Aloft

A visit from his daughter and her fiancé from Oregon prompts Jerry Battle to reassess his life, his family relationships, his professional success, and his disengagement from those around him, as he reflects on his professional success and his love of flying solo, in a novel set in an upper-middle-class suburban Long Island community.

A visit from his daughter and her fiancâe from Oregon prompts Jerry Battle to reassess his life, his relationships, and his disengagement from those around him, as he reflects on his success and his love of flying solo.

Set on affluent Long Island, Aloft follows the life of a suburban, upper-middle-class man during a time of family crisis. Jerry Battle's favorite diversion is to fly his small plane over the neighboring towns and villages. When his daughter and her fiancé arrive from Oregon to announce their marriage plans, he looks back on his life and faces his disengagement with it-his urge to fly solo-and the people he loves.

Chang-rae Lee burst on the scene with Native Speaker, which won numerous awards, including the PEN/Hemingway Award. His second novel, A Gesture Life, established him as one of the preeminent writers of his generation. Now, with Aloft, Lee has expanded his range and proves himself a master storyteller, able to observe his characters' flaws and weaknesses and, at the same time, celebrate their humanity. Aloft is an unforgettable portrait, filled with vitality and urgency, of a man who has secured his life's dreams but who must now figure out its meaning.

Aloft offers a reexamination of the American dream from the inside out, through the voice of Jerry Battle, a suburban middle-aged man who has lived his entire life on Long Island, New York.
Battle's favorite diversion is to fly his small plane solo; slipping away for quick flights over the Island or to the coastal towns of New England, Jerry has been disappearing for years. Then a family crisis occurs, and Jerry finds he must face his disengagement in his relationships: with his deceased wife, the circumstances of whose death he has never fully accepted; with his former girlfriend, whom he still longs for; with his daughter, who refuses to address the disease that threatens her life; with his son, who is in danger of losing the family business; and with his father, whom he has placed in a nursing home.

General

ISBN		9781573222631
Fiction/Non-Fiction		Fiction
Publisher		Riverhead Books
Pages		343
List Price		$24.95
Author		Lee, Chang-rae
Publication Date		03/01/2004
Release Status		Out of Print
Format		Hardcover
Language		English
Measurements		Height: 9.5 Inches (US) Width: 6.5 Inches (US) Thickness: 2 Inches (US) Unit Weight: 1.35 Pounds (US)