3.0
The Unnamed
ByPublisher Description
The Unnamed is a dazzling novel about a marriage, family, and the unseen forces of nature and desire that seem to threaten them both.
He was going to lose the house and everything in it.
The rare pleasure of a bath, the copper pots hanging above the kitchen island, his family-again he would lose his family. He stood inside the house and took stock. Everything in it had been taken for granted. How had that happened again? He had promised himself not to take anything for granted and now he couldn't recall the moment that promise had given way to the everyday.
Tim Farnsworth is a handsome, healthy man, aging with the grace of a matinee idol. His wife Jane still loves him, and for all its quiet trials, their marriage is still stronger than most. Despite long hours at the office, he remains passionate about his work, and his partnership at a prestigious Manhattan law firm means that the work he does is important. And, even as his daughter Becka retreats behind her guitar, her dreadlocks and her puppy fat, he offers her every one of a father's honest lies about her being the most beautiful girl in the world.
He loves his wife, his family, his work, his home. He loves his kitchen. And then one day he stands up and walks out. And keeps walking.
The Unnamed is a heartbreaking story of a life taken for granted -- and what happens when that life is abruptly and irrevocably taken away.
He was going to lose the house and everything in it.
The rare pleasure of a bath, the copper pots hanging above the kitchen island, his family-again he would lose his family. He stood inside the house and took stock. Everything in it had been taken for granted. How had that happened again? He had promised himself not to take anything for granted and now he couldn't recall the moment that promise had given way to the everyday.
Tim Farnsworth is a handsome, healthy man, aging with the grace of a matinee idol. His wife Jane still loves him, and for all its quiet trials, their marriage is still stronger than most. Despite long hours at the office, he remains passionate about his work, and his partnership at a prestigious Manhattan law firm means that the work he does is important. And, even as his daughter Becka retreats behind her guitar, her dreadlocks and her puppy fat, he offers her every one of a father's honest lies about her being the most beautiful girl in the world.
He loves his wife, his family, his work, his home. He loves his kitchen. And then one day he stands up and walks out. And keeps walking.
The Unnamed is a heartbreaking story of a life taken for granted -- and what happens when that life is abruptly and irrevocably taken away.
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Meet readers like you in the Fable For You feed, designed to build bookish communitiesThe Unnamed Reviews
3.0
Ryan Wray
Created 4 months agoShare
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Kiffin
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Chloe Lloyd
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Taufiq Yves
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“Have you ever glanced at an electric pole and noticed a missing person poster? Typically, these posters are looking for 3 types of people: elderly individuals with dementia who have gone missing, young, innocent children who have been lost, and rebellious teenagers who have run away from home.
The black-and-white photo on that thin sheet of paper often depicts a good-looking elderly person, a lively and adorable child, or a fair-skinned teenager. Regardless of when, where, why, or how, when they become separated from their families, it's always a haunting nightmare for both the individual and their family. If they are still alive, they are destined to become outcasts, looked down upon by others.
Wandering, in my eyes, is a trendy term. If it's intentional, it can be romantic, like wandering to the ends of the earth with a loved one, with your love remaining constant. But wandering is often passive, caused by war, making one homeless; by livelihood, forcing one to leave their hometown; or by illness, driving one to a distant land. Perhaps, wandering can also be somewhere between active and passive. Joshua Ferris's novel, The Unnamed, tells the story of a man forced to wander.
Tim, a middle-aged, wealthy law firm partner, deeply loves his wife, Jane, and has a musically talented daughter. The family of 3 is the epitome of the American middle-class ideal. Tim's wandering seems at odds with his affluent and harmonious family life, which is precisely what Ferris intended when choosing this subject matter. He suffers from a condition called "benign essential wandering," characterized by the uncontrollable urge to wander, regardless of direction or distance, until he collapses, exhausted, somewhere, in the rain, wind, or snow, without knowing where he is.
Tim's illness has a disastrous impact on his family and career. Jane has to face it alone, even resorting to alcoholism to relieve the stress. As Tim has more and more episodes, and Jane searches for him again and again, both are pushed to the brink of collapse. It's not just the weight of life that's crumbling, but also the promise of a happy marriage.
There's a Chinese saying, "A couple is like birds in the same forest, but when disaster strikes, they fly separately," which describes the fragility of marriage as a social unit. Ultimately, Tim and Jane, without consulting each other, choose to separate for love. Tim wanders freely, while Jane waits. But if Jane loves him, she should let him be free, at least let his heart be free. Tim's feet continue to walk, and he even learns to enjoy life and cherish the present along the way. He always holds onto one belief: no matter how long or how far he wanders, the direction of his wandering is always to return home for love, to be with Jenny and his daughter.
Ferris, a writer born in the 1970s, excels at selecting urban themes, especially in his in-depth portrayal of the lives and careers of white-collar workers. This book is his second novel, and it won the Best Book of the Month award upon its release. His debut novel, Then We Came to the End is also well-known among readers. If Then We Came to the End is a black comedy about office life, then The Unnamed can be considered a warm work that conveys the warmth of love behind sadness. Ferris not only delves deeply into the confusion faced by middle-aged marriages but also uses the rules of the corporate game as a subplot. As Tim suffers the impact of his illness on his career, the cold reality of human relationships is also presented, which is quite thought-provoking.
Life is a grand banquet of love and pain, and it's ultimately fleeting. Tim and Jane are fortunate to have shared this banquet in this life, loving and hurting. When the music ends, they still haven't parted. Love keeps them together.
3.6 / 5 stars”
About Joshua Ferris
Joshua Ferris's first novel, Then We Came to the End, has been translated into 24 languages. His fiction has appeared in the New Yorker, Granta, and Best American Voices. Ferris was chosen for the New Yorker's "20 Under 40" list of fiction writers in 2010. He lives in New York.
Other books by Joshua Ferris
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