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Last Orders

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( 14,889 ratings, 780 reviews)
Book Hero Magic crafted this summary to help describe this book. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! Summary
Last Orders by Graham Swift explores the journey of four men honouring their friend's final request to scatter his ashes at the sea. As they travel, each reflects on their shared past, revealing friendships, regrets, and deeply held secrets. Through interweaving narratives, the book delves into themes of memory, bereavement, and the bonds among friends.
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Format: Paperback / softback
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Book Hero Magic created this recommendation. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! IS THIS YOUR NEXT READ?

You might enjoy this novel if you appreciate intricately woven stories about friendship, memory, and the passage of time. It's a poignant journey following a group of friends as they carry out their late friend's final wishes, delving into themes of loss and unspoken truths. Perfect for those who enjoy character-driven narratives that explore the complexities of relationships and the depth of human emotion.

Book Hero thinking about your next read

As a novelist, Graham Swift delights in the possibilities of the human voice, imagining his way into the minds and hearts of an extraordinary range of characters.

Book Hero Magic formatted this description to make it easier to read. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! Description

WINNER OF THE BOOKER PRIZE 1996

Four men once close to Jack Dodds, a London butcher, meet to carry out his peculiar last wish: to have his ashes scattered into the sea at Margate. For reasons best known to herself, Jack’s widow, Amy, declines to join them.

On the surface, a simple tale of an increasingly bizarre day’s outing, this Booker-prize winning, internationally acclaimed novel is a resonant and classic exploration of the complexity and courage of ordinary lives. Intensely local but overwhelmingly universal, faithful to the fleeting rhythms and accidental eloquence of everyday speech but also to the timeless truths of life and death, it succeeds in being comic and heartstopping, affectionate and wise, and in conferring on its stumbling, disappointed characters an enduring decency, dignity and depth.

‘A surpassing testament to Swift’s vibrant and powerful gifts’ The Times

‘A triumph . . . a story about the most fundamental things of all’ Evening Standard

Book Hero Magic summarised reviews for this book. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! HOW HAS THIS BEEN REVIEWED?

Last Orders by Graham Swift is widely praised for its richly emotional narrative and complex character development. Reviewers highlight its unique structure and poignant exploration of friendship, loss, and the passage of time. The novel's portrayal of its characters' intertwining stories is both moving and thought-provoking, earning it acclaim in the realm of general fiction.

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Book Details

INFORMATION

ISBN: 9781471187292

Publisher: Simon & Schuster Ltd

Format: Paperback / softback

Date Published: 11 July 2019

Country: United Kingdom

Imprint: Scribner UK

Audience: General / adult

DIMENSIONS

Spine width: 28.0mm

Width: 130.0mm

Height: 198.0mm

Weight: 250g

Pages: 400

About the Author

Graham Swift was born in 1949. He is the author of eleven novels, most recently Here We Are; three collections of short stories, including the highly praised England and Other Stories; and Making an Elephant, a book of essays, portraits, poetry and reflections on his life in writing. With Waterland he won the Guardian Fiction Prize and with Last Orders the Booker Prize. Mothering Sunday became a worldwide bestseller and won the Hawthornden Prize for best work of imaginative literature. All three novels were made into films. His books have appeared in over thirty-five languages.  

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