Commonwealth

兩個家庭、一樁震撼人心的故事，《奇蹟之邦》、紐約時報第一名暢銷作者最令人驚艷代表作

 　　1964年，伯特．考辛斯不請自來參加芙蘭尼的洗禮，在那裡他遇見了一個令人心跳幾乎停止的女人。當伯特親吻貝芙麗、也就是這場洗禮的女主人時，就開始了一段介入兩個家庭的命運糾葛。
 
　　1988年，24歲的芙蘭尼從法學院退學，在芝加哥當雞尾酒女侍。在那裡，她遇見生命中的偶像之一，知名作家李歐波森。在告訴李歐關於自己家族的故事之後，不知不覺地，此舉竟改變了他倆的命運。芙蘭尼做夢也沒想到，她與李歐的邂逅，竟會為她的父母及手足帶來一場無法預料的後果。
 
　　《Commonwealth》講述一個關於背叛、愛情與羈絆的家庭故事，以幽默與令人心碎的筆法交織而成的故事，是Ann Patchett至今最令人驚艷的經典作品。（文／博客來編譯）

　　本商品為特殊剪裁(Deckle Edge)

　　The acclaimed, bestselling author—winner of the PEN/Faulkner Award and the Orange Prize—tells the enthralling story of how an unexpected romantic encounter irrevocably changes two families’ lives.

　　One Sunday afternoon in Southern California, Bert Cousins shows up at Franny Keating’s christening party uninvited. Before evening falls, he has kissed Franny’s mother, Beverly—thus setting in motion the dissolution of their marriages and the joining of two families.

　　Spanning five decades, Commonwealth explores how this chance encounter reverberates through the lives of the four parents and six children involved. Spending summers together in Virginia, the Keating and Cousins children forge a lasting bond that is based on a shared disillusionment with their parents and the strange and genuine affection that grows up between them.

　　When, in her twenties, Franny begins an affair with the legendary author Leon Posen and tells him about her family, the story of her siblings is no longer hers to control. Their childhood becomes the basis for his wildly successful book, ultimately forcing them to come to terms with their losses, their guilt, and the deeply loyal connection they feel for one another.
          
　　Told with equal measures of humor and heartbreak, Commonwealth is a meditation on inspiration, interpretation, and the ownership of stories. It is a brilliant and tender tale of the far-reaching ties of love and responsibility that bind us together.

作者簡介

安．派契特（Ann Patchett）

　　1963年出生於洛杉磯，愛荷華大學寫作坊畢業，1990年曾擔任美國麻州普羅文斯頓駐市作家，並出版第一本小說作品《騙子的守護聖者》。1993年擔任雷德克里夫大學瑪莉．彭定研究中心駐校作家，1997年以第三本小說入圍英國柑橘獎，2002年則以《美聲俘虜》一舉榮獲美國筆會/福克納獎、英國柑橘獎，並入圍國家書評獎，銷售超過100萬冊，全球譯為30餘種語言。

　　2004年安．派契特又以《真相與友誼》回憶錄獲獎無數，包括美國文藝學會最佳書獎與圖書館協會獎。她是美國當代最受注目的小說家，作品有清楚明確的主題訴求，故事流暢迷人，極受讀者喜愛，屢屢登上暢銷書排行榜。除出版著作以外，她亦曾獲邀擔任「年度美國最佳短篇小說」等文選的主編，也是華盛頓郵報、紐約時報雜誌、哈潑雜誌、大西洋月刊、Gourmet美食雜誌、Vogue等媒體的固定撰稿人。目前她與丈夫住在田納西州。

　　Ann Patchett is the author of six novels and three books of nonfiction. She has won many prizes, including Britain's Orange Prize, the PEN/Faulkner Prize, and the Book Sense Book of the Year. Her work has been translated into more than thirty languages. She lives in Nashville, Tennessee, where she is the co-owner of Parnassus Books.