Product Description

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #220560 in Books
• Published on: 2005-10-04
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 276 pages

From Publishers Weekly
In her notable fiction debut (her most recent nonfiction book is Women Together, Women Alone ) Shreve sensitively explores the coming-of-age and later redemption of her hero, events separated by nearly 20 years. A recently divorced New York advertising executive in his mid-30s, Andrew returns to the home of his youth in upstate New York to bury his widowed mother. In the dilapidated house next door live Eden Close and her mother Edith. The novel opens with Andrew dreaming of the night he was awakened by screams from the Closes' house, an incident well remembered: "The man next door was murdered when I was seventeen. His daughter was raped." Blinded by the same gun that killed her father, Eden endures an hermetic existence, zealously guarded by her mother. She and Andrew had been best friends before puberty complicated their relationship, and now Andrew, looking to the past for clues to his future, reconnects with Eden. Readers will have guessed the secret of Eden and her mother long before the story's putative climax, when it is revealed to Andrew and others. Shreve's evocative prose and elegiac voice, and her faithful attention to her likable hero's emotions render him believable and give this romance a weight superior to most in the genre. Film rights to Disney/Hollywood Pictures.
Copyright 1989 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Library Journal
For Andrew and Eden, it's a modern adaptation of paradise lost and then regained. As next-door neighbors, "best buddies," and then awkward adolescents, Eden and Andy find solace in each other's company until a tragic event occurs as Andy prepares to leave their small home town and heads off to college. The awful accident drives them apart, but then inadvertently draws them together again some 15 years later. Their relationship is rekindled when Andy returns home to attend his mother's funeral. Rather than close the chapter, Andy cautiously explores the remains of his past while trying to solve the mystery that envelops the woman he has always loved. Flashbacks add to this sensitive exploration as Shreve's characters struggle to obtain the ever elusive happy ending.
- Heidi Schwartz, "Business Interiors," Red Bank, N.J.
Copyright 1989 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Review
'Shreve writes with power and passion' DAILY EXPRESS; 'Anita Shreve has a knack for wry observation and for capturing the agony of emotion' DAILY TELEGRAPH; 'EDEN CLOSE is a novel of sensibility. Its insights are keen, its language measured and haunting. In it a sense of loss and rapture is everywhere' NEW YORK TIMES BOOK REVIEW; 'A first novel that turns rural gothic horrors into a story of fine, high love ... beautifully rendered scenes ... and a climax that will ... put you on the edge of your chair' KIRKUS REVIEW

Customer Reviews

Eden Close
Eden Close is one of Anita Shreve's best. The story has a slow, meandering quality with an undercurrent of mystery. As is often true with Ms. Shreve's books, the reader suspects that things may go a bit awry, or take an unsuspected turn, as one approaches the end of the story--and Eden Close is no exception. As a result, I find that I often put her books down for a bit when I get to the last ten or so pages, at least for a couple of hours if not for a day, both because I don't want to finish the book (which has been a good read) and because I like to ponder just what will happen before finding out exactly what does. If you haven't read anything by Shreve, this is a great one to start with; if you have, you'll truly enjoy this one!

A Wonderful Book the Second Time Around!
The first book I read by Anita Shreve was Where or When. The year was 1993 and I came across this book while browsing at the library. I remember thinking when I closed this book that this title was the book, which deserved all the praise or at least sales that Bridges of Madison County was receiving at the time. I thought the book Where or When better written in comparison to Bridges and that Eden Close had a more intriguing plot as well as a chilling outcome. After reading Where or When I went back and read Shreve's earlier books, Eden Close, Strange Fits of Passion and then Resistance. I remember thinking that Anita Shreve was one of the most overlooked new writers of that time. Then a woman named Oprah selected Shreve's book The Pilot's Wife for her television book group and overnight, one of my favorite authors became a household name. And her succeeding books, Fortune's Rock, The Weight of Water, The Last Time We Met and her latest title Sea Glass continue to illustrate why Shreve's books are such rich reading experiences.

Now that I have read all of this author's books at least once I gave some thought to rereading some of her books. But it wasn't until one of my online book groups selected Close, Shreve's first novel, that I actually picked up this book and began reading it for the second time. I did wonder what I would think about a book I read close to ten years ago and one that I remembered enjoying so much that I always recommended it to others looking for a good book. I am happy to say that my second reading of the book Eden Close if anything has improved with age. The plot of this book, the characters and descriptive passages glued me to my seat once again. I found the subject matter continues to be as relevant today as it was when it was first published and the lives of the characters still as heartbreaking. And as Shreve does with all of her books, this time she puts you smack into this midwestern town where within two farm homes side by side we watch innocent lives torn apart by an unspeakable tragedy.

If you have enjoyed Anita Shreve with her more recent books, be sure and go back and read her earliest novels like Eden Close, Strange Fits of Passion and Where or When and see why I considered Anita Shreve a favorite author before she was as popular as she is today.

Thought-provoking little book
I really enjoy Anita Shreve's books and this book is no exception. It is a quick read and a thought-provoking little book ~~ one that I couldn't put down after picking it up.

Andrew returns home to ready the house for sale after his mother died, only to embark on a personal journey to rediscover love with his oldest childhood friend, who lives next door ~~ Eden. Haunted by the incidents that had happened to Eden during her teen years ~~ the summer before Andrew left home for college ~~ Andrew begins to investigate what had really happened that summer. And to his surprise, the answers weren't what he expected.

It is a quick read ~~ perfect for a hot summery day of reading. I recommend this book ~~ it's just as good as Shreve's later books and it will haunt you for a while after you put the book down. It's a rare glimpse inside of a man's soul and mind as he explores the possibilities of love again.