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Americana

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( 6,382 ratings, 559 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
In Americana by Don DeLillo, the novel follows David Bell, a successful television executive who becomes disillusioned with his life. He embarks on a cross-country journey, seeking deeper meaning and connection within the American landscape. The book explores themes of identity, culture, and the pervasive influence of media in modern society.
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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?

You might enjoy this novel if you're intrigued by a journey through the American cultural landscape, explored through the eyes of a disillusioned young television executive. This captivating narrative delves into themes of identity, media influence, and the search for meaning, offering a richly textured and thought-provoking read.

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Prosperous, good-looking and empty inside, 28-year-old advertising executive David Bell appears on the surface to have everything. But he is a man on the brink of losing his sanity. Trapped in a Manhattan office with soulless sycophants as his only company, he makes an abrupt decision to leave New York for America's mid-west.

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

He's a writer who, once you read him, makes you want to read everything he's done - Martin Amis, Sunday Times

Prosperous, good-looking, and empty inside, 28-year-old advertising executive David Bell appears on the surface to have everything. But he is a man on the brink of losing his sanity. Trapped in a Manhattan office with soulless sycophants as his only company, he makes an abrupt decision to leave New York for America's mid-west.

His plan is to film the small-town lives of ordinary people and make contact with the true heart of his homeland. But as Bell puts his films together in his hotel room, he grows increasingly convinced that there is no heart to find. Modern America has become a land that has reached the end of its reel...

Series: Penguin Modern Classics

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Book Details

INFORMATION

ISBN: 9780141188232

Publisher: Penguin Books Ltd

Format: Paperback / softback

Date Published: 02 March 2006

Country: United Kingdom

Imprint: Penguin Classics

Audience: General / adult

DIMENSIONS

Spine width: 21.0mm

Width: 130.0mm

Height: 197.0mm

Weight: 289g

Pages: 384

About the Author

The author of thirteen novels, five plays, and numerous short stories, Don DeLillo was born in 1936. Americana (1971), his first novel, announced the arrival of a major literary talent, and the novels that followed confirmed his reputation as one of the most distinctive and compelling voices in late-twentieth-century American fiction. DeLillo's comic gifts come to the fore in White Noise (1985), which won the National Book Award, and Underworld (1997), with its vivid portraits of actor Jackie Gleason and standup comedian Lenny Bruce.

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