Evison, Jonathan

Jonathan Evison is a New York Times bestselling author of six previous novels, including All About Lulu, West of Here, The Revised Fundamentals of Caregiving, This Is Your Life, Harriet Chance!, Lawn Boy, and Legends of the North Cascades. As a teen, Evison was the founding member of the punk band March of Crimes, which included future members of Soundgarden and Pearl Jam. Small World: A Novel (Dutton) is set against the California gold rush, the development of the transcontinental railroad, and a speeding train of modern-day strangers forced together by fate. It is a grand entertainment that asks big questions. In exploring the passengers’ lives and those of their ancestors, Small World chronicles 170 years of American nation-building from numerous points of view. The characters connect in intriguing and meaningful ways, winning, breaking, and winning our hearts again. The result is a historical epic with a Dickensian flair that asks whether our nation has made good on its promises, and whether it is truly possible to meet and survive the choices posed – and forced – by the age. It hits home as it probes at our country’s injustices, big and small, straight through to its deeply satisfying final words.