$26.49 sale price when purchased online
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About this item
Highlights
- When Vincent Saunders -- fresh out of college in the States -- arrives in Taiwan as a Christian volunteer and English teacher, he meets a wealthy Taiwanese businessman who wishes to marry a young woman living in China near Heaven Lake but is thwarted by political conflict.
- About the Author: John Dalton is the author of the novel, Heaven Lake, winner of the Barnes and Noble 2004 Discover Award in fiction and the Sue Kaufman Prize from the American Academy of Arts and Letters.
- 464 Pages
- Fiction + Literature Genres, Literary
Description
About the Book
"Booklist" called this critically acclaimed, epic novel of love and revelation "an evocative, beautiful exploration of modern-day China."Book Synopsis
When Vincent Saunders -- fresh out of college in the States -- arrives in Taiwan as a Christian volunteer and English teacher, he meets a wealthy Taiwanese businessman who wishes to marry a young woman living in China near Heaven Lake but is thwarted by political conflict. Mr. Gwa wonders: In exchange for money, will Vincent travel to China, take part in a counterfeit marriage, and bring the woman back to Taiwan for Gwa to marry legitimately? Believing that marriage is a sacrament, Vincent says no.Soon, though, everything Vincent understands about himself and his vocation in Taiwan changes. A complicated friendship with one of the high-school girls he teaches sends him on a path toward spiritual reckoning. It also causes him to reconsider Gwa's extraordinary proposition. What follows is not just an exhilarating -- sometimes harrowing -- journey to a remote city in China, but an exploration of love, loneliness, and the nature of faith.
Review Quotes
"Heaven Lake is a sort of Divine Comedy in reverse: a young man's trek through hell to get away from God. John Dalton has created such a compelling epic that the reader will gladly follow its hero, Vincent, on his scorching journey across China to find out how the world will punish and reward him. Our reward is this beautiful book."
-- Ann Patchett, author of Bel Canto
"[An] evocative, beautiful exploration of modern-day China....Powerful and rewarding reading."
-- Booklist
"Absorbing...and compelling....[A] rich first novel about the mysteries of human yearning."
-- Chicago Tribune
"Impeccably written...a thorough work of operatic feeling and proportion...stunning."
-- San Francisco Chronicle
"Richly drawn...delicate and revealing...a winning novel."
-- Los Angeles Times
About the Author
John Dalton is the author of the novel, Heaven Lake, winner of the Barnes and Noble 2004 Discover Award in fiction and the Sue Kaufman Prize from the American Academy of Arts and Letters. He is a graduate of the Iowa Writers' Workshop and is currently a member of the English faculty at the University of Missouri-St. Louis, where he teaches in their MFA Writing Program. John lives with his wife and two daughters in St. Louis.Dimensions (Overall): 8.16 Inches (H) x 5.5 Inches (W) x 1.03 Inches (D)
Weight: .82 Pounds
Suggested Age: 22 Years and Up
Number of Pages: 464
Genre: Fiction + Literature Genres
Sub-Genre: Literary
Publisher: Scribner Book Company
Format: Paperback
Author: John Dalton
Language: English
Street Date: April 1, 2005
TCIN: 94273858
UPC: 9780743246354
Item Number (DPCI): 247-04-1018
Origin: Made in the USA or Imported
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Shipping details
Estimated ship dimensions: 1.03 inches length x 5.5 inches width x 8.16 inches height
Estimated ship weight: 0.82 pounds
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