{"product_id":"9781590513491","title":"The Origin of Species: A Novel","description":"\u003ctable\u003e\u003ctbody\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd style=\"\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eAuthor\/Contributor(s):\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003ctd style=\"\"\u003eRicci, Nino\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003c\/tr\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd style=\"\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003ePublisher:\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003ctd\u003eOther Press\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003c\/tr\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd style=\"\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eDate:\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003ctd\u003e4\/6\/2010\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003c\/tr\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd style=\"\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eBinding:\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003ctd style=\"\"\u003ePaperback\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003c\/tr\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd style=\"\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eCondition:\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003ctd style=\"\"\u003eNEW\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003c\/tr\u003e\n\u003c\/tbody\u003e\u003c\/table\u003e\u003ci\u003eWinner of the 2008 Governor General’s Award for Fiction\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e \u003c\/i\u003eMontreal during the turbulent  mid-1980s: Chernobyl has set Geiger counters thrumming across the globe, HIV\/AIDS  is cutting a deadly swath through the gay population worldwide, and locally, tempers  are flaring over the recent codification of French as the official language of Quebec.  Hiding out in a seedy apartment near campus, Alex Fratarcangeli (“Don’t worry. .  . . I can’t even pronounce it myself”), an awkward, thirty-something grad student,  is plagued by the sensation that his entire life is a fraud. Scarred by a distant  father and a dangerous relationship with his ex Liz, and consumed by a floundering  dissertation linking Darwin’s theory of evolution with the history of human narrative,  Alex has come to view love and other human emotions as “evolutionary surplus, haphazard  neural responses that nature had latched onto for its own insidious purposes.” When  Alex receives a letter from Ingrid, the beautiful woman he knew years ago in Sweden,  notifying him of the existence of his five-year-old son, he is gripped by a paralytic  terror.  Whenever Alex’s thoughts grow darkest, he recalls Desmond, the British professor  with dubious credentials whom he met years ago in the Galapagos. Treacherous and  despicable, wearing his ignominy like his rumpled jacket, Desmond nonetheless caught  Alex in his thrall and led him to some life-altering truths during their weeks exploring  Darwin’s islands together. It is only now that Alex can begin to comprehend these  unlikely life lessons, and see a glimmer of hope shining through what he had thought  was meaninglessness.","brand":"Other Press","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":44214360080639,"sku":"9781590513491","price":16.95,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0452\/0886\/2873\/files\/9781590513491_s600x595.jpg?v=1775595667","url":"https:\/\/massivebookshop.com\/de\/products\/9781590513491","provider":"MASSIVE BOOKSHOP","version":"1.0","type":"link"}