Author | Don DeLillo |
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Language | English |
Genre | Novel |
Publisher | Alfred A. Knopf |
Publication date | September 12, 1982 |
Publication place | United States |
Media type | Print (hardback & paperback) |
Pages | 339 (Hardback first edition) |
ISBN | 0-394-52814-X |
OCLC | 8474207 |
813/.54 19 | |
LC Class | PS3554.E4425 N3 1982 |
The Names (1982) is the seventh novel of American novelist Don DeLillo. The work, set mostly in Greece, is primarily a series of character studies, interwoven with a plot about a mysterious "language cult" that is behind a number of unexplained murders. Among the many themes explored throughout the work is the intersection of language and culture, the perception of American culture from both within and outside its borders, and the impact that narration has on the facts of a story.
While initially some reviewers found The Names intellectually rich but unsuccessful as a novel, it became regarded in subsequent years as one of DeLillo's best works.