- Hardcover: 320 pages
- Publisher: Little, Brown and Company; 1 edition (Oct 21 2008)
- Language: English
- ISBN-10: 0316059862
- ISBN-13: 978-0316059862
- Product Dimensions: 15.9 x 2.8 x 24.1 cm
- Shipping Weight: 476 g
- Average Customer Review: 2.2 out of 5 stars See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
- Amazon Bestsellers Rank: #181,137 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
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Product Details |
Product Description
Review
"Shreve flawlessly weaves a tale that is mesmerizing, hypnotic, and compulsive." (Library Journal (starred review) Bette-Lee Fox )
PRAISE FOR TESTIMONY:
"Shreve, consummate craftsman and frequent provocateur, is on fire in her latest novel, a mesmerizing read centering on a sex scandal at a prestigious Vermont prep school....Shreve views all of the characters, even the most flawed, with a good deal of compassion, revealing the heartbreaking consequences of a single reckless act." (Booklist (starred review) Joanne Wilkinson )
PRAISE FOR TESTIMONY:
"Shreve, consummate craftsman and frequent provocateur, is on fire in her latest novel, a mesmerizing read centering on a sex scandal at a prestigious Vermont prep school....Shreve views all of the characters, even the most flawed, with a good deal of compassion, revealing the heartbreaking consequences of a single reckless act." (Booklist (starred review) Joanne Wilkinson )
Product Description
At a New England boarding school, a sex scandal is about to break. Even more shocking than the sexual acts themselves is the fact that they were caught on videotape. A Pandora's box of revelations, the tape triggers a chorus of voices--those of the men, women, teenagers, and parents involved in the scandal--that details the ways in which lives can be derailed or destroyed in one foolish moment.
Writing with a pace and intensity surpassing even her own greatest work, Anita Shreve delivers in TESTIMONY a gripping emotional drama with the impact of a thriller. No one more compellingly explores the dark impulses that sway the lives of seeming innocents, the needs and fears that drive ordinary men and women into intolerable dilemmas, and the ways in which our best intentions can lead to our worst transgressions.
Writing with a pace and intensity surpassing even her own greatest work, Anita Shreve delivers in TESTIMONY a gripping emotional drama with the impact of a thriller. No one more compellingly explores the dark impulses that sway the lives of seeming innocents, the needs and fears that drive ordinary men and women into intolerable dilemmas, and the ways in which our best intentions can lead to our worst transgressions.
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Most helpful customer reviews
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful
4.0 out of 5 stars
A page turner with a bitter after-taste,
By
This review is from: Testimony: A Novel (Hardcover)
Young students having sex. In a dorm. Three males and one female. Everything caught on tape. An example of how a reckless, drunken and unfortunate episode can change so many lives in a matter of minutes. The tape is viewed by the school headmaster. And hell breaks loose.The author gives voice to each participant and their relatives and friends in an interview-style. Each chapter bears the name of the speaking person, a technique that I found interesting. It also has a suspenseful quality that has the semblance of a thriller, although it is not. It is not a light read. The central theme is... well, there are many themes to explore. First and foremost, human fallibility, no matter at what age. And then, the unfortunate, terrible problem of adolescent children drinking recklessly, breaking every possible rule or boundary, the accessibility to alcohol (or drugs), lack of (or impossibility) to control, to check everyone out every minute of the day on the part of the teachers, and then the circumstances leading to the sex act. A shiver will run down your spine, especially if you have adolescent children. It is only by the end of the book that we learn the whats and the whys, even though the whys themselves bear a different meaning for each character. And are there plausible or credible answers? It is for you to find out. Shreve's clear-cut style is piercing. I have read many of her books, and liked them all. As usual, through her touching yet sharp narrative she has delivered a book that should be read by parents, teachers and, possibly, by adolescents to warn them against some dangers: although it is fiction, it could have happened anywhere in real life.
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful
3.0 out of 5 stars
An Intriguing, Moving Story,
By
This review is from: Testimony: A Novel (Hardcover)
Reason for Reading: I really wanted to read this book right from when it first came out but it just kept getting pushed to the bottom of the pile.Summary: Avery is a small New England town and Avery Academy, the private high school, is the only prestigious thing about it. That is until the headmaster receives a sex tape of several students in a drunken orgy which someone has filmed. While that may not exactly be shocking these days, especially if it had come from the public school, what is shocking is those involved. One girl is only fourteen. The boys are top A students and athletes with promising futures. One boy is a day student, on a scholarship, one of "them" (a town boy), from an upstanding farm family. What follows is a retelling of the events leading up to and after that dreadful event told through the voices of those involved and many others. Comments: This was a wonderful book! I really enjoyed the read. Each chapter the voice changes from character to character, going from major players to minor characters such as teachers on staff to room mates. This is a brilliant way to keep what is actually a fairly simple plot going into many different directions. There are secrets that unfold that make the simple incident more than it seems initially. Also viewing the incident from each major character's point of view turns what at first appears to be an easy-place-blame incident into one much more profound showing one the other side, multiple other sides and the moral issues involved when one is so quick to make rash judgement on others. A very intriguing story! The characters are all developed well, at least the ones the author meant to. I became attached to a couple of the characters but knew they were doomed from the beginning. Perhaps that is why I became attached to them? There are a couple of major reveals in the book. One I had figured out from the very beginning so was rather let down that I had actually uncovered it as I think it spoilt the effect for me. If I could have been surprised/shocked over the event my rating would have been higher. All in all, though, I really enjoyed the book. Now she has a new book out, A Change in Altitude, (Sept. 09) which looks very good to me as well. I think I may have found another favourite author.
6 of 9 people found the following review helpful
1.0 out of 5 stars
Absolutely Dull and Boring,
By The Mad Hatter "Seagull Books" (Prince Edward Island, Canada) - See all my reviews (TOP 500 REVIEWER)
This review is from: Testimony: A Novel (Hardcover)
I am a huge fan of Anita Shreve's books and have read every one she has ever written; however, this book, by far, is one of the most dull and boring books ever encountered.Following a sex scandal at the Avery Academy, the book gives an account of each character's views, opinions and feelings on the matter. The very brief sex scene is over after the first chapter, so do not think you are going to get caught up in a zesty little novel here. There is no plot to speak of and the story drags on and on to the point where one keeps hoping that with each turning page, the novel will pick up pace. Unfortunately, it never does. The book could have been summed up in two or three chapters, had the same impact and saved us all an enormous yawn at the end.
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