The Falls
By Joyce Carol Oates
(Harper Perennial, Paperback, 9780060722296, 512pp.)
Publication Date: August 2005
Other Editions of This Title: Paperback
Categories: General
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It is 1950 and, after a disastrous honeymoon night, Ariah Erskine's young husband throws himself into the roaring waters of Niagara Falls. Ariah, "the Widow Bride of the Falls," begins a relentless seven-day vigil in the mist, waiting for his body to be found. At her side is confirmed bachelor and pillar of the community Dirk Burnaby, who is unexpectedly drawn to her. What follows is a passionate love affair, marriage, and family -- a seemingly perfect existence. But tragedy soon takes over their lives, poisoning their halcyon years with distrust, greed, and murder.
Set against the mythic-historic backdrop of Niagara Falls in the mid-twentieth century, this haunting exploration of the American family in crisis is a stunning achievement from "one of the great artistic forces of our time" (The Nation).
This P.S. edition features an extra 16 pages of insights into the book, including author interviews, recommended reading, and more.Joyce Carol Oates is a recipient of the National Medal of Humanities, the National Book Critics Circle Ivan Sandrof Lifetime Achievement Award, the National Book Award, and the PEN/Malamud Award for Excellence in Short Fiction. She has written some of the most enduring fiction of our time, including the bestsellers Blonde, a finalist for the National Book Award, and The Falls, winner of the 2005 Prix Femina. She is a professor of humanities at Princeton University.
“Ambitious...Joyce Carol Oates remains implacable, unstoppable.”
-New York Times Book Review

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