 | |
| Author | Paul Harding |
|---|---|
| Language | English |
Publication date | 2023 |
This Other Eden is a 2023 novel by American writer Paul Harding.
| | |
| Author | Paul Harding |
|---|---|
| Language | English |
Publication date | 2023 |
This Other Eden is a 2023 novel by American writer Paul Harding.
The novel presents a fictionalized version of Maine's Malaga Island, dubbed "Apple Island" in the book. [1] It's based on the historical record of when "Maine forcibly removed all residents of a mixed-race fishing community on a small island off the coast of Phippsburg in 1912." [2]
Harding began the earliest version of the novel by writing a scene featuring Mrs. Hale, a character from his novel Enon. [3] In the scene, Mrs. Hale and members of her family sit in a meadow, and observe an unknown person, inspired by a Charles Ethan Porter painting. [3]
According to literary review aggregator Book Marks, the novel received mostly "Rave" reviews. [4] Danez Smith, in a review published by The New York Times , praised Harding's prose. [5] In a review published by the Financial Times , Catherine Taylor also praised Harding's writing. [6]
Writing for The Los Angeles Times , Mark Athitakis compared the book unfavorably to Harding's previous works. [7] Athitakis also wrote that Harding's writing was "fussed over". [7]
The book was shortlisted for the 2023 Booker Prize [8] and shortlisted for the 2023 National Book Award for Fiction. [9]
Some historians and those with family ties to the island claimed the novel includes harmful myths about the island's residents that historians have tried to correct. [10]
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