Peter behrens born 1954 is a canadianamerican novelist, screenwriter and short story writer. In the character of joe obrien ambitious railroad magnate and industrialist, fiercely loyal family man, brooding troubled soul he gives us one of the most compelling and complex characters to come along in years. Its 1900, and the five obrien siblings are struggling to survive in barren rural quebec. Buy a cheap copy of the obriens book by peter behrens. Also 2 collection sof short stories, night driving.
Peter behrens returns with a sequel to his laurelwinning novel the law of dreams. Aug 02, 2011 peter behrens s family came to canada in the 1840s on a coffin ship. Listed by npr best books of 2016 and finalist, 2016 national jewish book awards. In joe obriengrandson of a potatofamine emigrant, and a backwoods boy, railroad magnate, patriarch, brooding soul peter behrens gives us a fiercely compelling man who exchanges isolation and poverty. Starvation, which can be a powerful motivator for characters, to say nothing of their authors, is absent from this second stab. Presentiments like this come early and often in peter behrens s otherwise impressive new novel, the obriens, which follows four generations of an irish family from the wilds of quebec.
The obriens book king county library system bibliocommons. The new york times called his second novel, the obriens 2011, a major achievement. Mar 07, 2012 peter behrens is a canadian writerbut when we spoke to him, he was in marfa, texas, a big, flat westtexas expanse that is a haven for artists, writers, and obscure indie country bands, and. Behrens will read from and sign the new paperback edition of his novel the obriens vintage, an unforgettable saga of love, loss, and change spanning half a century in the lives of a restless patriarch and his splendid, tragic, ambitious clan. Jul 08, 2011 the obriensby peter behrenshouse of anansi548 pp. Peter behrens s first novel the law of dreams won the governorgenerals award, canadas most prestigious book prize, and has been published in nine languages. In his second novel, the obriens, behrens picks up the story of the family at the beginning of the 20th century. He is the author of two collections of short stories, night driving and travelling light. Mar 16, 2012 behrenss latest novel, the obriens, picks up with joe, grandson of fergus, in late 19thcentury canada. Pb talks about the obriens and the obriens with shelagh rogers cbc radio 1s the next chapter. Presentiments like this come early and often in peter behrenss otherwise impressive new novel, the obriens, which follows four generations of an irish family from the wilds of quebec. Jul 29, 2011 by contrast, the nonstandard disclaimer in peter behrenss new novel, the obriens, is strangely ambiguous and elaborate. Use features like bookmarks, note taking and highlighting while reading the o briens. The obriens is a family story unlike any told before, a tale that pours straight from the heart of a.
His debut novel, the law of dreams, won the 2006 governor generals award for english fiction. In joe obriengrandson of a potatofamine emigrant, and a backwoods boy, railroad magnate, patriarch, brooding soulpeter behrens gives us a fiercely compelling man who exchanges isolation and poverty. Carry me, his third novel, will be published in february 2016. The obriens is an unforgettable saga of love, loss, and change spanning half a century in the lives of a restless patriarch and his splendid, tragic, ambitious clan. His stories and essays have appeared in many publications, including the.
Peter behrens is a phenomenal artist whose imagination and memory honors the lives of millions of the irish victims including his great grandparents who suffered under english domination, injustice, and cruelty for centuries. Peter behrenss family saga the o briens spans the first half of the canadian twentieth century, finding a parallel epic in an unforgettable narrative of marriage. March 17, 2012 peter behrens new novel starts with a teen, ends with a railroad magnate, and covers plenty of ground in between. Free shipping and pickup in store on eligible orders. In joe obrien backwoods boy, railroad magnate, patriarch, brooding soul peter behrens gives us a fiercely compelling character who exchanges isolation and poverty in the canadian wilds for a share in the dazzling possibilities and consuming sorrows of the twentieth century. Peter behrens s first novel, the law of dreams, won the governor generals literary award, canadas most prestigious book prize, and has been published in nine languages. An unforgettable saga of love, loss, and exhilarating change spanning half a century in the lives of a restless family, from the author of the acclaimed novel the. Peter behrens blends fact and fiction in family saga the obriens.
