Dorothy Nelson - Böcker

Dorothy Nelson's first book to be published in the United States focuses on a demented, dysfunctional Irish family. The Crawford family is dominated by Da (Joe), a manic-depressive thief and liar who has spent two years in prison for exposing himself in the woods to young children and couples. Ma is a weak and downtrodden victim of her husband's violent temper who occasionally flirts with her son Benjee, an overly sensitive boy with little hope for future happiness. As the narrative passes back and forth between the members of the family (in a style reminiscent of Ann Quin), a compelling portrait of abuse and its consequences is constructed, one that contains both horror and humor in the sexual and social sicknesses of the characters.

On the night of a father's death, two women remember. Esther, the wife denied, and Sara, her corrupted daughter, look back at the father's overwhelming cruelty and ahead to their freedom from him. Finally liberated from his terrible physical and emotional abuse, they must decide whether they will accept new possibilities or conform to old values. The darkness, no matter how black, is not complete: "I don't hate being a woman," Sara tells herself. "I don't." Beautifully written and remarkably powerful, In Night's City extends the tradition of the lyrical, impressionistic Irish novel, turning it to the hard-edged story of two women's attempt to escape a terrifying past.