Ben Markovits’ The Rest of Our Lives is the latest pick for Barnes & Noble’s book club.
Markovits’ novel, published in the U.S. on Tuesday by Summit, tells the story of Tom Layward, a law professor with health issues who resolves to leave his unfaithful wife once their youngest child leaves home. He drives his daughter to college, then embarks on a road trip to reconnect with people from his past. In a starred review, a critic for Kirkus wrote, “This controlled, quietly moving portrait of a life in decline coasts to a halt in an unexpected place.”
The novel, Markovits’ 12th, was shortlisted for the Booker Prize. The judges of the award said, “It’s matter of fact, effortlessly warm, and it uses the smallest parts of human behavior to uphold bigger themes, like mortality, sickness, and love.”
In an interview on the Booker Prize website, Markovits said, “A few years ago, I had an idea for the opening line, then sat down and wrote the first page (more or less), and put it aside. Later, I came back to it. My kids were getting older and I wanted to write something about a certain period of family life coming to an end.”
The Barnes & Noble book club was launched in 2018. Previous selections include Meg Wolitzer’s The Female Persuasion, Liz Moore’s The God of the Woods, and Lily King’s Heart the Lover.
Michael Schaub is a contributing writer.
