Falling Man by Don DeLillo

The Falling Man was a performance artist who staged breathlessly tasteless stunts in the immediate aftermath of 9/11.

However, the title of DeLillo's masterful novel also refers to those in the twin towers of the World Trade Center who chose to jump — some holding hands — rather than burn to death, and in particular to the photo of the lonely guy, leg bent, which became an instant icon. Approaching the attack obliquely, as if picking up the pieces, DeLillo charts the shock of the "after-days" and its effect on the marriage of one survivor. This is an intricate work of memory and forgetting and, although almost seven years have passed, it is still impossible to read the last few pages (when the atrocity is faced full on) without shedding tears of pain and fury.

Synopsis by Foyles.co.uk

There is September 11 and then there are the days after, and finally the years. "Falling Man" begins in the smoke and ash of the burning towers and traces the aftermath of this global tremor in the intimate lives of a few individuals. Theirs are lives choreographed by loss, grief and the enormous force of history. 'These are pages of magnificent force and control, DeLillo's genius at full pelt. Reading them, you have to remind yourself to keep breathing' - "New Statesman". 'Searing, profoundly unsettling. An unforgettable novel' - "Sunday Times". 'A revelatory piece of writing that will stand as a testament to DeLillo's genius' - "Times Literary Supplement". 'As fine a thing as DeLillo has ever made. There are those who have called him a cold writer; I challenge them to read the astonishing and deeply moving closing pages of "Falling Man" without weeping' - "Scotsman". 'Complex, thrilling, awesome...This is a tremendous novel by a genuine master' - "Irish Independent".