BY THE INTERNATIONAL BESTSELLING AND PULITZER PRIZE-WINNING AUTHOR OF THE 33
‘A book of extraordinary scope and power’ Los Angeles Times
Araceli is the live-in maid in the Torres-Thompson household, just outside Los Angeles.
One morning, after an argument between the parents which turned physical, she wakes to an empty house – except for the two sons she’s never had to interact with before. Not knowing what else to do, she decides to track down their grandfather.
When Scott and Maureen return to find the children gone, they do what any right-minded middle-class parents would: they panic.
Caught in a spiral of guilt, they say things that aren’t quite true – and when Araceli is accused of abduction, a national media circus explodes, causing the Torres-Thompson’s carefully constructed lives to begin to fall apart . . .
‘As pacy and informative about the states of America as you would expect from a journalist who won a Pulitzer for coverage of the LA riots . . . Tobar is in total control of his material’ Guardian
‘A virtuosic and hard-hitting novel . . . Exposes disturbing and enlightening ironies about the perpetuation of both privilege and social disadvantage’ TLS
Tobar’s hard-hitting novel drills deep into LA’s hidden social and racial strata, and explores what happens when these carefully constructed lives implode Independent
‘A book of extraordinary scope and power’ Los Angeles Times
Araceli is the live-in maid in the Torres-Thompson household, just outside Los Angeles.
One morning, after an argument between the parents which turned physical, she wakes to an empty house – except for the two sons she’s never had to interact with before. Not knowing what else to do, she decides to track down their grandfather.
When Scott and Maureen return to find the children gone, they do what any right-minded middle-class parents would: they panic.
Caught in a spiral of guilt, they say things that aren’t quite true – and when Araceli is accused of abduction, a national media circus explodes, causing the Torres-Thompson’s carefully constructed lives to begin to fall apart . . .
‘As pacy and informative about the states of America as you would expect from a journalist who won a Pulitzer for coverage of the LA riots . . . Tobar is in total control of his material’ Guardian
‘A virtuosic and hard-hitting novel . . . Exposes disturbing and enlightening ironies about the perpetuation of both privilege and social disadvantage’ TLS
Tobar’s hard-hitting novel drills deep into LA’s hidden social and racial strata, and explores what happens when these carefully constructed lives implode Independent
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Reviews
A book of extraordinary scope and extraordinary power.
Hector Tobar's THE BARBARIAN NURSERIES is a virtuosic and hard-hitting novel about social schism in Southern California. He combines a broad and bitter social vision with exuberant attention to details. Tobar exposes disturbing and enlightening ironies about the perpetuation of both privilege and social disadvantage.
Avoiding the usual cliches, Tobar portrays his characters inner lives in nuanced detail . . . Tobar's hard-hitting novel drills deep into LA's hidden social and racial strata, and explores what happens when these carefully constructed lives implode.
Tobar's second novel energetically explores America's hidden seam of racial discord . . . His take on southern California's complex social and ethnic strata is the strongest element of THE BARBARIAN NURSERIES . . . Not surprisingly he also displays an insider's knowledge of the media.
This is Araceli's story, and THE BARBARIAN NURSERIES is a novel that is entirely dependent on our relationship with her. Mercifully, she makes the journey worth our while. Referred to as "Madame Weirdness" by her employers, she is as inscrutable in the workplace as she is fiery out of it. As hypnotic as she is observant and as sympathetic as she is frosty, she is a diamond of a character.
The scope and cracking pace of Bonfire of the Vanities
This book is beautifully written . . . it provides a fascinating portrait of mutual misunderstanding, of the life led by California's unprotected underclass, and of the American citizens who are wholly dependent on the illegal immigrants who service them.
The predicament of the recession-hit middle classes as they hastily rearrange their priorities has provided a rich seam for fiction writers in recent years, and Pulitzer-winning journalist Tobar's latest is a fine example of the genre.
' . . . what follows is as pacy and informative about the states of America as you would expect from a journalist who won a Pulitzer for coverage of the LA riots . . . Tobar is in total control of his material . . .'
Héctor Tobar's THE BARBARIAN NURSERIES is that rare novel that redefines a city. It has the necessary vital sweep of culture and class that brings a city to life, but its power lies in Tobar's ability to persuasively change the perspective from which the Los Angeles of the present - and by extension, the United States - is seen. This book confirms the promise of Tobar's debut novel, The Tattooed Soldier.
Héctor Tobar's novel is astonishing, like a many-layered mural on a long wall in Los Angeles, a tapestry of people and neighborhoods and stories. A vivid testament to Southern California as the world. Araceli is so unexpected and unique; she's a character America needs to see, and this novel takes her on a journey America needs to understand.
THE BARBARIAN NURSERIES is a huge novel of this century, as sprawling and exciting as Los Angeles itself . . . A story that was demanded, we can celebrate that it is now here.
A book of extraordinary scope and extraordinary power.
Hector Tobar's THE BARBARIAN NURSERIES is a virtuosic and hard-hitting novel about social schism in Southern California. He combines a broad and bitter social vision with exuberant attention to details. Tobar exposes disturbing and enlightening ironies about the perpetuation of both privilege and social disadvantage.
Tobar's second novel energetically explores America's hidden seam of racial discord . . . His take on southern California's complex social and ethnic strata is the strongest element of THE BARBARIAN NURSERIES . . . Not surprisingly he also displays an insider's knowledge of the media.
This is Araceli's story, and THE BARBARIAN NURSERIES is a novel that is entirely dependent on our relationship with her. Mercifully, she makes the journey worth our while. Referred to as "Madame Weirdness" by her employers, she is as inscrutable in the workplace as she is fiery out of it. As hypnotic as she is observant and as sympathetic as she is frosty, she is a diamond of a character.
The scope and cracking pace of Bonfire of the Vanities
This book is beautifully written . . . it provides a fascinating portrait of mutual misunderstanding, of the life led by California's unprotected underclass, and of the American citizens who are wholly dependent on the illegal immigrants who service them.
The predicament of the recession-hit middle classes as they hastily rearrange their priorities has provided a rich seam for fiction writers in recent years, and Pulitzer-winning journalist Tobar's latest is a fine example of the genre.
' . . . what follows is as pacy and informative about the states of America as you would expect from a journalist who won a Pulitzer for coverage of the LA riots . . . Tobar is in total control of his material . . .'
Héctor Tobar's THE BARBARIAN NURSERIES is that rare novel that redefines a city. It has the necessary vital sweep of culture and class that brings a city to life, but its power lies in Tobar's ability to persuasively change the perspective from which the Los Angeles of the present - and by extension, the United States - is seen. This book confirms the promise of Tobar's debut novel, The Tattooed Soldier.
Héctor Tobar's novel is astonishing, like a many-layered mural on a long wall in Los Angeles, a tapestry of people and neighborhoods and stories. A vivid testament to Southern California as the world. Araceli is so unexpected and unique; she's a character America needs to see, and this novel takes her on a journey America needs to understand.
THE BARBARIAN NURSERIES is a huge novel of this century, as sprawling and exciting as Los Angeles itself . . . A story that was demanded, we can celebrate that it is now here.