Wolf in White Van by John Darnielle
A terrible event leaves Sean Phillips disfigured when he is only seventeen. In the weeks following the incident he creates an adventure game he calls the 'Trace Italian', where players awake in an apocalyptic America and make their way to safety across an irradiated landscape, decision by difficult decision. The years pass and Sean lives a quiet life enriched by his games. But when a pair of teenage sweethearts try to seek the Trace in the real world their actions prove fatal, and Sean is forced to confront the dangers of his creation and its origins in his own troubled past. A beguiling story of contingency, solitude and escape, Wolf in White Van is a heart-stopping debut from a musician and songwriter known for the transcendent power of his words.
Darnielle's prose is spare yet fervent, both distant and rawly exposed, making for an eerie, awkward and compelling novel that immediately demands a second read.. as sad as it is beguiling * Guardian *
[Written in] intense, skewed and lyrical prose. The weirdly wonderful Wolf in White Van is melancholy, clever, obsessive -- ‘Debut of the Year' * Independent *
[An] arresting, enigmatic debut novel... a stunning meditation on the power of escape, and on the cat-and-mouse contest the self plays to deflect its own guilt -- Ethan Gilsdorf * New York Times *
[A book of] discomforting brilliance... sudden moments of true and good light are as rare as they are welcome, even wondrous. Captivating and terrifying -- Randy Boyagoda * Financial Times *
A disturbing slice of the modern psyche... creepy and fast-moving * The Times *
Eerie, poetic, at times genuinely terrifying ... Darnielle's unforgettable first novel is like nothing else I've read -- Paul Murray, author * Skippy Dies *
A complex meditation... cryptic and then stunningly clear, microscopically specific and then audaciously grand. The words soothe for sentences at a time, then strike with blunt force * Slate *
Wolf in White Van approaches the speculative and even the apocalyptic with a genuine and smart warmth - which doesn't mean I didn't also find it deliciously chilling -- Daniel Handler ‘Book of the Year’ * Wall Street Journal (European) *
With delicacy, empathy and control, John Darnielle has crafted an indelible novel, a hymn for those who inhabit lonely universes, and a harbour for anyone who has sought refuge in a reality other than their own -- Patrick deWitt, author * The Sisters Brothers *
Darnielle's prose is strikingly good; it is not only lucid but startlingly effective at evoking the thoughts and emotions of his protagonist... a highly gifted writer; one to watch * Independent *
John Darnielle's novel moves through the mind like a dark-windowed car through a sleepy neighborhood, quiet, mysterious, menacing, taking you places you will never, never get out of your head -- Daniel Handler (aka Lemony Snicket)
A meditation on monstrosity, isolation, escape and transformation, this trance of a novel lures us deep into the labyrinth of one young man's imagination. What we find there is alluring and feral, raw, unflinching and exquisite. John Darnielle adds 'novelist' to the long list of artistic undertakings at which he happens to be absolutely brilliant -- Claire Vaye Watkins, author * Battleborn *
Wolf in White Van is beautiful, enigmatic, and sad, and like every other brilliant thing John Darnielle has ever done, it seems to come from some fully imagined universe, of which we only get to see this haunting, enticing sliver. I utterly love it -- J. Robert Lennon, author * See You in Paradise *
As you read Wolf in White Van you waver between suspicions that the world itself is ill-made, and concern that the fundamental fault lies within our very brains. As for the writing, I'd go for anything else Darnielle writes like a shot -- Helen Oyeyemi, author of * Boy, Snow, Bird *
One of the finest works of fiction I have read in a long time... Darnielle sweeps his prose from scene to scene so elegantly... Stunning * Grantland *
Intimate [and] involving... the emotional range is deep * New York Times *
Like all "difficult" fiction, this novel carves out a niche for itself by refusing to pander or provide easy answers. Haunting -- Alastair Mabbott * Herald *
A technically competent debut. Its reverse-chronological narration achieves suspense; in its stronger moments, Darnielle's carefully elliptical prose style evokes with sensitivity the foggy hinterland between solipsistic melancholia and serious mental illness -- Houman Barekat * TLS *
