Imprint
- Sceptre
- Sceptre
The Barbarian Nurseries: A shocking and unforgettable novel about class differences in modern-day America
Hector Tobar
USA, Fiction, Modern & contemporary fiction (post c 1945), Crime & mystery
A 21st century Bonfire of the Vanities, set in LA.
Araceli is the live-in maid in the Torres-Thompson household, just outside Los Angeles. One morning, she wakes to an empty house - except for the two sons, little aliens she's never had to interact with before. Not knowing what else to do, she decides to track down their grandfather. It will be an adventure, she tells the boys. If she only knew . . .
When Scott and Maureen return to find the children gone, they do what any right-minded middle class parents would: they panic. Caught in a spiral of guilt, they say things that aren't quite true - and when Araceli is accused of abduction, a national media circus explodes and carefully constructed lives begin to fall apart.
THE BARBARIAN NURSERIES is a compelling portrait of our time, which questions how far we will go to protect our ambitions, our liberty and our family.
More books by Hector Tobar
Praise for The Barbarian Nurseries: A shocking and unforgettable novel about class differences in modern-day America
-
A book of extraordinary scope and extraordinary power. - L A Times
-
Hector Tobar's THE BARBARIAN NURSERIES is a virtuosic and hard-hitting novel about social schism in Southern California. He combines a broad and bitter social vision with exuberant attention to details. Tobar exposes disturbing and enlightening ironies about the perpetuation of both privilege and social disadvantage. - TLS
-
Avoiding the usual cliches, Tobar portrays his characters inner lives in nuanced detail . . . Tobar's hard-hitting novel drills deep into LA's hidden social and racial strata, and explores what happens when these carefully constructed lives implode. - Independent
-
Tobar's second novel energetically explores America's hidden seam of racial discord . . . His take on southern California's complex social and ethnic strata is the strongest element of THE BARBARIAN NURSERIES . . . Not surprisingly he also displays an insider's knowledge of the media. - Guardian
-
This is Araceli's story, and THE BARBARIAN NURSERIES is a novel that is entirely dependent on our relationship with her. Mercifully, she makes the journey worth our while. Referred to as "Madame Weirdness" by her employers, she is as inscrutable in the workplace as she is fiery out of it. As hypnotic as she is observant and as sympathetic as she is frosty, she is a diamond of a character. - Independent on Sunday
-
The scope and cracking pace of Bonfire of the Vanities - Bookseller
-
This book is beautifully written . . . it provides a fascinating portrait of mutual misunderstanding, of the life led by California's unprotected underclass, and of the American citizens who are wholly dependent on the illegal immigrants who service them. - Literary Review
-
The predicament of the recession-hit middle classes as they hastily rearrange their priorities has provided a rich seam for fiction writers in recent years, and Pulitzer-winning journalist Tobar's latest is a fine example of the genre. - Daily Mail
Hector Tobar
HA ctor Tobar is the son of Guatemalan immigrants and a native of the city of Los Angeles. He is the former Buenos Aires and Mexico City Bureau Chief for the LA Times and shared a Pulitzer for the paper's coverage of the 1992 riots. He is currently an LA-based columnist for the paper. He is the author of the critically acclaimed novel, The Barbarian Nurseries.
www.hectortobar.com
Find a book you’ll love, get our Word Up newsletter
.png?auto=compress&w=150&h=60&fit=crop&fm=jpg)
.png?auto=compress&w=150&h=60&fit=crop&fm=jpg)
Hachette Australia acknowledges and pays our respects to the past, present and future Traditional Owners and Custodians of Country throughout Australia and recognises the continuation of cultural, spiritual and educational practices of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples. Our head office is located on the lands of the Gadigal people of the Eora Nation.
