A Taxonomy of Barnacles

A Novel

Galt Niederhoffer

Picador

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Set in the baronial Upper East Side apartment of Barry Barnacle, among giant aquariums, a sprawling shell collection, and a jungle room with a three-toed sloth and a macaque, this is the story of the six Barnacle daughters, aged ten to twenty-nine. As the story begins, one daughter has returned home secretly pregnant, and she and her sister are sneaking out at night to meet the Finch twins in the apartment downstairs, while Barry, the patriarch, has devised a challenge for his daughters: whoever can secure the future of the Barnacle line within the week will inherit his whole fortune.

A love story, a family chronicle, and a portrait of a city, A Taxonomy of Barnacles is "a confident and witty debut that brings to mind an eccentric combination of The Virgin Suicides and Little Women" (Kirkus Reviews).

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Reviews

Praise for A Taxonomy of Barnacles

"An engrossing tale of family drama and true love--one that offers the pleasures of a layered, old-fashioned romance."--People
 
"Droll and sophisticated . . . a winning screwball comedy."--Entertainment Weekly
 
"A clever, comic melodrama . . . At its funniest, A Taxonomy of Barnacles reminded me of the classic Hollywood screwball comedies from the '30s."--USA Today
 
"Niederhoffer pays sparkling homage to fairy tales, King Lear, Austen, and Nora Ephron in this charming and sly spoofing of the concept of survival of the fittest, and the nature-versus-nurture debate."--Booklist (starred review)
 
"There are enough excellent ideas in this book to generate four novels."--The Boston Globe
 
"A lighthearted literary lark."--Publishers Weekly
 
"Gorgeously written . . . Niederhoffer proves herself to be an intuitive narrator."--Time Out New York
 
"Niederhoffer deftly details the myriad ways in which these spirited and headstrong sisters wrestle with ambition, angst, and each other."--Teen Vogue

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About the Author

Galt Niederhoffer

Galt Niederhoffer started her own film production company in her early twenties and has produced three Sundance Award-winning movies. She lives in New York City.

Galt Niederhoffer

Galt Niederhoffer

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Available Formats and Book Details

A Taxonomy of Barnacles
A Novel
Galt Niederhoffer

Trade Paperback

Trade Paperback
Picador
December 2006
Trade Paperback
ISBN: 9780312426514
ISBN10: 0312426518
5 1/2 x 8 1/4 inches, 384 pages
$14.00
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Hardcover

Learn more about this edition
Hardcover
St. Martin's Press
December 2005
Hardcover
ISBN: 9780312334833
ISBN10: 0312334834
5 1/2 x 8 1/4 inches, 384 pages
$24.95
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