The Lay of the Land
The Lay of the Land is a 2006 novel by American author Richard Ford. The novel is the third in what is now a five-part series, preceded by the novels The Sportswriter (1986) and Independence Day (1995); and followed by Let Me Be Frank With You (2014), a collection of "long" stories, and the novel Be Mine (2023). Each of these books follows a portion of the life of Frank Bascombe, a real estate agent. The Lay of the Land was nominated for a 2006 National Book Critics Circle Award. Plot The Lay of the Land takes place in the fall of 2000, and Ford's character Frank Bascome is preparing for Thanksgiving at his home in Sea Clift, New Jersey. His son Paul, who is now a greeting card designer in Kansas City, Paul's girlfriend, who has only one hand, and Frank's daughter, Clarissa, who is an on-and-off lesbian, are all expected to attend. Frank has ordered a ready-made organic meal to be delivered on the holiday. Frank's second wife, Sally, has reunited with her formerly AWOL and presumed-dead husband Wally, and they now live in the British Isles. Frank is in the last throes of a fight against prostate