The Usual Desire to Kill - by Camilla Barnes (Hardcover)

About the Book

"Miranda's parents live in a dilapidated house in rural France that they share with two llamas, eight ducks, five chickens, two cats, and a freezer full of food dating back to 1983. Miranda's father is a retired professor of philosophy who never loses an argument. Miranda's mother likes to bring conversation back to 'the War,' although she was born after it ended. Married for fifty years, they are uncommonly set in their ways. Miranda plays the role of translator when she visits, communicating the desires or complaints of one parent to the other and then venting her frustration to her sister and her daughter. At the end of a visit, she reports 'the usual desire to kill'"

Book Synopsis

An often hilarious, surprisingly moving portrait of a long-married couple, seen through the eyes of their wickedly observant daughter--for fans of A Man Called Ove and The Royal Tenenbaums.

Miranda's parents live in a dilapidated house in rural France that they share with two llamas, eight ducks, five chickens, two cats, and a freezer full of food dating back to 1983.

Miranda's father is a retired professor of philosophy who never loses an argument. Miranda's mother likes to bring conversation back to "the War," although she was born after it ended. Married for fifty years, they are uncommonly set in their ways. Miranda plays the role of translator when she visits, communicating the desires or complaints of one parent to the other and then venting her frustration to her sister and her daughter. At the end of a visit, she reports "the usual desire to kill."

This wry, propulsive story about a singularly eccentric family and the sibling rivalry, generational divides, and long-buried secrets that shape them, is a glorious debut novel from a seasoned playwright with immense empathy and a flair for dialogue.

Review Quotes

Praise for The Usual Desire to Kill

"Wickedly delightful... Family secrets emerge, but the plot mostly revolves around the scheduling of a hip replacement. I loved it completely. " --The New York Times Book Review

"Don't expect premeditated murder, exactly--but there may well be some dialogue sharp enough to draw blood in this tragicomic debut novel." --NPR.org

"Camilla Barnes has crafted a delicious debut." --The Boston Globe

"Empathetic... intimate... Barnes explores long marriage, sibling rivalry, truths behind shifting memories, and family secrets as well as examining the decisions people make in life, the long-term effects of those decisions, and how well one truly knows the people they love." --Booklist, STARRED review

"Playwright Barnes combines humor with pathos in her heart-wrenching debut...the genius of the novel lies in the ways Barnes highlights how parents can never be fully known to their children, no matter how observant their children are... An unforgettable story about the limits of judging others." --Publishers Weekly, STARRED review

"I love nothing more than reading about eccentric families, and the family in The Usual Desire to Kill is just that. Miranda and her sister work to uncover the true story of their parents' marriage, only to have their brilliant, quirky mother and father deflect them at every turn. Barnes has written a witty, moving novel about characters who, even when they seem incapable of speaking honestly, are worth listening to nonetheless." --Ann Napolitano, author of Hello Beautiful and Dear Edward

"Hilarious and heartbreaking, packed with acute and painfully funny observations about relationships and family dynamics. Barnes's dialogue is pitch-perfect, and her characters dance off the page and straight into your heart. Mum and Dad are magnificent creations, eccentric and endearing, both instantly recognizable and utterly singular." --Monica Ali, author of Love Marriage and Brick Lane

"In The Usual Desire to Kill, Camilla Barnes deftly deciphers the secret language of one family, often with deeply funny and knowing results. I loved spending time in the very specific, complicated, and memorable world of this novel." --Meg Wolitzer, author of The Female Persuasion and The Wife