Lonely Crowds
Regular price
$17.01 USD
Regular price
$28.36 USD
Sale price
$17.01 USD
Unit price
per
You save $11.35 USD (40%)
In stock — Ships within 1–2 business days
Format
Print Book
Currently viewing
Paperback
$17.01 USD
$28.36 USD
Secure CheckoutYour data is protected
Fast U.S. ShippingShips within 1–2 business days
Authentic Titles100% Genuine Books
Book Overview Winner of the 38th Annual Publishing Triangle Awards' Edmund White Award for Debut Fiction National Book Foundation's "5 Under 35" Honor...
Winner of the 38th Annual Publishing Triangle Awards' Edmund White Award for Debut Fiction
National Book Foundation's "5 Under 35" Honoree
Finalist for the VCU Cabell First Novelist Award
Finalist for the Barnes & Noble Discover Prize
Finalist for the NYPL Young Lions Fiction Award
National Book Foundation's "5 Under 35" Honoree
Finalist for the VCU Cabell First Novelist Award
Finalist for the Barnes & Noble Discover Prize
Finalist for the NYPL Young Lions Fiction Award
Luster meets The Idiot in this riveting debut novel about a volatile friendship between two outsiders who escape their bleak childhoods and enter the glamorous early '90s art world in New York City, where only one of them can make it.
Ruth, an only child of recent immigrants to New England, lives in an emotionally cold home and attends the local Catholic girl's school on a scholarship. Maria, a beautiful orphan whose Panamanian mother dies by suicide and is taken care of by an ill, unloving aunt, is one of the only other students attending the school on a scholarship. Ruth is drawn forcefully into Maria's orbit, and they fall into an easy, yet intense, friendship. Her devotion to her charming and bright new friend opens up her previously sheltered world.
While Maria, charismatic and aware of her ability to influence others, eases into her full self, embracing her sexuality and her desire to be an artist, Ruth is mostly content to follow her around: to college and then into the early-nineties art world of New York City. There, ambition and competition threaten to rupture their friendship, while strong and unspoken forces pull them together over the years. Whereas Maria finds early success in New York City as an artist, Ruth stumbles along the fringes of the art world, pulled toward a quieter life of work and marriage. As their lives converge and diverge, they meet in one final and fateful confrontation.
Ruth and Maria's decades-long friendship interrogates the nature of intimacy, desire, class and time. What does it mean to be an artist and to be true to oneself? What does it mean to give up on an obsession? Marking the arrival of a sensational new literary talent, Lonely Crowds challenges us to reckon honestly with our own ambitions and the lives we hope to lead.
TIME's 100 Must Read Books of 2025 Vulture's Best Books of 2025 New York Magazine's Best Books of the Year
Book Details Format: Paperback | Publisher: BACK BAY BOOKS | ISBN: 0316581348
FormatPaperback
ISBN0316581348
EAN9780316581349
PublisherBACK BAY BOOKS
Publication Date2026-07-07
AccessoriesNo Accessory
ConditionNew
Product TypeQUALITY PAPERBACK BOOKS
Weight0.55 Pounds
Length8.1 Inches
Width5.5 Inches
Height0.8 Inches
Shipping & Returns Fast, reliable shipping and easy returns on eligible items.
Most orders ship within 1–2 business days with fast, reliable U.S. delivery.
Eligible items can be returned within 30 days in line with our store return policy.
Why shop with AlbakiReads
Fresh Inventory from Major Publishers
Sourced through trusted book distributors, with fresh titles added regularly.
Secure Checkout
Your payment information is encrypted and protected every step of the way.
Fast U.S. Shipping
Most orders ship within 1–2 business days.
Books for Every Kind of Reader
From page-turners to timeless classics—find your next favorite read.
