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Strange Piece of Paradise (Abridged): A Return to the American West To Investigate My Attempted Murder - and Solve the Riddle of Myself Audiobook
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(3.03) - 806 listener ratings
Publisher Description
In the summer of 1977, Terri Jentz and her Yale roommate, Shayna Weiss, make a cross-country bike trip. They pitch a tent in the desert of central Oregon. As they are sleeping, a man in a pickup truck deliberately runs over the tent. He then attacks them with an ax. The horrific crime is reported in newspapers across the country. No one is ever arrested. Both women survive, but Shayna suffers from amnesia, while Terri is left alone with memories of the attack. Their friendship is shattered. Fifteen years later, Terri returns to the small town where she was nearly murdered, on the first of many visits she will make "to solve the crime that would solve me." And she makes an extraordinary discovery: the violence of that night is as present for the community as it is for her. Slowly, her extensive interviews with the townspeople yield a terrifying revelation: many say they know who did it, and he is living freely in their midst. Terri then sets out to discover the truth about the crime and its aftermath, and to come to terms with the wounds that broke her life into a before and an after. Ultimately she finds herself face-to-face with the alleged axman. Powerful, eloquent, and paced like the most riveting of thrillers, Strange Piece of Paradise is the electrifying account of Terri's investigation into the mystery of her near murder. A startling profile of a psychopath, a sweeping reflection on violence and the myth of American individualism, and a moving record of a brave inner journey from violence to hope, this searing, unforgettable work is certain to be one of the most talked about books of the year.
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“This book, a hauntingmeditation on the attack and Jentz’s hunt for her would-be murderer, is likenothing I have ever read…[Strange Pieceof Paradise] packs the power of a story that has simmered for twenty years.Jentz’s intelligence and felicity with language amp up that power; her detectivework delivers real thrills…Gratifying.”
— Cleveland Plain Dealer
Quotes
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“Imagine that it had been Truman Capote himself who’d been savaged in Holcomb, Kansas, and that he had survived to describe his ordeal. That is the level of command and sinew at work in [Terri Jentz’s] writing.”
— New York Times Book Review -
“Powerful…[Jentz] moves with great skill back and forth between the year of the attack and the years of her investigation.”
— Los Angels Times Book Review -
“Strange Piece of Paradise is a breathtaking memoir that deserves enshrinement on the essential books about the American West, worthy of a place beside Norman Mailer’s classic account, The Executioner’s Song.”
— Seattle Post-Intelligencer -
“[Jentz’s] well-crafted story of trying to make sense of lunacy is unforgettable.”
— People -
“Jentz excels in capturing the aftermath of the attack…[She] is a savvy, big-hearted narrator who refuses to rush to judgment…A singular, breathtaking document of devastation, survival, and hard-won hope.”
— Newsday -
“In her spellbinding, heartbreaking tale of one random act of carnage, Jentz shows how evil sometimes doesn’t have a face but leaves scars both physical and emotional.”
— USA Today -
“[Strange Piece of Paradise] will do more than just captivate us—it will also politicize us, change us, and move us to action.”
— Chicago Tribune -
“The pacing and subject matter will keep readers mesmerized throughout…An extraordinary story from a gifted writer.”
— Library Journal -
“Strange Piece of Paradise is a haunting, lyrical journey through one woman’s nightmare. Terri Jentz’s debut is harrowing, gripping, and poignant. The impact lingers long after.”
— Harlan Coben, New York Times bestselling author
Awards
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A 2007 Edgar Allan Poe Award Nominee for Best Fact Crime
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A 2006 National Book Critics Circle Award Finalist
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A 2006 New York Times Book Review Notable Book
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About Terri Jentz
Terri Jentz is a screenwriter and lives in Los Angeles.