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Omensetter's Luck

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( 2,530 ratings, 332 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
Omensetter's Luck by William H. Gass dives into the life of Brackett Omensetter, a man whose seemingly charmed existence disrupts the balance in a small Ohio town. Set in the late 19th century, the narrative explores the clash between Omensetter's natural charisma and the communityโ€™s varying responses, highlighting themes of jealousy, superstition, and the complexity of human nature. The book artfully examines the tensions and actions that unfold amidst the perceptions of luck and morality.
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Format: Paperback / softback
$3800
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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 book may appeal to you if you're intrigued by psychological depth and rich, lyrical prose. It offers a haunting exploration of human nature and morality, weaving a complex narrative where the boundaries between good and evil blur. Perfect for those who appreciate a philosophical twist in their crime and thriller stories.

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Brackett Omensetter arrives, with his wife, family and belongings in the rural American town of Gilean. It swiftly becomes apparent that he is someone out of the ordinary, as he sets off a ground swell of violent emotions in the once tranquil commmunity. Who is he? What does he represent?

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

"The most important work of fiction by an American in this literary generation." - The New Republic

Now celebrating the 50th anniversary of its publication, Omensetter's Luck is the masterful first novel by the author of The Tunnel, Middle C, On Being Blue, and Eyes: Novellas and Stories.

Greeted as a masterpiece when it was first published in 1966, Omensetter's Luck is the quirky, impressionistic, and breathtakingly original story of an ordinary community galvanised by the presence of an extraordinary man. Set in a small Ohio town in the 1890s, it chronicles - through the voices of various participants and observers - the confrontation between Brackett Omensetter, a man of preternatural goodness, and the Reverend Jethro Furber, a preacher crazed with a propensity for violent thoughts. Omensetter's Luck meticulously brings to life a specific time and place as it illuminates timeless questions about life, love, good, and evil. This edition includes an afterword written by William Gass in 1997.

For more than seventy years, Penguin has been the leading publisher of classic literature in the English-speaking world. With more than 1,700 titles, Penguin Classics represents a global bookshelf of the best works throughout history and across genres and disciplines. Readers trust the series to provide authoritative texts enhanced by introductions and notes by distinguished scholars and contemporary authors, as well as up-to-date translations by award-winning translators.

Series: Classic, 20th-Century, Penguin

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  • Omensetter's Luck
    "The most important work of fiction by an American in this literary generation." - The New Republic Now celebrating the 50th anniversary of its publication, Omensetter's Luck is the masterful first novel by the author of The Tunnel, Middle C, On Being Blue, and Eyes: Novellas and Stories. Greeted as a masterpiece when it was first published in 1966, Omensetter's...
    Paperback
    $3800
    In Stock
    Ships Monday
  • Vineland
    "Quite simply, one of those books that will make this world - our world, our daily chemical-preservative, plastic-wrapped bread - a little more tolerable, a little more human... [Pynchon's] voice - absolutely unmistakeable and absolutely inimitable... is the American voice of the late twentieth century." โ€”Frank McConnell, Los Angeles Times Book Review "Later than usual one summer morning in 1984..."...
    Paperback
    $5600
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Book Hero Magic summarised reviews for this book. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! HOW HAS THIS BEEN REVIEWED?

Omensetter's Luck by William H. Gass is praised for its commitment and extraordinary writing. It is described as both a religious and a sad book, with a strikingly beautiful style akin to light through ice. The novel is noted for its complexity and energetic prose, offering a blend of secretive and comic elements.

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Book Details

INFORMATION

ISBN: 9780141180106

Publisher: Penguin Books Ltd

Format: Paperback / softback

Date Published: 01 April 1997

Country: United Kingdom

Imprint: Penguin Books Ltd

Audience: General / adult

DIMENSIONS

Spine width: 18.0mm

Width: 129.0mm

Height: 195.0mm

Weight: 249g

Pages: 336

About the Author

William H. Gass (1924-2017)-essayist, novelist, literary critic-was born in Fargo, North Dakota. He was the author of six works of fiction and nine books of essays, includingLife Sentences, A Temple of Texts, and Tests of Time. Gass was a former professor of philosophy at Washington University. He lived with his wife, the architect Mary Gass, in St. Louis.

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