The Bookseller: A Novel - Softcover

Swanson, Cynthia

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0062390686 ISBN 13: 9780062390684

Publisher: Harper, 2015

Synopsis

A provocative and hauntingly powerful debut novel reminiscent of Sliding Doors, The Bookseller follows a woman in the 1960s who must reconcile her reality with the tantalizing alternate world of her dreams.

Nothing is as permanent as it appears . . .

Denver, 1962: Kitty Miller has come to terms with her unconventional single life. She loves the bookshop she runs with her best friend, Frieda, and enjoys complete control over her day-to-day existence. She can come and go as she pleases, answering to no one. There was a man once, a doctor named Kevin, but it didn’t quite work out the way Kitty had hoped.

Then the dreams begin.

Denver, 1963: Katharyn Andersson is married to Lars, the love of her life. They have beautiful children, an elegant home, and good friends. It’s everything Kitty Miller once believed she wanted—but it only exists when she sleeps.

Convinced that these dreams are simply due to her overactive imagination, Kitty enjoys her nighttime forays into this alternate world. But with each visit, the more irresistibly real Katharyn’s life becomes. Can she choose which life she wants? If so, what is the cost of staying Kitty, or becoming Katharyn?

As the lines between her worlds begin to blur, Kitty must figure out what is real and what is imagined. And how do we know where that boundary lies in our own lives?

About this title

From the Back Cover

Exploring the twists of fate that shape our lives, The Bookseller is a mesmerizingly powerful debut novel about Kitty, an unmarried bookstore owner in the 1960s who begins to dream vividly about being Katharyn, a woman with a loving husband, children, and a beautiful home. It's a life Kitty once believed she wanted . . . but it exists only when she sleeps.

At first, Kitty enjoys her nighttime forays into this alternate world, and she becomes increasingly reluctant to open her eyes. But with each visit to her dreamworld, it grows more real. As the lines between her two lives begin to blur, Kitty faces an uncertain future. What price must she pay to stay? What is the cost of letting go?

About the Author

Cynthia Swanson is a writer and designer. She has published short fiction in 13th Moon, Kalliope, Sojourner, and other periodicals; her story in 13th Moon was a Pushcart Prize nominee. The Bookseller, her first novel, was an Indie Next pick and is being translated into eleven languages.

Edition details

• Publisher: Harper
• Publication date: 2015
• ISBN 10: 0062390686
• ISBN 13: 9780062390684
• Binding: Paperback
• Language: English
• Number of pages: 352