What we can know: a novel
(Book)

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Author:
Published:
New York : Alfred A. Knopf, 2025.
Format:
Book
Edition:
First hardcover edition.
Physical Desc:
303 pages ; 25 cm
Status:
37 copies, 128 people are on the wait list.
5 copies on order.

Description

"2014: At a dinner for close friends and colleagues, renowned poet Francis Blundy honors his wife's birthday by reading aloud a new poem dedicated to her, 'A Corona for Vivien'. Much wine is drunk as the guests listen, and a delicious meal consumed. Little does anyone gathered around the candlelit table know that for generations to come people will speculate about the message of this poem, a copy of which has never been found, and which remains an enduring mystery. 2119: Just over one hundred years in the future, much of the Western world has been submerged by rising seas following a catastrophic nuclear accident. Those who survive are haunted by the richness of the world that has been lost. In the water-logged south of what used to be England, Thomas Metcalfe, a lonely scholar and researcher, longs for the early twenty-first century as he chases the ghost of one poem, 'A Corona for Vivian'. How wild and full of risk their lives were, thinks Thomas, as he pores over the archives of that distant era, captivated by the freedoms and possibilities of human life at its zenith. When he stumbles across a clue that may lead to the elusive poem's discovery, a story is revealed of entangled loves and a brutal crime that destroy his assumptions about people he thought he knew intimately well." --

Also in This Series

Copies

Location
Call Number
Status
East Hampton Adult Lucky Day
FIC MCE
Due Oct 13, 2025
East Hampton New Adult Fiction
FIC MCE
On Holdshelf
Location
Call Number
Status
Bethany/Clark New Adult Book
FIC MCE
On Shelf
Branford/Blackstone New Adult Fiction
FICTION MCEWAN
Due Nov 17, 2025
Branford/Blackstone New Adult Fiction
SCI-FI MCEWAN
Missing
Durham Lucky Day Collection
LUCKY DAY
Due Nov 7, 2025
Durham New Fiction
FIC McEWAN
Due Nov 18, 2025
East Haddam/Moodus New Adult
FIC MCE
On Shelf
East Haddam/Rathbun A Fiction New
FIC McE
On Holdshelf
East Lyme Public New Fiction
McEwan, Ian (What)
Due Nov 21, 2025
Essex Adult Fiction New
(NEW) MCEWAN
On Holdshelf
Essex Adult Nonfiction New
(NEW) MCEWAN
Due Nov 14, 2025
Guilford New Adult Fiction
FIC MCEWAN
Due Nov 17, 2025
Guilford New Adult Fiction
FIC MCEWAN
Due Nov 17, 2025
Guilford New Adult Fiction
FIC MCEWAN
Due Nov 10, 2025
Hamden/Miller Adult Lucky Day Books
FIC/MCEWAN
Due Nov 15, 2025
Hamden/Miller Adult Lucky Day Books
FIC/MCEWAN
Due Nov 4, 2025
Hamden/Miller New Adult Fiction
FIC/MCEWAN
Due Nov 12, 2025
Hamden/Miller New Adult Fiction
FIC/MCEWAN
Due Nov 10, 2025
Hamden/Miller New Adult Fiction
FIC/MCEWAN
On Holdshelf
Ivoryton Adult Book New
F MCEWAN
On Holdshelf
Madison/Scranton Adult Fiction - New
F MCEWAN
Due Nov 12, 2025
Meriden Express Books
FIC MCEWAN
Due Nov 14, 2025
Meriden Express Books
FIC MCEWAN
On Shelf
North Haven Adult New Fiction
Fiction McEwan, Ian
Due Nov 8, 2025
North Stonington/Wheeler Adult Fiction
NEW FIC MCEWAN [SEP 25]
Due Nov 18, 2025
Norwich/Otis New Adult Science Fiction
F MCEWAN
Due Nov 6, 2025
Old Lyme New A Fiction - New
FIC MCEWAN
Due Oct 31, 2025
Old Lyme New A Rapid Reads
FIC MCEWAN
On Shelf
Old Saybrook/Acton Adult Fiction
NEW F MCEWAN
Due Nov 20, 2025
Orange/Case Adult Fiction Book
New Fiction McEwan
In Transit
Stony Creek/Willoughby Wallace New Adult Fiction
FIC MCE
Due Nov 20, 2025
Wallingford NEW Adult Fiction
MCEWAN
Due Nov 17, 2025
West Haven Main New Adult Fiction
NEW FIC MCEWAN
On Holdshelf
Woodbridge Adult Best Sellers
FIC MCEWAN
On Shelf
Woodbridge New Adult Fiction
FIC MCEWAN
Due Oct 24, 2025
North Branford/Smith On Order
Smith Adult On Order
On Order
Location
Call Number
Status
East Lyme Public Library On Order
ON ORDER
3 On Order
Hamden Public Libraries On Order
ON ORDER
On Order
Meriden Public Library On Order
ON ORDER
On Order

More Like This

Other Editions and Formats

More Details

Language:
English
ISBN:
9780593804728, 0593804724

Notes

Description
"2014: At a dinner for close friends and colleagues, renowned poet Francis Blundy honors his wife's birthday by reading aloud a new poem dedicated to her, 'A Corona for Vivien'. Much wine is drunk as the guests listen, and a delicious meal consumed. Little does anyone gathered around the candlelit table know that for generations to come people will speculate about the message of this poem, a copy of which has never been found, and which remains an enduring mystery. 2119: Just over one hundred years in the future, much of the Western world has been submerged by rising seas following a catastrophic nuclear accident. Those who survive are haunted by the richness of the world that has been lost. In the water-logged south of what used to be England, Thomas Metcalfe, a lonely scholar and researcher, longs for the early twenty-first century as he chases the ghost of one poem, 'A Corona for Vivian'. How wild and full of risk their lives were, thinks Thomas, as he pores over the archives of that distant era, captivated by the freedoms and possibilities of human life at its zenith. When he stumbles across a clue that may lead to the elusive poem's discovery, a story is revealed of entangled loves and a brutal crime that destroy his assumptions about people he thought he knew intimately well." --,Provided by publisher.

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Citations

APA Citation (style guide)

McEwan, I. (2025). What we can know: a novel. First hardcover edition. Alfred A. Knopf.

Chicago / Turabian - Author Date Citation (style guide)

McEwan, Ian. 2025. What We Can Know: A Novel. Alfred A. Knopf.

Chicago / Turabian - Humanities Citation (style guide)

McEwan, Ian, What We Can Know: A Novel. Alfred A. Knopf, 2025.

MLA Citation (style guide)

McEwan, Ian. What We Can Know: A Novel. First hardcover edition. Alfred A. Knopf, 2025.

Note! Citation formats are based on standards as of July 2022. Citations contain only title, author, edition, publisher, and year published. Citations should be used as a guideline and should be double checked for accuracy.

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Grouped Work ID:
d10194fb-c790-331e-df6a-aeee0db87f1e
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Record Information

Last Sierra Extract TimeNov 02, 2025 10:56:21 AM
Last File Modification TimeNov 02, 2025 10:56:27 AM
Last Grouped Work Modification TimeNov 02, 2025 10:56:25 AM

MARC Record

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2644 |c ©2025.
300 |a 303 pages ; |c 25 cm
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6500 |a Poets |v Fiction.
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