Owning Up: New Fiction

by George Pelecanos Narrated by Dion Graham

Overview

Four blistering novellas, drawn together by themes of strife, violence, and humanity, from esteemed crime fiction writer George Pelecanos; "Like his hero Elmore Leonard, Pelecanos finds the humanity in the lowest of lowlifes."(Chicago Tribune)

When the son of the Carusos is involved in a hold up, the family home comes under siege in the form of a no-knock warrant. Months after the cops destroyed their home, the Carusos struggle to return to normal. Elsewhere, two former inmates reunite by chance on the set of a TV production. Both have found their way on the straight and narrow path, that is, until one sees the potential for an easy grift. A teenage boy must step into the man he'd like to be as a hostage crisis grips his hometown. A woman adrift meets a man tied to her grandmother's past, an encounter that awakens her to a bloody history that undergirds the place she grew up.*

Pelecanos' portraits are characterized by shades of grey, resisting the mold of heroes and villains, victims and perpetrators, good and evil. At once streetwise and full of heart, Owning Up grapples with random chance, the bind of consequence, and the forked paths a life can take.

Editorial Reviews

From the Publisher

"Pelecanos. . . has continued to produce first-rate crime novels. . . Now, in "Owning Up," he presents four novellas that trace the consequences of a random event or single bad choice in the life stories of everyday people. . . Although each tale is short, averaging 56 pages, they are sweeping, tracing the consequences of these events over a lifetime... The book is distinguished by well-drawn characters, elegant prose and thoughtful insights about human nature." —Bruce Desilva, AP

Praise for the novels of George Pelecanos——

"Like his hero Elmore Leonard, Pelecanos finds the humanity in the lowest of lowlifes. . . . Pelecanos' peppery dialogue energizes every page."—Lloyd Sachs, Chicago Tribune

“If I were in jail, George Pelecanos would be on my reading list, right up there with James Lee Burke and Elmore Leonard. . . . Pelecanos's characters [are] so human and so doomed. This is an author who writes with the steady hand of a man who knows he's driving a cool set of wheels and respects his own mechanical skills."—Marilyn Stasio, New York Times Book Review

"Every time I read one of George Pelecanos's novels, I'm left a little awed...The guy's a national treasure."—Dennis Lehane

"Using his customary knowing dialogue and stripped-down, soulful prose, Pelecanos skillfully, sensitively works the urban frontier where the problems and stresses of everyday life cross the line into the sort of criminal behavior that could tempt anyone-anyone at all."—Kirkus Reviews

"Here we see what makes Pelecanos' best writing so resonant: the sense of longing, of miscommunication, the way love does not enlarge us but rather makes us small."—David L. Ulin, Los Angeles Times

“The writing is taut, the violence is graphic and the characters are so well-drawn that they step off the page and into your life. . . As good as it gets."—Bruce DeSilva, Associated Press

JANUARY 2024 - AudioFile

Dion Graham skillfully breathes life into the diverse characters in Pelecanos's four novellas, vividly portraying the communities that constitute Washington, DC, beyond its political facade. Across different timeframes, these stories unveil ordinary individuals who are grappling with personal challenges and having to own up to them and take responsibility. Golden Voice Graham seamlessly navigates a spectrum of ethnicities, genders, and ages, with a particularly compelling performance of an elderly man who recounts his experiences in the 1919 riots. While there are crimes in each novella, the focus is much more on the characters themselves and how they are impacted by their own choices. These well-crafted works, eloquently delivered, provide glimpses of the complex lives within the capital's rich tapestry. E.Q. © AudioFile 2024, Portland, Maine

Product Details

BN ID:	2940159602824
Publisher:	Hachette Audio
Publication date:	02/06/2024
Edition description:	Unabridged

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