Department store novel?
May 24, 2012 8:37 PM Subscribe
Another "what's the novel?" question. A fictional department store at the center of a city, and an employee's last day?
I read a novel in the UK in the 90s that was set in a city where a department store was the be-all-and-end-all of entertainment, culture and shopping. Whole communities had grown up around this monstrosity, and to enter and shop, one must have a card of some kind. The lowest denomination was silver, one the highest - and rarest - was onyx, if memory serves.
The story starts with an employee setting off for his last day working for this department store. And that's about as much as I remember...oh, except the store was family owned, and run by a set of brothers, who - I think - were named after the days of the week...
Not a lot to go on, but this has been bugging me for ages. Anyone know what on earth I'm talking about?
I read a novel in the UK in the 90s that was set in a city where a department store was the be-all-and-end-all of entertainment, culture and shopping. Whole communities had grown up around this monstrosity, and to enter and shop, one must have a card of some kind. The lowest denomination was silver, one the highest - and rarest - was onyx, if memory serves.
The story starts with an employee setting off for his last day working for this department store. And that's about as much as I remember...oh, except the store was family owned, and run by a set of brothers, who - I think - were named after the days of the week...
Not a lot to go on, but this has been bugging me for ages. Anyone know what on earth I'm talking about?
Response by poster: Reading the editorial reviews and the "Look Inside" for Everything and More, I don't think that's it, unfortunately.
posted by Ridge at 9:13 PM on May 24, 2012
posted by Ridge at 9:13 PM on May 24, 2012
The short story "The Dream of the Consortium" in Steven Millhauser's The Knife Thrower is a long description of a fantastically enormous department store.
posted by Nomyte at 9:57 PM on May 24, 2012
posted by Nomyte at 9:57 PM on May 24, 2012
Best answer: I think it's Days, by James Lovegrove; this review gives several details matching your description.
posted by stebulus at 11:08 PM on May 24, 2012 [3 favorites]
posted by stebulus at 11:08 PM on May 24, 2012 [3 favorites]
And by several, I mean, three, I guess. (Last day at work, silver cards, brothers in charge.)
posted by stebulus at 11:10 PM on May 24, 2012
posted by stebulus at 11:10 PM on May 24, 2012
Seconding stebulus; I was thinking Days before I'd even clicked through to read the full question.
posted by ManyLeggedCreature at 11:12 PM on May 24, 2012
posted by ManyLeggedCreature at 11:12 PM on May 24, 2012
Response by poster: Stebulus has it! Thank you! And the review you linked to is he exact edition I had. Now I see the cover, it's all flooding back. Fantastic novel, and I'm picking up a copy from Amazon today.
posted by Ridge at 6:48 AM on May 25, 2012
posted by Ridge at 6:48 AM on May 25, 2012
This thread is closed to new comments.
posted by kindall at 8:58 PM on May 24, 2012