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Lie Down In Darkness

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( 3,603 ratings, 384 reviews)
Book Hero Magic crafted this summary to help describe this book. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! Summary
Lie Down In Darkness is set against the dark and tumultuous backdrop of the American South, grappling with religious fundamentalism, modern scepticism, racial tensions, and the impact of industrialisation on rural life. At its heart lies the story of the Loftis family, plagued by infidelity and vengeful, blocked love. Peyton Loftis craves a husband to fulfil a love for her father; Milton's infidelities reduce his marriage to mere performance; and Helen, his wife, seeks control through her crippled daughter and the vulnerable side of her husband. This powerful novel paints a vivid portrait of a family destined to 'lie down in darkness.'
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Book Hero Magic created this recommendation. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! IS THIS YOUR NEXT READ?

This novel will engage readers interested in complex family dynamics, Southern Gothic literature, and themes of love, betrayal, and societal change. It is suited to those who appreciate richly developed characters and explorations of psychological and cultural conflicts.

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In this novel, the South looms dark and ominous in the background with its Biblical rhetoric, its conflict between a tradition of religious fundamentalism and modern scepticism, racial contrasts and the industrialisation of a rural society.

Book Hero Magic formatted this description to make it easier to read. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! Description

In this novel, the South looms dark and ominous in the background with its Biblical rhetoric, its conflict between a tradition of religious fundamentalism and modern scepticism, racial contrasts and the industrialisation of a rural society. But more than a novel of time and place, it is the story of a tormented family submerged in infidelity and driven by a vengeful love that is blocked, hurt and perverted.

Peyton Loftis, who frantically needs a husband precisely because she loves her father; the decadent Milton, whose infidelity has made his marriage no more than a stage drama; and Helen, his wife, who loves only what she can control - her crippled daughter Maudie, or the childish part of her husband.

This extraordinarily powerful novel is the portrait of a family who, in the words of Sir Thomas Browne in his URN BURIAL, 'all lie down in darkness'.

Book Details

INFORMATION

ISBN: 9780099284994

Publisher: Vintage Publishing

Format: Paperback / softback

Date Published: 03 August 2000

Country: United Kingdom

Imprint: Vintage Classics

Audience: General / adult

DIMENSIONS

Spine width: 23.0mm

Width: 129.0mm

Height: 198.0mm

Weight: 278g

Pages: 400

About the Author

Born in Newport News, Virginia, in 1925, William Styron was educated at Duke University. He served in the Marine Corps during the last war, and was recalled to service during the Korean War. After 1952, he lived mainly in Europe, before settling in a rural part of Connecticut. He is the author of The Long March, Lie Down in Darkness, Set This House on Fire and Sophie's Choice. He has also published Darkness Visible, the remarkable story of his descent into depression, the collection This Quiet Dust and Other Writings, and A Tidewater Morning. William Styron died in 2006.

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