{"product_id":"the-birthday-lunchbooks","title":"The Birthday Lunch","description":"\u003cb\u003eFrom the bestselling author of \u003ci\u003eLatitudes of Melt\u003c\/i\u003e and \u003ci\u003eAn Audience of Chairs\u003c\/i\u003e: \u003ci\u003eThe Birthday Lunch\u003c\/i\u003e is the story of one pivotal week in the life of a family facing a tragic loss, rich with dramatic tension and beautifully rendered.\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e  \u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e Free-spirited Lily has always played the peacemaker between her fierce, doting sister, Laverne, and her own loving, garrulous husband, Hal, as they competed for her attention. The competition has only grown worse since the three of them moved into a large house in the town of Sussex, New Brunswick. On Lily’s 58th birthday, a steamy day in late June, Laverne feels she has bested Hal by winning her sister’s company for a gourmet lunch, but it becomes a bitter and short-lived victory when the day’s events take an unexpected and tragic turn.\u003cbr\u003e             In \u003ci\u003eThe Birthday Lunch\u003c\/i\u003e, Joan Clark explores the different ways each member of Lily's family confronts her shocking death: Hal's open sorrow, her daughter Claudia's reappraisal of her own life, her son Matt's determination to assign blame. And unforgettably, Laverne's eccentricity and isolation, her intensifying conflict with Hal, illuminates the brutal territory of accusation and regret. Compassionate and engrossing with a powerful sense of place, \u003ci\u003eThe Birthday Lunch\u003c\/i\u003e is an extraordinary new novel from one of our most gifted storytellers.","brand":"Clark, Joan","offers":[{"title":"Paperback (Adult Fiction)","offer_id":44053287469280,"sku":"","price":13.77,"currency_code":"CAD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0330\/3125\/8248\/files\/BNCImageAPI_1c0bb349-ba03-49c3-b440-937161a30c4a.jpg?v=1686762586","url":"https:\/\/agricola-street-books.myshopify.com\/products\/the-birthday-lunchbooks","provider":"Agricola Street Books","version":"1.0","type":"link"}