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The Confessions of Max Tivoli: A Novel

About the Book

The Confessions of Max Tivoli: A Novel

An utterly original love story, The Confessions of Max Tivoli incorporates an intriguing plot twist that is by turns fascinating and horrific. The beguiling protagonist, Max Tivoli, is born with the appearance of a man of seventy. As his body grows younger, Max ages intellectually and emotionally—granting him a painful and alienating existence that allows him one pleasure (or curse): to fall in love with the same woman, Alice Levy, over and over again. But she is not the only recurring figure in his world. His childhood friend, Hughie Dempsey, appears in Max's life at its most intense turning points. Hughie always knows Max's true age and identity, though it takes years before Max realizes that his best friend is also the greatest love of Alice's life.

Set against the vibrant backdrop of turn-of-the-century San Francisco, The Confessions of Max Tivoli challenges our assumptions about the nature of love, of time, and of the difference between appearance and reality. Daring and imaginative, it's a novel that is sure to spark lively conversation. We hope that the following questions will enhance your reading group's lines of inquiry. For additional reader's guides from Farrar, Straus, and Giroux, visit us at www.fsgbooks.com.

The Confessions of Max Tivoli: A Novel
by Andrew Sean Greer

  • Publication Date: February 1, 2004
  • Hardcover: 288 pages
  • Publisher: Farrar, Straus and Giroux
  • ISBN-10: 0374128715
  • ISBN-13: 9780374128715