his word is not in every dictionary, but it is one that booksellers often use—and the one we use to describe our Barnes & Noble Recommends selections. Nothing gives us

more pleasure than recommending books that we have read and loved, and finding unputdownable books gives us the greatest pleasure of all. Barnes & Noble Recommends provides us with the opportunity to share such books with you. Each is chosen by a group of our discriminating and independent-minded booksellers from across the country. Each one is a book we are sure you will recommend to another reader. Our inaugural selection was Diane Setterfield’s suspenseful The Thirteenth Tale. Other choices have included Chris Bohjalian’s psychological thriller, The Double Bind; Mohsin Hamid’s subtly political novel, The Reluctant Fundamentalist; Paulette Jiles’s Texas family saga, Stormy Weather; Sarah Addison Allen’s enchanting Garden Spells; Maggie O’Farrell’s taut and revealing The Vanishing Act of Esme Lennox; Belong to Me by Marisa de los Santos, a heartwarming story of old friends and new acquaintances; and, most recently, Child 44, Tom Rob Smith’s compelling examination of deception, murder, and courage in Stalinist Russia. All are riveting reads as well as books worthy of stimulating discussion—as is our newest selection: America America by Ethan Canin.

Unputdownable.

The new novel by the acclaimed author of Emperor of the Air and The Palace Thief spans four decades of American life. Starting in the Nixon era, America America follows Corey Sifter’s progress from his modest roots in western New York to a glittering world of money, ambition, and politics. Corey’s entrée into this realm of promise

is the patronage of Liam Metarey, son of a ruthless coal baron who amassed a fortune in the early 1900s. Through Corey’s narration, we are drawn into the triumphs and trials of the Metarey family as Liam attempts to orchestrate a presidential nomination for Senator Henry Bonwiller. Thrust into the excitement of the campaign, sixteen-year-old Corey fetches drinks, parks cars, sets up chairs for press events—and gets an intimate education in human failings. A champion of labor and civil rights who opposes the Vietnam War,

Bonwiller seems to represent the best traditions of America’s liberal coalition. But as both Liam and Corey discover, the senator’s moral weakness threatens not only his candidacy, but their own hopes and ambitions as well. While rumors of Bonwiller’s shady business dealings are held in check by the long arm of Metarey influence, the furor set in motion by the accidental death of a young secretary linked to the candidate is not so easily contained. Tracing the rise and fall

A Stunning Saga of Loyalty, Scandal, and Politics in Small-Town America.

of a politician and a family, and the passing of an idealistic era, Canin’s novel moves between the present and the past as Corey chronicles his growth to middle age, his marriage to one of Liam’s daughters, and his career as publisher of his hometown newspaper. As he mentors a high school intern at the paper, Corey is prompted to question his own role in the sordid affair that put an end to the senator’s presidential bid. Layered with Corey’s poignant recognition of what it means to be flawed and fallible, Canin’s masterfully crafted plot lines converge to bring this complex tale to its startling, inescapable conclusion.

u t t he po l i t i c s o f Ca r ro l Coun t y a ren ’ t eas i l y apparent , and to those who don’t l ive up here they must be an absolute mystery that is further vei led

by a hab i t o f s i l ence . We don ’ t l i ke to t a l k much , o r to a rgue at a l l—we just th ink there’s too much work to be done. And we certa in ly don’t l ike to ta lk pol i t ics, especial ly with a stranger—which, in these parts, means anyone the speaker hasn ’ t known s ince e lementary school . And in fact , th is t ac i tu rn habit of ours might be the very th ing that saved Henry Bonwi l ler when al l h is t roubles began. For th i r ty years he protected the people of Carrol County. And when i t was the people’s turn, they protected him in return.

