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The Dinner (ALA Notable Books for Adults)

3.8(8)
Hardcover€26.23Paperback€5.14
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About the book

"A European Gone Girl." --The Wall Street Journal

An internationally bestselling phenomenon: the darkly suspenseful, highly controversial tale of two families struggling to make the hardest decision of their lives -- all over the course of one meal.

It's a summer's evening in Amsterdam, and two couples meet at a fashionable restaurant for dinner. Between mouthfuls of food and over the polite scrapings of cutlery, the conversation remains a gentle hum of polite discourse -- the banality of work, the triviality of the holidays. But behind the empty words, terrible things need to be said, and with every forced smile and every new course, the knives are being sharpened.
Each couple has a fifteen-year-old son. The two boys are united by their accountability for a single horrific act; an act that has triggered a police investigation and shattered the comfortable, insulated worlds of their families. As the dinner reaches its culinary climax, the conversation finally touches on their children. As civility and friendship disintegrate, each couple show just how far they are prepared to go to protect those they love.
Tautly written, incredibly gripping, and told by an unforgettable narrator, The Dinner promises to be the topic of countless dinner party debates. Skewering everything from parenting values to pretentious menus to political convictions, this novel reveals the dark side of genteel society and asks what each of us would do in the face of unimaginable tragedy.

Editions (5)

ISBN9780770437855
PublisherHogarth
Publication Date02/12/13
Pages304

Reviews & Ratings

8 ratings

2 reviews

3.8

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  • janawiesy
    janawiesy

    26 Followers

    5.0

    Book leaves an impact, will make you think

    Aug 7, 2023

  • jojo_27
    jojo_27

    1 Followers

    4.0

    I read this book alone in bed, late at night. That was not my best move. This book has a pretty basic beginning. Two brothers and their wives are at dinner. One brother is a politician and, like lots/all of them, seems like an arrogant dickhead. There's enough tension at the table already to get us through a meal, and I was ready for it. But then...some other things happen. I was not prepared. This book is really well done. Rating this four stars because I like to be surprised.

    Mar 2, 2024

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