num_pages: 576
description: Alternate cover edition of ISBN 9780394281780Winner of the Commonwealth Writers' Prize for Best BookFollowing the curves of history in the first half of the twentieth century, Fall On Your Knees takes us from haunted Cape Breton Island, Nova Scotia, through the battle fields of World War One, to the emerging jazz scene of New York city and into the lives of four unforgettable sisters. The mythically charged Piper family--James, a father of intelligence and immense ambition, Materia, his Lebanese child-bride, and their daughters: Kathleen, a budding opera Diva; Frances, the incorrigible liar and hell-bent bad girl; Mercedes, obsessive Catholic and protector of the flock; and Lily, the adored invalid who takes us on a quest for truth and redemption--is supported by a richly textured cast of characters. Together they weave a tale of inescapable family bonds, of terrible secrets, of miracles, racial strife, attempted murder, birth and death, and forbidden love. Moving and finely written, Fall On Your Knees is by turns dark and hilariously funny, a story--and a world--that resonate long after the last page is turned.
title: Fall on Your Knees
titlecomplete: Fall on Your Knees
genres: Fiction, Historical, Canadian Literature, LGBT, Canada, Book Club, Novels, Adult Fiction, Historical Fiction, Literary Fiction
ratings_count: 65545
places: Canada, Nova Scotia, Cape Breton Island, Nova Scotia
awards: awardedAt: 852105600000
name: Orange Prize
category: Fiction Longlist, awardedAt: 820483200000
name: Scotiabank Giller Prize, awardedAt: 883641600000
name: Canadian Booksellers Association Libris Award
category: Fiction Book, awardedAt: 852105600000
name: Commonwealth Writers' Prize
category: Best First Book Overall, awardedAt: 852105600000
name: Canadian Authors Association Award
category: Fiction, awardedAt: 883641600000
name: The Publishing Triangle Award
category: The Ferro-Grumley Awards
publisher: Vintage Canada