The Imperfectionists

'Spectacular' New York Times 'Sublime writing' The Times Funny, poignant, occasionally breathtaking' Financial Times The newspaper was founded in Rome in the 1950s, a product of passion and a multi-millionaire's fancy. Eccentric and beloved, it now faces demise in the new digital era. Still, the staff barely notice. The editor-in-chief is pondering sleeping with an old flame. The obsessive reader is intent on finishing every old edition, leaving her trapped in the past. And the publisher is less interested in his struggling newspaper than in his magnificent basset hound, Schopenhauer. The Imperfectionists interweaves the stories of eleven unusual and endearing characters in a novel about endings - the end of life, the end of sexual desire, the end of the era of newspapers - and about what might rise afterwards.

About the Author :
Born in London and raised in Vancouver, Tom Rachman was a foreign correspondent for the Associated Press stationed in Rome, then an editor at the International Herald Tribune in Paris. He is the author of three novels, the international bestseller The Imperfectionists; The Rise and Fall of Great Powers and The Italian Teacher, as well as a short stories collection, Basket of Deplorables. He lives in London.

Review :
Expertly crafted . . . sublime writing . . . so beautifully written, so compassionate in its observation and understanding of human behaviour, that one cannot tear the eyes from the page. The sheer dexterity of the writing brings a haunting beauty to the many tragedies within the narrative Alternately hilarious and heart-wrenching, and it's assembled like a Rubik's cube . . . a cross between Evelyn Waugh's Scoop and Hunter S. Thompson's Fear and Loathing adventure . . . So good I had to read it twice Rachman is an admirable stylist. Each chapter is so finely wrought that it could stand alone as a memorable short story . . . Funny, poignant, occasionally breathtaking novel A precise, playful fiction with a deep but lightly worn intelligence Sketched with lively charm . . . loaded with charm and insight, the novel brings human tenderness to an inky business besieged by budget cuts and online competition Anyone who has ever spent time in newspaperland will recognize The Imperfectionists' high degree of authenticity. So will quite a few people beyond. An addictive read: quirky without being daft, funny without being shallow and the sort of book many a journalist will wish they had written Rachman has a real gift for capturing a life in a few sentences . . . we realise the book has taken us through the fifty-year life of the newspaper, and brought to life a moving cast of characters. By turns, funny and desperately sad, Rachman's always readable novel is a terrific debut Hilarious and poignant debut . . . Rachman's strength lies in the rendering of the characters - all eleven are believable, flawed and lovable . . . Funny and prescient, but still full of hope Light-footed lyricism . . . a series of acutely observed character sketches and a poignant sense of nostalgia Vignettes packed with poignant insights and laugh out loud dialogue, the reader is left amazed and delighted by this new author whose prose is reminiscent of Portman and Vonnegut yet wholly and wonderfully his own. Buy this book!