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Paris Trout — Pete Dexter
Pete Dexter's National Book Awardâ€"winning tour de force tells the mesmerizing story of a shocking crime that shatters lives and exposes the hypocrisies of a small Southern town.
The time and place: Cotton Point, Georgia, just after World War II. The event: the murder of a fourteen-year-old black girl by a respected white citizen named Paris Trout, who feels he's done absolutely nothing wrong. As a trial looms, the crime eats away at the social fabric of Cotton Point, through its facade of manners and civility. Trout's indifference haunts his defense lawyer; his festering paranoia warps his timid, quiet wife; and Trout himself moves closer to madness as he becomes obsessed with his cause -- and his vendettas.
Praise for Paris Trout
“A masterpiece, complex and breathtaking . . . [Pete] Dexter portrays his characters with marvelous sharpness.†-- Los Angeles Times
“A psychological spellbinder that will take your breath away and probably interfere with your sleep.†-- The Washington Post Book World
“Dexter's brilliant understanding of the Deep South has allowed him to capture much of its essence -- its bitter class distinctions, its violence, its strangeness -- with a fidelity of detail and an ear for speech that I have rarely encountered since Flannery O'Connor.†-- William Styron
“Dexter's powerfully emotional novel doesn't have any brakes. Hang on, because you won't be able to stop until the finish.†-- Chicago Tribune
The time and place: Cotton Point, Georgia, just after World War II. The event: the murder of a fourteen-year-old black girl by a respected white citizen named Paris Trout, who feels he's done absolutely nothing wrong. As a trial looms, the crime eats away at the social fabric of Cotton Point, through its facade of manners and civility. Trout's indifference haunts his defense lawyer; his festering paranoia warps his timid, quiet wife; and Trout himself moves closer to madness as he becomes obsessed with his cause -- and his vendettas.
Praise for Paris Trout
“A masterpiece, complex and breathtaking . . . [Pete] Dexter portrays his characters with marvelous sharpness.†-- Los Angeles Times
“A psychological spellbinder that will take your breath away and probably interfere with your sleep.†-- The Washington Post Book World
“Dexter's brilliant understanding of the Deep South has allowed him to capture much of its essence -- its bitter class distinctions, its violence, its strangeness -- with a fidelity of detail and an ear for speech that I have rarely encountered since Flannery O'Connor.†-- William Styron
“Dexter's powerfully emotional novel doesn't have any brakes. Hang on, because you won't be able to stop until the finish.†-- Chicago Tribune
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