The Names Book Club

Wednesday, November 5, 10-11 am

Book clubs are hosted at Novel (before or after hours) and are limited to 11 participants per book club; we love how a smaller group leaves us knowing what everyone loved and didn't love about the book. 

Book club purchases include:

• Book - must be picked up in-store; you'll receive an e-mail notification when we have it ready for you
• Sandwich - served after book club at 11 am (feel free to stay and eat to continue chatting from 11-12) 
• Beverage - pick during book club

All book club sales are final. Sandwiches and drinks must be redeemed during book club.

About the Book:

 EAD WITH JENNA BOOK CLUB PICK AS FEATURED ON TODAY | AN INSTANT NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER!

“Dazzling. . . The Names is startlingly joyful. . . Knapp tirelessly and beautifully replicates not just loss and grief but endless rebirth and delight.” —The Washington Post

“Elegant. . . this is a wholly original work.” —People Magazine "Book of the Week"

“A magnificent novel, thrumming with life in all its pain and precariousness, yet suffused with the glorious possibilities of love and redemption.” —Geraldine Brooks, Pulitzer Prize–winning author of Horse

The extraordinary novel that asks: Can a name change the course of a life?

In the wake of a catastrophic storm, Cora sets off with her nine-year-old daughter, Maia, to register her son's birth. Her husband, Gordon, a local doctor, respected in the community but a terrifying and controlling presence at home, intends for her to name the infant after him. But when the registrar asks what she'd like to call the child, Cora hesitates...

Spanning thirty-five years, what follows are three alternate and alternating versions of Cora's and her young son's lives, shaped by her choice of name. In richly layered prose, The Names explores the painful ripple effects of domestic abuse, the messy ties of family, and the possibilities of autonomy and healing.

With exceptional sensitivity and depth, Knapp draws us into the story of one family, told through a prism of what-ifs, causing us to consider the "one . . . precious life" we are given. The book’s brilliantly imaginative structure, propulsive storytelling, and emotional, gut-wrenching power are certain to make The Names a modern classic.