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      Dumb House

      by John Burnside
      Published
      Nov 2009
      Main Genre
      General Fiction General Fiction
      Rating
      Pages
      208
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      About This Book

      As a child, Luke's mother often tells him the story of the Dumb House, an experiment on newborn babies raised in silence, designed to test the innateness of language.

      As Luke grows up, his interest in language and the delicate balance of life and death leads to amateur dissections of small animals – tiny hearts revealed still pumping, as life trickles away. But as an adult, following the death of his mother, Luke's obsession deepens, resulting in a haunting and bizarre experiment on Luke's own children.

      ‘A wonderfully disturbing book - chillingly focused and lyrically amoral with moments of remarkable stillness and beauty.' A.L. Kennedy

      ‘Burnside's prose is exquisite, and he dissects his themes with delicacy to produce a novel resonant with poetic menace' Sunday Times

      Genres & Themes

      Genres

      General Fiction

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      Paperback

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      First Edition Nov 2009 Vintage (UK) ISBN 0099546523
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      Trade Paperback
      May 1997 Random House (UK) ISBN 0224042076
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      Jun 1998 Vintage ISBN 0099582716
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      Aug 2015 Random House (UK) ISBN 1784870110
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      eBook

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      eBook
      Dec 2010 Vintage Digital ISBN B004ASOVVC
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      eBook
      Dec 2010 Random House ISBN 1446412237
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