In the Country of Last Things

Written by Paul Auster

Narrated by Vanessa Redgrave

A dystopian novel about one woman' s efforts to preserve her humanity despite great loss.

From a life of ease and comfort, Anna Blume embarks on a search for her missing brother. Soon she finds herself trapped in a city obsessed with last things— with the means and manner of death. In this culture of doom, the masses are homeless, theft has ceased to be a crime, production has ceased, and the only growth industries are dying and disassembly. As survival becomes her sole motivation, Anna takes up the occupation of scavenger, searching for objects from the past which she sells for food and shelter. In this landscape of devastation, she seeks to preserve her humanity and even some hope for the future.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Phoenix Books, Inc.
• Release date: Apr 1, 1996
• ISBN: 9781614676232

Paul Auster

Paul Auster was the bestselling author of 4 3 2 1, Bloodbath Nation, Baumgartner, The Book of Illusions, and The New York Trilogy, among many other works. In 2006 he was awarded the Prince of Asturias Prize for Literature. Among his other honors are the Prix Médicis Étranger for Leviathan, the Independent Spirit Award for the screenplay of Smoke, and the Premio Napoli for Sunset Park. In 2012, he was the first recipient of the NYC Literary Honors in the category of fiction. He was also a finalist for the International IMPAC Dublin Literary Award (The Book of Illusions), the PEN/Faulkner Award (The Music of Chance), the Edgar Award (City of Glass), and the Man Booker Prize (4 3 2 1). Auster was a member of the American Academy of Arts and Letters and a Commandeur de l’Ordre des Arts et des Lettres. His work has been translated into more than forty languages. He died at age seventy-seven in 2024.