, and the condition of universal shipwreck that unites us all.
ONE OF THE 10 BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR – THE NEW YORK TIMES BOOK REVIEW
A Best Book of the Year: The New Yorker, The Boston Globe, Minneapolis Star Tribune, Vogue.com, Electric Literature, Buzzfeed
In the beginning, it was easy to imagine their future. They were young and giddy, sure of themselves and of their love for each other. “Dept. of Speculation” was their code name for all the thrilling uncertainties that lay ahead. Then they got married, had a child and navigated the familiar calamities of family life—a colicky baby, a faltering relationship, stalled ambitions.
When their marriage reaches a sudden breaking point, the wife tries to retrace the steps that have led them to this place, invoking everything from Kafka to the Stoics to doomed Russian cosmonauts as she analyzes what is lost and what remains. In language that shimmers with rage and longing and wit, Offill has created a brilliantly suspenseful love story—a novel to read in one sitting, even as its piercing meditations linger long after the last page.
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