“Y. That perfect letter. The wishbone, fork in the road, empty wineglass. The question we ask over and over. Why? . . . My life begins at the Y.” So opens Marjorie CelonaвЂTMs highly acclaimed and exquisitely rendered debut about a wise-beyond-her-years foster child abandoned as a newborn on the doorstep of the local YMCA. Swaddled in a dirty gray sweatshirt with nothing but a Swiss Army knife tucked between her feet, little Shannon is discovered by a man who catches only a glimpse of her troubled mother as she disappears from view. That morning, all three lives are forever changed.
Bounced between foster homes, Shannon endures abuse and neglect until she finally finds stability with Miranda, a kind but no-nonsense single mother with a free-spirited daughter of her own. Yet Shannon defines life on her own terms, refusing to settle down, and never stops longing to uncover her roots—especially the stubborn question of why her mother would abandon her on the day she was born.
Brilliantly and hauntingly interwoven with ShannonвЂTMs story is the tale of her mother, Yula, a girl herself who is facing a desperate fate in the hours and days leading up to ShannonвЂTMs birth. As past and present converge, Y tells an unforgettable story of identity, inheritance, and, ultimately, forgiveness. CelonaвЂTMs ravishingly beautiful novel offers a deeply affecting look at the choices we make and what it means to be a family, and it marks the debut of a magnificent new voice in contemporary fiction.
Review "[A] heartfelt first novel . . . . Ms. Celona adroitly confounds many of our expectations . . . . It's refreshing to read a novel in which questions are not so much answered as extended, and Shannon is an appealing narrator... Celona is compassionate toward even her most wayward characters, figuring wisely that the consequences of their actions will be punishment enough." ( The New York Times )
"[A] stunning debut novel . . . Celona creates a beautifully tangled web that is equal parts mystery (seriously, this one's a page-turner), poetry and deep rumination on the meaning of family." ( PureWow Books )
“I love ambition in a novel. I love humour, audacity, perseverance, craft. And I am deeply grateful when it gets exquisitely blended in a brand-new voice. Marjorie CelonaвЂTMs debut weaves the twin stories of a foster childвЂTMs search for home and the raw account of her motherвЂTMs decision to abandon her newborn. Y is an evocative look into what makes a family, and what makes a home, and how they are undeniably helixed together.” (Colum McCann, National Book Award-winning author of Let the Great World Spin )
“Compelling…This is at once a moving coming-of-age story full of fresh starts, a haunting family story full of heavy disappointments, and an extraordinarily quiet story full of hope.” ( Booklist )
“ Y is everything IвЂTMm hoping for when I open a book—suspenseful, compelling, psychologically deft, and beautifully written, with characters so alive they seem to be in the room. Marjorie Celona is a brilliant writer at the start of a brilliant career.” (Leah Stewart, author of The Myth of You and Me and The History of Us )
“A wee baby girl is left behind and even before she opens her eyes, she begins to describe her extraordinary world. Y is filled with heartbreaking loss and flawed heroes yet CelonaвЂTMs writing is filled with grace and compassion.” (Heather OвЂTMNeill, author of Lullabies for Little Criminals )
“Marjorie CelonaвЂTMs Y is the best novel IвЂTMve read this year . . . [A]n unforgettable story about the nature of time itself, the way our past is always alive in the present, shaping us into who we are. With more honesty, compassion, and warmth than is sometimes fashionable in contemporary fiction, this novel will stay with you long after the last page is turned.” (Anthony Varallo, author of Out Loud )
“Marjorie CelonaвЂTMs Y is moving and utterly beautiful. Dark and bright, fresh and original, this novel grabs you and doesnвЂTMt let go. What an extraordinary new voice!” (Amanda Boyden, author of Pretty Little Dirty )
“I was enraptured by ShannonвЂTMs fierce searching heart . . . With a childвЂTMs defiance, hurt and brittle vulnerability, she led me through a world littered with the abandoned, lost, and broken and brought back forgiveness.” (Shandi Mitchell, author of Under this Unbroken Sky )
“Marjorie CelonaвЂTMs Y isnвЂTMt merely an extraordinary debut; it would be cause for celebration if it were the authorвЂTMs second or fifth or twentieth novel. ThereвЂTMs so much to relish: the nimbly interbraided stories of a mother and daughter . . . ; the lovely, lucid, haunting prose; the subtle, precise command of tone. But above all I marvel at CelonaвЂTMs clear-eyed and heartbreakingly complex depiction of . . . the fierce, flawed, lovable people at this terrific novelвЂTMs heart. These are indelible characters, and Y is a triumph.” (Michael Griffith, author of Trophy )
About the Author Marjorie Celona received her MFA from the Iowa WritersвЂTM Workshop, where she was an Iowa Arts Fellow and recipient of the John C. Schupes fellowship. Her stories have appeared in Best American Nonrequired Reading, Glimmer Train , and Harvard Review . Born and raised on Vancouver Island, she lives in Cincinnati.

