Sunset Park: A Novel

Paul Auster

Nov 2010 · Sold by Henry Holt and Company

About this ebook

From the bestselling author of 4 3 2 1 and The New York Trilogy comes Paul Auster's luminous, tour de force
novel set during the 2008 economic collapse.

"Auster fans and newcomers will find in Sunset Park his usual beautifully nuanced prose.... [and] a tremendous crash bang of an ending.” — NPR

Sunset Park opens with twenty-eight-year-old Miles Heller trashing out foreclosed houses in Florida, the latest stop in his flight across the country. When Miles falls in love with Pilar Sanchez, he finds himself fleeing once again, going back to New York, where his family still lives, and into an abandoned house of young squatters in Sunset Park, Brooklyn.

Woven together from various points of view—that of Miles's father, an independent book publisher trying to stay afloat, Miles's mother, a celebrated actress preparing her return to the New York stage, and the various men and women who live in the house—"Auster seems to carry all of humanity inside him" (The Boston Globe).

Ratings and reviews

A very interesting read. There are some aspects of it that I liked, but there were definitely some things I wasn't a fan of. The story itself was great. It was a departure from my normal read, but a story worth the read. One thing I did not like at all was his lack of using quotation marks. Now I know this may sound petty, but I had the hardest time when conversations flowing figuring out who was doing the talking. You never know what you are missing, until you trying reading a book without them - it was rough. The ending - without spoiling the book, I did not enjoy. It was one of those books that cuts off to soon and could have gone on for just a bit longer. I got attached to the main character - Miles Heller and I wanted to see him through the struggles that he has to face in the book. As to who I would recommend this book to - definitely my adult readers, there is some sexual language that at times was a little harsh.

Must read!

no es de los mejores

About the author

Paul Auster was the bestselling author of 4 3 2 1, Bloodbath Nation, Baumgartner, The Book of Illusions, and The New York Trilogy, among many other works. In 2006 he was awarded the Prince of Asturias Prize for Literature. Among his other honors are the Prix Médicis Étranger for Leviathan, the Independent Spirit Award for the screenplay of Smoke, and the Premio Napoli for Sunset Park. In 2012, he was the first recipient of the NYC Literary Honors in the category of fiction. He was also a finalist for the International IMPAC Dublin Literary Award (The Book of Illusions), the PEN/Faulkner Award (The Music of Chance), the Edgar Award (City of Glass), and the Man Booker Prize (4 3 2 1). Auster was a member of the American Academy of Arts and Letters and a Commandeur de l’Ordre des Arts et des Lettres. His work has been translated into more than forty languages. He died at age seventy-seven in 2024.