Pride (40 page)

—Michiko Kakutani,
The New York Times

“
Pride
works its magic by allowing the darkest and most threatening forces to invade a luminous and enchanted landscape. William Wharton knows precisely how to cast such spells and his magic words are extracted directly from the American grain.”

—Chicago Sun-Times

“Wharton remains the contemporary novelist perhaps closest to what could be called Frank Capra-style American story-telling: class-conscious, do-an-honest-job, optimistic, loving.
Pride
, like all his other books, is imbued with these merits.”

—Kirkus Reviews

“Superbly plotted … a truly memorable novel.”

—The Pittsburgh Press

BIRDY

(Winner of the American Book Award for First Fiction in 1978)

“A writer's triumph and a reader's delight.”

—Toni Morrison

“It soars! … Part psychological thriller, part mystery … a portrait of a friendship as firm as it is unlikely, and an utterly plausible account of an unbelievable obsession.”

—Time

“One of the strangest and most memorable stories to come out of America in many years. William Wharton is quite exceptionally gifted.”

—John Fowles

DAD

(A National Book Award nominee)

“This is a great American novel. Wharton's eye is sharp as an eagle's; his pitch, perfect; his understanding of the emotions deeply moving. He reaches us, crucially, naturally, where we live.”

—Rebecca Sinkler,
Philadelphia Inquirer

“Splendid … extraordinary … I don't know of another novel that treats the relations among several generations in a family during times of crisis with such absolute and convincing authenticity, with such genuine feeling unsullied by the slightest hint of sentimentality.”

—Allen Lacy,
San Francisco Chronicle

“A luminous book … with each little turn, we see a new facet of forbearance and ineffable love.”

—Chicago Sun-Times

EVER AFTER: A Father's True Story
(Memoir)

“Wharton writes with the skills of a born storyteller …
Ever After
reads like a grippingly dramatic novel, and its blend of sorrow and a healing anger has a bracingly cathartic effect.”

—Publishers Weekly
(starred review)

“A piercing cry from the heart, a resounding call for reform—and that rare thing: a unique book.”

—Kirkus Reviews
(starred review)

“A powerful story of devastating loss and spiritual healing … highly recommended.”

—Library Journal

A MIDNIGHT CLEAR

“There are surprisingly few ‘classic' novels of World War II …
A Midnight Clear
joins the best. Read it.”

—Eliot Fremont-Smith,
The Village Voice

“It is a fine book, sad and witty, even profound … Wharton's books could not be about sadder, crazier people and circumstances, and out of the insanity, out of the pain, he lifts … spirits, teaching … tenderness.”

—San Francisco Chronicle

SCUMBLER

“A marvelously vital novel about the power of the imagination to create and recreate life.”

—Valerie Miner,
Los Angeles Times

“Scumbler is about the pleasure of creation and the pangs of ordinary existence. Its prose is as exuberant as its subject matter.”

—Doris Grumbach,
Chicago Tribune

By William Wharton

BIRDY

DAD*

A MIDNIGHT CLEAR*

SCUMBLER*

PRIDE*

TIDINGS

FRANKY FURBO

LAST LOVERS

EVER AFTER*

HOUSEBOAT ON THE SEINE*

* Published by Newmarket Press

Copyright © 1985 by William Wharton.

Previously published in hardcover by Alfred A. Knopf, Inc.

This book is published in the United States of America and Canada.

All rights reserved under International and Pan-American Copyright Conventions. By payment of the required fees, you have been granted the nonexclusive, nontransferable right to access and read the text of this e-book on-screen. No part of this text may be reproduced, transmitted, downloaded, decompiled, reverse-engineered, or stored in or introduced into any information storage and retrieval system, in any form or by any means, whether electronic or mechanical, now known or hereinafter invented, without the express written permission of HarperCollins e-books.

First Newmarket Edition

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Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Wharton, William.

Pride / William Wharton.

p. cm.

ISBN 1-55704 -259-4

EPub Edition © JANUARY 2013 ISBN: 9780062278364

Version 03292013

1. Depression—New Jersey—Fiction. 2. Family—New Jersey—Fiction.

3. Boys—New Jersey—Fiction. I. Title.

[PS3573.H32P7 1996]

813'.54—dc20

95-25698

CIP

Manufactured in the United States of America.