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Last Night at the Lobster by Stewart O'Nan
Last Night at the Lobster is set in a Red Lobster restaurant in a Connecticut mall that has been ordered to close five days before Christmas. 35-year-old Manny DeLeon has invested his life and energy into running the restaurant, but he blindly accepts the corporate decree that it be closed since it's not meeting revenue targets. Last Night at the Lobster takes place during the course of the restaurant's final day with a snowstorm brewing outside, and Manny is doing his best with his last five employees, including his ex-girlfriend, Jacquie. Manny does nothing different on this final day, striving to do his best regardless. He finds he still longs for Jacquie even though he has a pregnant girlfriend. Most of the other employees could care less and just want to finish the last day, if not sneak out early. Stewart O'Nan's novel has received positive reviews with the Washington Post saying, "Full of regret and gentle humor, Last Night at the Lobster serves up the kind of delicate sadness that too often gets ruined by the slimy superiority that masquerades as sympathy for working-class people. It wouldn't take much longer to read this story than to polish off a large helping of hush puppies, but it's a far more nutritious meal."
