Three Junes
Encyclopedia
Three Junes is Julia Glass
' debut novel
. It won the National Book Award
in 2002.
. Other important characters include Malachy, Fenno's friend who is a music critic and suffering from AIDS
, and Fern, an unwed pregnant woman, who Paul formerly met on his trip to Greece, trying to recover from his wife's death. Finally, another important character of the book is Tony, a photographer, who is a house-sitter, never living in the same house for more than a few months. He is a catalyst in the narative development of Fern and Fenno. Heis an old friend with Fern and he develops a tumultuous relationship with Fenno.
The novel is written in three parts, using the flashback
technique. The first takes place in 1989 and is told from Paul's perspective; the second, in 1995 and from Fenno's point of view; the third, in 1999 and from Fern's perspective. As Julia Glass has said herself, the book should be viewed not as a trilogy but rather a triptych
- elements that may seem small in one section play a large role in another, like a triptych, rather than a consecutive series of novels in a trilogy.
Julia Glass
Julia Glass is an American novelist. Her debut novel, Three Junes, won the National Book Award in 2002. Glass followed this with a second novel, The Whole World Over, in 2006, which was also set in the Bank Street, Greenwich Village universe with three interwoven stories featuring several...
' debut novel
Debut novel
A debut novel is the first novel an author publishes. Debut novels are the author's first opportunity to make an impact on the publishing industry, and thus the success or failure of a debut novel can affect the ability of the author to publish in the future...
. It won the National Book Award
National Book Award
The National Book Awards are a set of American literary awards. Started in 1950, the Awards are presented annually to American authors for literature published in the current year. In 1989 the National Book Foundation, a nonprofit organization which now oversees and manages the National Book...
in 2002.
Plot summary
Three Junes follows the McLeods, a Scottish family, throughout their lives and relationships. Its members are Paul and Maureen, and their sons: Fenno, and twins David and Dennis. At the opening of the book, Paul is on a tour of Greece, Maureen has died from lung cancer, and Fenno is running a bookstore in New York CityNew York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
. Other important characters include Malachy, Fenno's friend who is a music critic and suffering from AIDS
AIDS
Acquired immune deficiency syndrome or acquired immunodeficiency syndrome is a disease of the human immune system caused by the human immunodeficiency virus...
, and Fern, an unwed pregnant woman, who Paul formerly met on his trip to Greece, trying to recover from his wife's death. Finally, another important character of the book is Tony, a photographer, who is a house-sitter, never living in the same house for more than a few months. He is a catalyst in the narative development of Fern and Fenno. Heis an old friend with Fern and he develops a tumultuous relationship with Fenno.
The novel is written in three parts, using the flashback
Flashback (narrative)
Flashback is an interjected scene that takes the narrative back in time from the current point the story has reached. Flashbacks are often used to recount events that happened before the story’s primary sequence of events or to fill in crucial backstory...
technique. The first takes place in 1989 and is told from Paul's perspective; the second, in 1995 and from Fenno's point of view; the third, in 1999 and from Fern's perspective. As Julia Glass has said herself, the book should be viewed not as a trilogy but rather a triptych
Triptych
A triptych , from tri-= "three" + ptysso= "to fold") is a work of art which is divided into three sections, or three carved panels which are hinged together and can be folded shut or displayed open. It is therefore a type of polyptych, the term for all multi-panel works...
- elements that may seem small in one section play a large role in another, like a triptych, rather than a consecutive series of novels in a trilogy.
Release details
- 2002, US, Pantheon Books (ISBN 0-375-42144-0), Pub date ? May 2002, hardback (First edition)