Peter behrens, canadian novelist, screenwriter and short. Peter behrens talks about how his grandfather was the inspiration for his new book, the obriens. Peter behrenss novel tracks four generations of an irish family in north america. Peter behrens first novel the law of dreams won the governorgenerals literary award and is published in nine languages.
Peter behrens talks about how his extended family felt about turning their story into his novel. Cover may not represent actual copy or condition available. Peter behrenss first novel, the law of dreams, won the governor generals award for fiction and has been published in nine languages. Behrens s characters are engaging and the history of the various cities, budding industries, and wars expertly handled. Peter behrens adjunct professor colorado college linkedin. Peter behrens s first novel, the law of dreams, won the governor generals award for fiction and has been published in nine languages.
Peter behrens new novel starts with a teen, ends with a railroad magnate, and covers plenty of ground in between. Apr 18, 2012 peter behrens talks about how his grandfather was the inspiration for his new book, the obriens. Joe obrien is coming of age in a new century in remote pontiac county, quebec, with his two brothers and two sisters. Peter behrenss first novel the law of dreams won the governorgenerals award, canadas most prestigious book prize, and has been published in nine languages. In joe obrienbackwoods boy, railroad magnate, patriarch, brooding soulpeter behrens gives us a fiercely compelling character who exchanges isolation and poverty in the canadian wilds for a share in the dazzling possibilities and consuming sorrows of. It even gets its own page and title authors note at the end of. The obriens author peter behrens on his grandfather youtube. This was a name given to ships filled with starving immigrants from ireland who were fleeing the potato famine, called in. A family saga spanning half a century in the lives of a restless and ambitious clan starts with the story of backwoods youthturnedrailroad magnate joe obrien, who after leaving the canadian wilds and sharing a passionate courtship with iseult, becomes the patriarch of a family that sees the first airplanes, two world wars and the election of jfk. Peter behrens discusses his novel, the obriens, a family story that spans half a century on the leonard lopate show, nyc. Peter behrens the obriens tattered cover book store. Peter behrens s family came to canada in the 1840s on a coffin ship. The book s opening section, ashling from the irish word for a vision. The obriens follows the family from the law of dreams two generations later.
In the video below, behrens discusses the obriens and reads, from its pages, a letter from a world war ii soldier to his wife back home in montreal. Peter behrens interviewed by jacki lyden on nprs weekend edition in 2012. Peter behrenss first novel, the law of dreams, won the governor generals award, canadas most prestigious book prize, and has been published in nine languages. Also 2 collection sof short stories, night driving macmillan and traveling light astoria. Apr 18, 2012 jeff glor talks to peter behrens about his new book, the obriens, and how his grandfather was the inspiration for the book a tough guy who made a fortune in the railroad business. Buy this book afamily saga spans the 20th century, from pontiac.
The obriens is a family story unlike any you have read, a tale that pours straight from the heart of a splendid, tragic, ambitious clan. Peter behrens first novel the law of dreams won the governorgenerals literary award, canadas oldest and most prestigious book prize and is published in nine languages. Peter behrens s first novel, the law of dreams, won the governor generals award, canadas most prestigious book prize, and has been published in nine languages. An unforgettable saga of love, loss, and exhilarating change spanning half a century in the lives of a restless family, from the author of the acclaimed novel the law of dreams. Peter behrens eagerly awaited second novel is the obriens.
His debut novel, the law of dreams, won the 2006 governor generals award for. Novel the obriens 2012 called a major accomplishment by nytbr. Peter behrens discusses his novel, the obriens radio. Behrens held a prestigious stegner fellowship at stanford university. Like the characters in his new novel, the obriens, peter behrens has spent much of his life effortlessly crossing the canadau. Mar 12, 20 novelist peter behrens fascination with his irishcanadian family served as the inspiration for his two latest novels, the law of dreams and, most recently, the obriens.