Inspired -- Justine Jordan * Guardian *
[Written in] intense, skewed and lyrical prose. The weirdly wonderful Wolf in White Van is melancholy, clever, obsessive -- ‘Debut of the Year' * Independent *
[An] arresting, enigmatic debut novel... a stunning meditation on the power of escape, and on the cat-and-mouse contest the self plays to deflect its own guilt -- Ethan Gilsdorf * New York Times *
[A book of] discomforting brilliance... sudden moments of true and good light are as rare as they are welcome, even wondrous. Captivating and terrifying -- Randy Boyagoda * Financial Times *
A disturbing slice of the modern psyche... creepy and fast-moving * The Times *
Eerie, poetic, at times genuinely terrifying ... Darnielle's unforgettable first novel is like nothing else I've read -- Paul Murray, author * Skippy Dies *
A complex meditation... cryptic and then stunningly clear, microscopically specific and then audaciously grand. The words soothe for sentences at a time, then strike with blunt force * Slate *
Wolf in White Van approaches the speculative and even the apocalyptic with a genuine and smart warmth - which doesn't mean I didn't also find it deliciously chilling -- Daniel Handler ‘Book of the Year’ * Wall Street Journal (European) *
With delicacy, empathy and control, John Darnielle has crafted an indelible novel, a hymn for those who inhabit lonely universes, and a harbour for anyone who has sought refuge in a reality other than their own -- Patrick deWitt, author * The Sisters Brothers *
Darnielle's prose is strikingly good; it is not only lucid but startlingly effective at evoking the thoughts and emotions of his protagonist... a highly gifted writer; one to watch * Independent *
John Darnielle's novel moves through the mind like a dark-windowed car through a sleepy neighborhood, quiet, mysterious, menacing, taking you places you will never, never get out of your head -- Daniel Handler (aka Lemony Snicket)
A meditation on monstrosity, isolation, escape and transformation, this trance of a novel lures us deep into the labyrinth of one young man's imagination. What we find there is alluring and feral, raw, unflinching and exquisite. John Darnielle adds 'novelist' to the long list of artistic undertakings at which he happens to be absolutely brilliant -- Claire Vaye Watkins, author * Battleborn *
Wolf in White Van is beautiful, enigmatic, and sad, and like every other brilliant thing John Darnielle has ever done, it seems to come from some fully imagined universe, of which we only get to see this haunting, enticing sliver. I utterly love it -- J. Robert Lennon, author * See You in Paradise *
As you read Wolf in White Van you waver between suspicions that the world itself is ill-made, and concern that the fundamental fault lies within our very brains. As for the writing, I'd go for anything else Darnielle writes like a shot -- Helen Oyeyemi, author of * Boy, Snow, Bird *
One of the finest works of fiction I have read in a long time... Darnielle sweeps his prose from scene to scene so elegantly... Stunning * Grantland *
Intimate [and] involving... the emotional range is deep * New York Times *
Like all "difficult" fiction, this novel carves out a niche for itself by refusing to pander or provide easy answers. Haunting -- Alastair Mabbott * Herald *
A technically competent debut. Its reverse-chronological narration achieves suspense; in its stronger moments, Darnielle's carefully elliptical prose style evokes with sensitivity the foggy hinterland between solipsistic melancholia and serious mental illness -- Houman Barekat * TLS *
Inspired -- Justine Jordan * Guardian *
JOHN DARNIELLE is a writer, composer, guitarist, and vocalist for the band The Mountain Goats; he is widely considered one of the best lyricists of his generation. He lives in Durham, North Carolina, with his wife and son.
| SKU | CIN1783781106G |
| ISBN 13 | 9781783781102 |
| ISBN 10 | 1783781106 |
| Title | Wolf in White Van |
| Author | John Darnielle |
| Condition | Good |
| Binding Type | Paperback |
| Publisher | Granta Books |
| Year published | 2015-07-02 |
| Number of pages | 224 |
| Prizes | Long-listed for National Book Award 2014 (UK) |
| Cover note | Book picture is for illustrative purposes only, actual binding, cover or edition may vary. |
| Note | This is a used book - there is no escaping the fact it has been read by someone else and it will show signs of wear and previous use. Overall we expect it to be in good condition, but if you are not entirely satisfied please get in touch with us |
