Fierce People [Paperback]

Dirk Wittenborn (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: July 1, 2003

Dropped into a world more savage than anything in National Geographic, more cutthroat than anything New York's grimy downtown streets have to offer-the exclusive rural community of Vlyvalle, New Jersey-fifteen-year-old Finn Earl and his recovering mother must fight for survival.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Life among the rich and twisted proves to be a difficult road to adulthood for young Finn Earl in Wittenborn's lurid and often bizarre coming-of-age yarn, which begins when the adolescent's unstable mother, Liz, a New York City massage therapist, befriends a rich older client named Osborne. The friendship looks like a good deal when Osborne rescues the pair from poverty, spiriting them away to his estate in the elite New Jersey suburb of Vlyvalle. Finn gets a romantic bonus when he falls for Osborne's sexy granddaughter, Maya; he also befriends her odd but erudite brother, Bryce. But the dark side of easy street surfaces when Finn is attacked and raped by an unknown assailant, and his romance comes apart at the seams when Maya catches him in flagrante with the family maid. The novel turns downright strange during a pivotal house fire when Finn is hailed as a hero after tumbling from a window with Maya's mother, who survives the blaze despite some serious injuries. Finn's part-time job sorting through Osborne's extensive photo library provides several clues about the possible identity of his attacker, and the underbelly of the Osborne clan gets exposed in a big way during a series of confrontations among Finn, Bryce, Maya and her grandfather. Wittenborn offers plenty of unusual spins on the usual coming-of-age formula, and his eclectic, idiosyncratic characters provide plenty of entertainment. Some overplotting in the final sections dulls the impact of the over-the-top ending, but this peek behind the scenes of a wealthy family remains novel and fascinating from start to finish.
Copyright 2002 Cahners Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Review

"Fierce People is a whacked out hybrid of Dickens and Salinger, a compelling-and moving-coming-of-age novel...' -Jay McInerney

"I found Dirk Wittenborn's grandly entertaining and wildly ambitious novel, Fierce People, to be both hilarious and heartbreaking."-Dominick Dunne

"A riveting page-turner that offers a haunting and fascinating glimpse into the lives of the super-rich-truly the fiercest class of all."-Candace Bushnell

"Wittenborn offers plenty of unusual spins on the usual coming-of-age formula, and his eclectic, idiosyncratic characters provide plenty of entertainment...this peek behind the scenes of a wealthy family remains novel and fascinating from start to finish."-Publishers Weekly (starred review)

"Punched-up with sexual awakening, loss of innocence, first love, drugs, battles lost and won, adolescent rebellion-Dirk Wittenborn captures it all with a bright and vivid intensity."-Bret Easton Ellis

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 352 pages
• Publisher: Bloomsbury USA (July 1, 2003)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 158234292X
• ISBN-13: 978-1582342924
• Product Dimensions: 8.2 x 5.5 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 14.1 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 3.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (15 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,187,897 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

15 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Fiercely Fantastic!, July 10, 2002

By 

Kim - See all my reviews

This review is from: Fierce People (Hardcover)

Fierce People is one of the best books I have read in months. Finn, the main character, is a wildly funny, terribly naive, extremely trusting, and hopelessly brave 15-year-old. He finds himself in situations he can't control and comes out of each of them smelling like a rose. While reading this book, I thought I knew each and every character personally. But, the author threw a twist in every now and then, which increased my fascination with the entire population of Vlyvalle all the more.

This book draws you in from page one and doesn't loosen its grip until the end. The climax of the book is a nailbiter! I couldn't put this one down. I REALLY hope there is a sequel!! I would love to read more about Finn and the entire "tribe"!

6 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A very Enjoyable read, July 9, 2002

By A Customer

This review is from: Fierce People (Hardcover)

There are two times when I feel compelled to write to other readers. One is if a book is a huge disappointment and I have felt mislead by the book review hype. The other time I feel compelled to write a review is when I absolutely love a book. And in the case of the Fierce People, i love the book! The characters are wacky but very believable and the plot is perfect for a summer read.
It is the kind of book that you want to tote with you, sneaking in a chapter or two whenever or wherever possible. This book deserves notice...it has the perfect pitch for a summer sizzler!

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Sociology Made Easy for the Commoner, September 23, 2008

By 

N. Creamer (Traverse City, MI USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Fierce People (Paperback)

Wittenborn portrays what happens when a lower socioeconomic class teen age boy and his recovering drug user mother are plucked from working class poor society and placed into Upper Class "blue blood" society.

Wittenborn has a unique gift of capturing very real, very powerful concepts of class segregation with a sense of humor.

This book was a sheer joy to read. I read this book cover to cover two times in row while amidst eleven other texts that I needed to finish.

If there ever was a book that depicts U.S. social economic classism, family dysfunction of all classes, and a great story, this is it!

Don't pass this book by and if you are a professor, this is a must read for any sociology, psychology, or English lit student.

I anxiously awaited the movie that was adapted from Wittenborn's novel staring Donald Sutherland. While Sutherland's portrayal of the "old man" was beautifully constructed, the move left me sadden that they butchered the story so badly. Don't base the book off the movie, this is one of those books where the movie didn't even come close.

Fierce People is a brilliant piece of work and it captures class consciousness as well as the inner workings of Upper Class.

Highly recommend.