In joe obrienbackwoods boy, railroad magnate, brooding soul peter behrens gives us a fiercely compelling man who exchanges isolation and poverty in the canadian wilds for a share in the dazzling. Peter behrenss first novel, the law of dreams, won the governor generals literary award, canadas most prestigious book prize, and has been published in nine languages. Mar 25, 2012 presentiments like this come early and often in peter behrenss otherwise impressive new novel, the obriens, which follows four generations of an irish family from the wilds of quebec. Peter behrens is the author of the obriens and the law of dreams which received canadas governor generals literary award for fiction and was published around the world to wide acclaim and night driving, a collection of short stories.
Apr 10, 2012 peter behrens s t he obriens peter behrens is the author of the obriens and the law of dreams which received canadas governor generals literary award for fiction and was published around the world to wide acclaim and night driving, a collection of short stories. The law of dreams is a brilliantly written novel about one of the most underrecognized events in the lives over 80,000,000 people scattered around the globe. Jul 22, 2011 like the characters in his new novel, the obriens, peter behrens has spent much of his life effortlessly crossing the canadau. Books go search best sellers gift ideas new releases. Download it once and read it on your kindle device, pc, phones or tablets. In joe obrienbackwoods boy, railroad magnate, brooding soul peter behrens gives us a fiercely compelling man who exchanges isolation and poverty in the canadian wilds for a share in the dazzling possibilities and.
Peter behrens is a canadian novelist, screenwriter and short story writer. The obriens is a family story unlike any told before, a tale that pours straight from the heart of a splendid, tragic, ambitious clan. His debut novel, the law of dreams, won the 2006 governor generals award for english fiction, and was shortlisted for the rogers writers trust fiction prize, the commonwealth writers prize, the cba libris award for fiction book of the year, and the amazon. I was very much looking forward to reading this new peter behrens novel, the obriens, and it did turn out to be one of those family saga books that i enjoy, tracing the life of joe obrien, his brothers grattan and tom, and joes family over the almost 70 years. Behrenss latest novel, the obriens, picks up with joe, grandson of fergus, in late 19thcentury canada. His stories and essays have appeared in many publications, including the atlantic and tin house. Jan 01, 2008 i was very much looking forward to reading this new peter behrens novel, the obriens, and it did turn out to be one of those family saga books that i enjoy, tracing the life of joe obrien, his brothers grattan and tom, and joes family over the almost 70 years. His collection of short stories, travelling light, was reissued in 20.
Feb 23, 2016 peter behrenss first novel, the law of dreams, won the governor generals literary award, canadas most prestigious book prize, and has been published in nine languages. In joe obrienbackwoods boy, railroad magnate, brooding soulpeter behrens gives us a fiercely compelling man who exchanges isolation and poverty in the canadian wilds for a share in the dazzling possibilities and. The obriens by peter behrens meet your next favorite book. Spanning 60 years, this chronicle of an irishcanadian family is the second novel from the canadian behrens the law of dreams, 2006. Buy the paperback book the obriens by peter behrens at indigo. Jul, 2017 peter behrenss new novel immerses readers in a river of narrative that seems less like fiction than lived experience. He is also the author of the more about peter behrens. Peter behrens is the author of the law of dreams which received canadas governor generals literary award for fiction and was published around the world to wide acclaim and night driving, a collection of short stories. Everyday low prices and free delivery on eligible orders. Behrens s latest novel, the obriens, picks up with joe, grandson of fergus, in late 19thcentury canada. Third novel carry me another meditation on history and destiny. Born and raised in montreal, where he attended lower. Library journal peter behrens s family saga the o briens pantheon spans the first half of the canadian twentieth century, finding a parallel epic in an unforgettable narrative of marriage.
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