Product Details
Washington Square Press, May 2007
Trade Paperback, 368 pages
ISBN-10: 0743492781
ISBN-13: 9780743492782
Nineteen years ago, a famous filmmaker disappeared from Los Angeles, taking his two children, Dorothea and Jimmy, to a desolate corner of New Mexico. There he raised them in complete isolation without television, computer, radio -- not even a newspaper. Now, at twenty-three, Dorothea leaves in search of her missing brother -- and ventures into the outside world for the first time. Her search becomes an odyssey of discovery when Dorothea meets Stephen Spaulding, a cab driver dealing with his own mysterious history. With him as her guide, Dorothea uncovers the truth of her family's past and the terrifying day that changed her father forever. Together, they have a chance to discover that although a heart can be broken by the tragic events of a day, a day can also bring a new chance at love and a deeper understanding of life's infinite possibilities.




"Tucker's outstanding novel is as structurally dextrous as it is emotionally satisfying, boasting a chorus of extraordinary voices. An exceptionally empathetic storyteller, Tucker has created a haunting, gripping novel that brims with graceful writing and fragile characters. Devour it as a page-turner about parenting and family or discuss its subtle meditations on fate and coincidence, wealth and poverty, fairy tales and American dreams."
"The spirit of Jane Eyre looms over Once Upon a Day. Lisa Tucker keeps the plot of this gothic novel bubbling with tons of juicy family secrets."
"Lisa Tucker gives me what I want most from fiction: compassion and provocation. Once Upon a Day is her most impressive novel to date."
"Once Upon a Day is a smart, compelling story about the ungainliness of familial and romantic love. Tucker's quietly and yet wildly ambitious novel is a subtle, witty deconstruction of fairy tales and a graceful tour de force of storytelling."
"Deftly written and emotionally convincing."