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"It begins with a child" Or really with two children, two girls. One, from the Caucasus, sold into the sex trade; the other, the adopted daughter of the wealthy Zane family. The emotional worlds of these characters transform into a larger drama about the forces of globalization and sexual violence. A gripping tale about the inextricable connections between the personal and the political.

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It begins with two girls: Neva, from the Caucasus, sold into the sex trade; and Poppy, the adopted daughter of a wealthy New York real estate family, the Zanes. As their paths cross and their fates intertwine in an exquisite high drama that blurs the lines between realism and myth, we travel with them from lavish weddings to the transglobal underworld; from London and New York to Laos and Istanbul; and we watch as the mighty Zane dynasty slips from greatness. Mendelsohn captures the emotional worlds of these characters with visceral immediacy, and transforms their private narratives into a larger story about the forces of globalization, human trafficking, and sexual violence. Gripping and psychologically acute, Burning Down the House is an extraordinary family saga that limns the inescapable connections between the personal and the political.

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"A powerful parable for ultra-globalized times." - Vogue

"Mendelsohn has written a book for the ages. . . . This is literature of the first order." -Andrew Solomon, National Book Award-winning author of The Noonday Demon

"Powerful. . . . Thrilling. . . . There are flashes of stunning beauty." - Paste

"Oracular, dazzling. . . . Gorgeous, feverishly imaginative." - Booklist (starred review)

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Jane Mendelsohn is the author of three previous novels, including I Was Amelia Earhart , a New York Times best seller and a finalist for the Orange Prize; Innocence ; and American Music . A graduate of Yale, she lives in New York City with her husband and children.

www.janemendelsohn.com

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