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ALAIN DE BOTTON reads from his new novel THE COURSE OF LOVE

The Course of Love (Simon & Schuster) 

The long-awaited and beguiling second novel from Alain de Botton that tracks the beautifully complicated arc of a romantic partnership, from the internationally bestselling author of On Love and How Proust Can Change Your Life.

NOTE: As with all Skylight Books events, this reading is free and open to the public (first come, first served). But because we're expecting a sizable crowd at this event, we'll be giving out numbered tickets to the signing line to keep things organized. To get a ticket to the signing line, you must purchase a copy of The Course of Love here at Skylight Books. Tickets will be available starting June 14, 2016. They will be available in-store, or you can order on our website and leave a note in the "Order Comments" field. We will also hold a ticket for you if you order and pay for a book over the phone. Thank you for your cooperation!

We all know the headiness and excitement of the early days of love. But what comes after? In Edinburgh, a couple, Rabih and Kirsten, fall in love. They get married, they have children—but no long-term relationship is as simple as “happily ever after.” The Course of Love is a novel that explores what happens after the birth of love, what it takes to maintain love, and what happens to our original ideals under the pressures of an average existence. You experience, along with Rabih and Kirsten, the first flush of infatuation, the effortlessness of falling into romantic love, and the course of life thereafter. Interwoven with their story and its challenges is an overlay of philosophy—an annotation and a guide to what we are reading.

This is a Romantic novel in the true sense, one interested in exploring how love can survive and thrive in the long term. The result is a sensory experience—fictional, philosophical, psychological—that urges us to identify deeply with these characters, and to reflect on his and her own experiences in love. Fresh, visceral, and utterly compelling, The Course of Love is a provocative and life-affirming novel for everyone who believes in love.

Praise for The Course of Love
“This is no run-of-the-mill love story… the always-intriguing de Botton, who returns to fiction after 20 years and numerous nonfiction books, aims to answer the question, What is it like to be married for awhile? The answers are often funny but also quite moving, thought provoking, forgiving, and drenched in truth.”—Booklist (starred review)

“The course of true love may not run smooth, but the storytelling certainly does in this wise, humane and irresistibly readable history of an appealingly nuanced relationship. De Botton deftly moves us through time, weaving in philosophical interludes that showcase his essayistic gifts, so that before we know it we have lived a whole life with these two, and they are just getting started. De Botton directs his ferocious intelligence at the most complex puzzle of all, and it seems that no intellectual or emotional problem surpasses his ability to solve it.” —Matthew Thomas, New York Times bestselling author of We Are Not Ourselves

The Course of Love is a complete delight.  Not surprisingly, I feel that Alain de Botton not only wrote it for me, but also that we must have been conversing on these subjects happily and deeply, privately or in my dreams.”—Amy Bloom, New York Times bestselling author of Away and Lucky Us

“He’s completely on the money with the minutiae of marital life as its lived outside the movies, and every note rings uncomfortably true, but he never disrespects his subjects and their story is told with great affection…de Botton knows his stuff, and the book builds incrementally into a truly wonderful and positive analysis of a successful lifelong partnership.  It should be compulsory reading for anyone contemplating tying the knot.”—The Daily Mail 

“A worldly wise romance.” —Mail on Sunday 

“The novel is well-observed and imbued with a tenderness that feels authentic and uncynical. It may even save some marriages.” —The Evening Standard

Alain de Botton is the author of numerous works of fiction and nonfiction, including On Love, How Proust Can Change Your Life, The Consolations of Philosophy, The Art of Travel, and The Course of Love. He lives in London where he founded The School of Life, an organization devoted to fostering emotional health and intelligence. 

Event date: 
Sunday, June 19, 2016 - 5:00pm
Event address: 
1818 N Vermont Ave
Los Angeles, CA 90027
The Course of Love: A Novel By Alain de Botton Cover Image
$26.00
Possibly out of print. Email or call to check availability and price.
ISBN: 9781501134258
Published: S&S/ Marysue Rucci Books - June 14th, 2016

On Love By Alain de Botton Cover Image
$16.00
ISBN: 9780802142405
Availability: Not in Stock. Available to Order.
Published: Grove Press - January 6th, 2006

How Proust Can Change Your Life (Vintage International) By Alain De Botton Cover Image
$17.00
Possibly out of print. Email or call to check availability and price.
ISBN: 9780679779155
Published: Vintage - April 28th, 1998

The Architecture of Happiness (Vintage International) By Alain De Botton Cover Image
$20.00
ISBN: 9780307277244
Availability: On Our Shelves Now
Published: Vintage - April 8th, 2008

The Art of Travel (Vintage International) By Alain De Botton Cover Image
$18.00
ISBN: 9780375725340
Availability: On Our Shelves Now
Published: Vintage - May 11th, 2004

The Consolations of Philosophy (Vintage International) By Alain De Botton Cover Image
$18.00
Possibly out of print. Email or call to check availability and price.
ISBN: 9780679779179
Published: Vintage - April 3rd, 2001

The News: A User's Manual (Vintage International) By Alain De Botton Cover Image
$17.00
Possibly out of print. Email or call to check availability and price.
ISBN: 9780307476838
Published: Vintage - December 2nd, 2014