Francine Prose

This tale of a family in Little Italy is “a minor miracle . . . documenting the madness and the grace of God in everyday life” (Newsweek).
 
On a 1950s September night so hot that the devout Catholics of Little Italy wonder if New York City has slipped into hell, the butcher Joseph Santangelo invites his friends to play pinochle. At the end of a long, sweaty, boozy evening, his friend...

A young girl faces the consequences of sudden loss after the death of her sister. As her parents drift toward their own risky consolations, thirteen-year-old Nico is left alone to grope toward understanding and clarity, falling into a seductive, dangerous relationship with her sister's enigmatic boyfriend. Over one haunted summer, Nico must face that life-changing moment when children realize their parents can no longer help them. She learns about...

New York Times bestselling author Francine Prose (Goldengrove, Reading like a Writer) offers an enthralling account of the life and work of one of the greatest painters of all time. Caravaggio includes eight pages of color illustrations, and is sure to appeal to art enthusiasts interested in one of history's true innovators. Caravaggio is another engaging entry in the HarperCollins' "Eminent Lives" series of biographies by distinguished authors on...

"The acclaimed New York Times bestselling author weaves an ingenious, darkly humorous, and brilliantly observant story that follows the exploits and intrigue of a constellation of characters affiliated with an off-off-off-off Broadway children's musical. Mister Monkey--a screwball children's musical about a playfully larcenous pet chimpanzee--is the kind of family favorite that survives far past its prime. Margot, who plays the chimp's lawyer, knows...

In an age defined by hyper-connectivity and constant stimulation, Francine Prose makes a compelling case for the solitary act of reading and the great enjoyment it brings. Inspiring and illuminating, What to Read and Why includes selections culled from Prose's previous essays, reviews, and introductions, combined with new, never-before-published pieces that focus on her favorite works of fiction and nonfiction, on works by masters of the short story,...

All loved, and were loved by, their artists, and inspired them with an intensity of emotion akin to Eros. In a brilliant, wry, and provocative book, National Book Award finalist Francine Prose explores the complex relationship between the artist and his muse. In so doing, she illuminates with great sensitivity and intelligence the elusive emotional wellsprings of the creative process.

What is charismatic Holocaust survivor Meyer Maslow to think when a rough-looking young neo-Nazi named Vincent Nolan walks into the Manhattan office of Maslow's human rights foundation and declares that he wants to "save guys like me from becoming guys like me"? As Vincent gradually turns into the sort of person who might actually be able to do this, he also transforms those around him: Meyer Maslow, who fears heroism has become a desk job; the foundation's...

Two novellas. In the title piece, a New York playwright tours a death camp in the Czech Republic as part of a literary conference, while Three Pigs in Five Days is on how boring Paris can be if your loved one is not with you.

The National Book Award Finalist from acclaimed New York Times bestselling author Francine Prose—now the major motion picture Submission

"Screamingly funny ... Blue Angel culminates in a sexual harassment hearing that rivals the Salem witch trials." —USA Today

It's been years since Swenson, a professor in a New England creative writing program, has published a novel. It's been even longer since

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Stories of innocence lost, from a master observer of modern life The citizens of Prose's realm are perpetually experiencing surprises. Nothing is reliable in their world, where dream vacations, weddings, and parties go sideways; strangers make unexpected confessions; and even family pets can sow discord. The peaceable kingdom of the everyday is streaked with darker, harsher truths.