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Great Circle

The soaring and emotional novel shortlisted for the Women’s Prize for Fiction 2022 and shortlisted for the Booker Prize 2021
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( 75,148 ratings, 9,185 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
Great Circle by Maggie Shipstead follows the intertwined lives of Marian Graves, an adventurous aviator determined to chart her own path by flying around the globe, and Hadley Baxter, a contemporary actress portraying Marian in a film. Spanning different eras and continents, the story delves into themes of independence, ambition, and the relentless pursuit of one's dreams, offering a rich narrative that explores the connections and disconnections between personal aspirations and historical legacy.
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Format: Paperback / softback
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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 enjoy epic tales of adventure and resilience, as it intertwines the lives of a daring early 20th-century female aviator and a modern actress portraying her in a biopic. Its rich narrative weaves themes of ambition, freedom, and the indomitable human spirit across time and continents.

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Great Circle

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

A breathtakingly powerful epic that weaves together the astonishing lives of a 1950s vanished female aviator and the rebel-hearted Hollywood millennial who plays her on screen. A New York Times bestseller for fans of Taylor Jenkins Reid, Ann Patchett, and All the Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr.

The sensational New York Times bestseller

Shortlisted for the Women's Prize for Fiction
Shortlisted for the Booker Prize
Amazon Book of the Year
Time Magazine Book of the Year
Waterstones fiction Book of the Month


'A gripping historical adventure' - Stylist

'So beautiful, so daring, so complete' - Taylor Jenkins Reid

'A masterpiece' - Nigella Lawson

'Extraordinary' - New York Times

'Wonderful' - Good Housekeeping Magazine


A soaring, breathtakingly ambitious novel that weaves together the astonishing lives of a 1950s vanished female aviator and the modern-day Hollywood actress who plays her on screen.

Marian Graves is driven by a need for freedom and danger. From her days as a wild child in prohibition America to the blitz and glitz of wartime London, she is determined to live an independent life. But it is an obsession with flight that consumes her most.

Having become one of the most fearless pilots of her time, she sets out to do what no one has done before—to circumnavigate the globe from pole to pole. But shortly before completing the journey, her plane disappears, lost to history.

Over half a century later, troubled film star Hadley Baxter is offered to play Marian in the comeback role of a lifetime. From the first pages of the script, Hadley is drawn inexorably to the female pilot. It is a role that will lead her to an unexpected discovery, throwing fresh and spellbinding light on the story of the unknowable Marian Graves.


WATERSTONES FICTION BOOK OF THE MONTH JUNE 2022
SHORTLISTED FOR THE WOMEN'S PRIZE FOR FICTION 2022
SHORTLISTED FOR THE BOOKER PRIZE 2021
A ROYAL READING ROOM PICK 2023
SHORTLISTED FOR THE HWA GOLD CROWN 2022
TIME MAGAZINE BOOK OF THE YEAR 2021
NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER MAY 2021
TIMES BESTSELLER JUNE 2022


'Full of adventure, passion and tragedy' - The Times

'Soars from the very first page' - Sunday Express

'Luminous, masterful. Glides seamlessly through the 20th century' - Telegraph, Best Fiction of 2021

'Breathtaking' - Observer

'Truly exceptional storytelling, combining a sweeping arc of history with writing that, at sentence level, is near-flawless.' - The Bookseller

'A tour-de-force' - Daily Express

'Impressive and gripping' - Sunday Times

'Surprising and moving at every turn' - Guardian

'Audacious and Immersive' - Daily Mail

'Accomplished and ambitious' - Financial Times

Readers love Great Circle-
* What a read! Immense story with beautifully created characters
* The story is so well researched and planned; historical fiction standing side by side with history itself
* This is a stunning achievement, my perspective feels fundamentally transformed through reading it
* A wonderful saga, covering a large chunk of the twentieth century

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?

Great Circle by Maggie Shipstead is praised as an impressive and masterful historical adventure that seamlessly spans the 20th century, vividly recounting the lives of two women—a female aviator from the 1930s and a modern-day actress portraying her in a film. The novel is lauded for its rich storytelling, dynamic characters, and exploration of ambition, love, and sacrifice. Critics admire Shipstead's ability to craft a sweeping narrative with vibrant detail and emotional depth, making it a captivating read.

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Book Details

INFORMATION

ISBN: 9781529176643

Publisher: Transworld Publishers Ltd

Format: Paperback / softback

Date Published: 26 May 2022

Country: United Kingdom

Imprint: Penguin (Transworld)

Audience: General / adult

DIMENSIONS

Spine width: 31.0mm

Width: 130.0mm

Height: 197.0mm

Weight: 468g

Pages: 688

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About the Author

MAGGIE SHIPSTEAD is the author of the New York Times bestselling novels SEATING ARRANGEMENTS - winner of the Dylan Thomas Prize and L A Times Book Prize for First Fiction - ASTONISH ME and the Booker-shortlisted GREAT CIRCLE. Her work has appeared in the New York Times, Guardian, Conde Nast Traveller, The Best American Short Stories and elsewhere. She is a graduate of the Iowa Writer's Workshop and a former Wallace Stegner Fellow at Stanford. YOU HAVE A FRIEND IN 10A is her first story collection. Maggie Shipstead grew up in California and lives in Los Angeles, California.

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