Going Home Again

Written by Dennis Bock

Narrated by Graham Rowat

***Shortlisted for 2013 Giller Prize*** After two acclaimed historical novels, one of Canada' s most celebrated young writers now gives us the vibrant, contemporary story of a man studying the suddenly confusing shape his life has taken, and why, and what his responsibilities-- as a husband, a father, a brother, and an uncle-- truly are. Charlie Bellerose leads a seminomadic existence, traveling widely to manage the language academies he has established in different countries. After separating, somewhat amicably, from his wife, he moves from Madrid back to his native Canada to set up a new school, and for the first time he forges a meaningful relationship with his brother, who' s going through a vicious divorce. Charlie' s able to make a fresh start in Toronto but longs for his twelve-year-old daughter, whom he sees only via Skype and the occasional overseas visit. After a chance encounter with a girlfriend from his university days, a woman now happily married and with children of her own, he works through a series of memories-including a particularly painful one they share-as he reflects on questions of family, home, fatherhood, and love. But two tragic events (one long past, the other very much in the present) finally threaten to destroy everything he's ever believed in.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Recorded Books, Inc.
• Release date: Apr 11, 2014
• ISBN: 9781490615080

Dennis Bock

DENNIS BOCK’s book of stories, Olympia, won the CAA Jubilee Award, the Danuta Gleed Literary Award and the Betty Trask Award. His novels include The Communist’s Daughter and The Ash Garden, a #1 bestseller, a winner of the Canada-Japan Literary Award and a finalist for the International IMPAC Dublin Literary Award, a Commonwealth Writers’ Prize, the Kiriyama Prize and the Amazon.ca First Novel Award. His most recent novel, Going Home Again, was a finalist for the Scotiabank Giller Prize. Dennis Bock lives in Toronto.  

Reviews for Going Home Again

[loosha_1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Well, this book sure has a wide level of ratings. I liked it, a story about brothers both dealing with their wives leaving and their children grieving. Plenty of interesting musings here, characters I'd like to give a slap to but i can see where they'recoming from. Except for Charlie's wife. And his brother. And Charlie. OK, I guess they are all kind of nuts.

[romonko · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

This book is a fitting nomination for the pretigious Giller Prize in Canada. I really enjoyed it. It's not a long book, but a lot happens in it. Charlie Bellerose is the main character and this book is his story. It flips from when he was a young college student to present day where he is married with a thirteen year old daughter. Charlie has lead an interesting life. He was born in Canada (Toronto to be exact), and went to university in Montreal. He then travelled the world and ended up settling down in Madrid. Madrid is where he met his wife Isabelle and where they had their daughter Ava. When we meet up with Charlie at the beginning of the book he is going back to Canada to set up a new English language school, and reeling from a breakup with his wife. He and his brother Nate, who lives in Canada, get together in Toronto. Nate was always a gadabout and getting in and out of scrapes, but Charlie thinks he must have grown up bynow since he has two young sons and he also is suffering from a broken marriage. This book is beautifully written. It's a love story in its own way but two tragic events (one from the past and one in the present) link Charlie's past and present together and force him to take a long hard look at himself, and also force him to decide where he's going to go with his life. Brock's prose is so beautifully written and so simply and clearly phrased that I found that I began to care deeply about what Charlie would do as well.