~ f r o m A m e r i c a A m e r i c a

About the Author or an author who confesses that he finds the process of writing agony—“I hate it, I really do”—Ethan Canin has met with extraordinary success. The author of six works of fiction, including the

story collections Emperor of the Air and The Palace Thief and the novels For Kings and Planets and Carry Me Across the Water, Canin is

widely regarded as one of the most accomplished contemporary American writers. His new novel, America America, is an ambitious attempt to fathom such pervasive themes as the power of love, the repercussions of family dependency, and rivalry in the context of our nation’s recent political history. In the absorbing story of Corey Sifter, Canin has created a multi-layered saga that is peopled with vividly drawn characters. “To me, a novel is the story of a life,” Canin has explained. “That’s what interests me. The guy who works in the laundromat, the professor, what happened to them? Where did they make their mistakes? Why didn’t they take that job? Why didn’t they marry

someone else? You could spend the rest of your life thinking about that.” Ethan Canin was born in Ann Arbor, Michigan. He received early encouragement for his writing from a teacher at his prep school—the bestselling author Danielle Steel. A graduate of Stanford University, he received a Masters in Fine Arts from the prestigious Iowa Writers’ Workshop before shifting gears to enroll in Harvard Medical School. Canin continued to work as a physician as he wrote and published his first books. Currently, he serves on the faculty of the Iowa Writers’ Workshop, and lives with his wife and children in Iowa and California.

1. Corey Sifter grows up over the course of this book. Which character do you see as the most significant influence on his personal evolution?

2. What motivates Corey to continue questioning the series of events that lead to Senator Bonwiller’s downfall: his journalist’s curiosity, a sense of loyalty, or his own contemplative nature?

3. Trieste Millbury shows enormous potential as a reporter during her time interning at the newspaper. She also provides a rapt audience for Corey’s rehashing of past events. How is she similar to the teenaged Corey? How is she different?

4. When JoEllen Charney enters Bonwiller’s world he is well on his way to successfully capturing the Democratic nomination. What does their liaison suggest about the ambitions and assumptions of those who pursue power?

5. Who or what do you think is ultimately responsible for incriminating Bonwiller?

6. How realistically does the book portray political indiscretions? Were you reminded of actual events past or present?

7. Which character’s duplicity or innocence did you find the most surprising, and why?

8. Who is the unnamed man with a limp who appears after Bonwiller’s funeral? Why do you think Canin chose not to reveal his identity?

9. Christian and Clara’s sibling rivalry is hinted at but never fully explained. What do you think motivated it? Did they turn out to be different as adults than you expected them to be?

Further Reading: The Palace Thief and For Kings and Planets by Ethan CaninThe Senator’s Wife by Sue MillerAll the King’s Men by Robert Penn Warren

Get the most out of America America with these reading group discussion questions.

F R O M O U R B O O K S E L L E R S“In an election year where the media takes front and center, a book like this—that encompasses all the scandal, conspiracy, and deceptions of generations—told through the clear and unflinching voice of an old-school seeker of truth, demands to be read. A timely and lucid story of what it means to be political vs. what it means to be true, and the shifting nature of both through the filter of what we loosely call morality.” Steve Russell, Tucson, AZ

“Walt Whitman captured the American spirit with his poetry, and Ethan Canin captures it in his novel. This is a story about the American Dream: about men who work hard and strive to create a better world for their children, about ambition and the failures and successes that accompany it. It is a wonderful story about the people who are the backbone of this country, and how they have watched it change from a land dotted with farms to one dotted with strip malls. This is truly an American tale.” Patricia Sanders, Towson, MD

“Sweeping in scope, Canin’s novel is an intricate portrait of the coming-of-age of a boy and the nation around him.” Doug Britt, Chicago, IL

“Intelligent and gracefully crafted, this novel is a reflection of the past, a correlation of the present, and a prediction of the future of our politics. Relevant and incredibly satisfying.” J. C. Barb, Fayetteville, GA

F R O M R E V I E W E R S “Ethan Canin’s new novel is a powerful lament that haunts us like a latter-day ghost of The Great Gatsby. Like Gatsby, it deals with an orgiastic rupture in the American dream. If F. Scott Fitzgerald anatomized the Jazz Age and delivered its own corrupt and luscious poetry, Canin gives us a poisoned lullaby of the Nixon era. . . . The language is often supple, can leap from impressionistic poetry to a coroner’s report, and can whiplash through time, from the 1970s to 2006.” Publishers Weekly

“The rhythms of a great estate, and the dynamics of a landowning family, are captured with Tolstoyan exactitude. It’s the journey, not the arrival, that matters, and the journey is an enthralling one.” Kirkus Reviews

Praise for America America

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reading group discussions at select stores.

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Discuss America America with the author and other readers.

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SP91803-04 JUN 08

America America List Price $27.00 B&N Price $18.90 Member Price $16.20

Prices effective through 7/21/08