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Title details for Last Night at the Lobster by Stewart O'Nan - Available

Last Night at the Lobster

by Stewart O'Nan
Jonathan Davis
Audiobook
1 of 1 copy available
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1 of 1 copy available

A frank and funny yet emotionally resonant tale set within a vivid work day world, soon to be the basis of a major motion picture

Perched in the far corner of a run-down New England mall, the Red Lobster restaurant hasn't been making its numbers, and headquarters has pulled the plug. But manager Manny DeLeon still needs to navigate a tricky last shift—just four days before Christmas and in the midst of a fierce blizzard—with a nearly mutinous staff and the final onslaught of hungry retirees, lunatics, and holiday office parties. All the while, he is wondering how to handle the waitress he's still in love with, his pregnant girlfriend, and where to find the present that will make everything better.

Stewart O'Nan has been called "the bard of the working class," and Last Night at the Lobster is a poignant yet redemptive look at what a man does when he discovers that his best might not be good enough.

  • Creators

  • Publisher

  • Release date

    November 5, 2007

  • Formats

    • OverDrive Listen audiobook

      • ISBN: 9780792751403
      • File size: 110621 KB
      • Duration: 03:50:27

  • Languages

    • English

  • Reviews

    • AudioFile Magazine
      Restaurant manager Manny is good at his job but careless in his personal life. Then his Red Lobster has to close, and he must see it through its last day. A major snowstorm kills business, employees and liquor disappear, an unruly child vomits, and he must find a present for his pregnant girlfriend while stifling his feelings for one of his waitresses. Despite his flaws, Manny is a sympathetic character, and Jonathan Davis reads with appropriate sensitivity. Banter between employees, friendly or hostile, is delivered realistically as are encounters with picky diners and a Polish shop girl. In sum, Davis's narration captures O'Nan's almost poetic rendering of a few hours in a tawdry shopping center. This is a brief slice of life beautifully portrayed. J.B.G. (c) AudioFile 2008, Portland, Maine
    • Publisher's Weekly

      July 23, 2007
      Set on the last day of business of a Connecticut Red Lobster, this touching novel by the author of Snow Angels
      and A Prayer for the Dying
      tells the story of Manny DeLeon, a conscientious, committed restaurant manager any national chain would want to keep. Instead, corporate has notified Manny that his—and Manny does think of the restaurant as his
      —New Britain, Conn., location is not meeting expectations and will close December 20. On top of that, he’ll be assigned to a nearby Olive Garden and downgraded to assistant manager. It’s a loss he tries to rationalize much as he does the loss of Jacquie, a waitress and the former not-so-secret lover he suspects means more to him than his girlfriend Deena, who is pregnant with his child. On this last night, Manny is committed to a dream of perfection, but no one and nothing seems to share his vision: a blizzard batters the area, customers are sparse, employees don’t show up and Manny has a tough time finding a Christmas gift for Deena. Lunch gives way to dinner with hardly anyone stopping to eat, but Manny refuses to close early or give up hope. Small but not slight, the novel is a concise, poignant portrait of a man on the verge of losing himself.

Formats

  • OverDrive Listen audiobook

subjects

Languages

  • English

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