lgrsfic/R:/!fiction/0day/01-26-2013/01-26-2013/Marjorie Celona - Y (epub).epub

lgli/Marjorie Celona - Y (epub)

zlib/no-category/Celona Marjorie/Y_4348273.epub

Marjorie Celona

Simon & Schuster, Incorporated

1st Free Press hardcover ed., New York, New York State, 2013

1st Free Press hardcover ed, New York, 2013, c2012

Place of publication not identified, 2014

United States, United States of America

5, 2013

lg_fict_id_823275

Originally published: Canada : Hamish Hamilton Canada, 2012.

"Y. That perfect letter. The wishbone, fork in the road, empty wineglass. The question we ask over and over. Why? . . . My life begins at the Y."
So opens Marjorie Celona's highly acclaimed and exquisitely rendered debut about a wise-beyond-her-years foster child abandoned as a newborn on the doorstep of the local YMCA. Swaddled in a dirty gray sweatshirt with nothing but a Swiss Army knife tucked between her feet, little Shannon is discovered by a man who catches only a glimpse of her troubled mother as she disappears from view. That morning, all three lives are forever changed. Bounced between foster homes, Shannon endures abuse and neglect until she finally finds stability with Miranda, a kind but no-nonsense single mother with a free-spirited daughter of her own. Yet Shannon defines life on her own terms, refusing to settle down, and never stops longing to uncover her roots especially the stubborn question of why her mother would abandon her on the day she was born.
Brilliantly and hauntingly interwoven with Shannon's story is the tale of her mother, Yula, a girl herself who is facing a desperate fate in the hours and days leading up to Shannon's birth. As past and present converge, Y tells an unforgettable story of identity, inheritance, and, ultimately, forgiveness. Celona's ravishingly beautiful novel offers a deeply affecting look at the choices we make and what it means to be a family, and it marks the debut of a magnificent new voice in contemporary fiction.

<br>
<b>For fans of <i>White Oleander</i> and <i>The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao</i>, an exquisitely rendered debut about a wise-beyond-her-years foster child searching for a home, entwined with the heartbreaking story of the mother who abandoned her.</b>
<p>“Y. The wishbone, fork in the road, empty wine glass. The question we ask over and over. Why? My life begins at the Y...” so opens the story of Shannon, a newborn left at the doors of the local YMCA. Bounced between foster homes, Shannon endures neglect and abuse before she finally finds stability with Miranda, a single mother with a daughter of her own. But as Shannon grows, so do her questions. Who is her true family? Why would her parents abandon Shannon on the day she was born?</p>
<p>The answers lie in the heartrending tale of her mother, a headstrong young woman with a flawed and desperate fate, trapped in a tragic series of events that will destroy her family and test the limits of her compassion and sacrifice.</p>
<p> Sparkling with wit and surprisingly tender insights, Marjorie Celona’s extraordinary novel offers a deeply affecting look at the choices we make and what it means to be a family. As the story builds, present and past converge to shape a unique and lasting story of identity and inheritance. <i>Y</i> marks the debut of an astonishing new talent.</p>

Why would a mother give up her daughter? Can abandonment ever be an act of love? And could you ever forgive her? 'My life begins at the Y ... ' Abandoned as a newborn at the doors of the local YMCA and then bounced between foster homes, Shannon eventually finds stability in the home of Miranda, a single mother with a daughter of her own. But as Shannon grows, so do her questions. Will she ever belong? Who is her true family? And why would her parents abandon Shannon on the day she was born? The answers lie in the heartrending tale of her mother, a headstrong young woman trapped in a tragic series of events that will destroy her family and test the limits of her compassion and sacrifice.

A wise-beyond-her-years foster child is abandoned as a newborn on the doorstep of the local YMCA, yet defines life on her own terms, refuses to settle down, and never stops longing to uncover her roots--especially the stubborn question of why her mother would abandon her on the day she was born

A foster child who has been shuffled through the system after being abandoned at the YMCA as a baby wonders about her birth family and the reasons she was given up, questions that lead to the tragic story of her flawed and desperate mother.

2013-02-26