{"product_id":"the-mountain-lion-by-jean-stafford","title":"'The Mountain Lion' by Jean Stafford","description":"\u003cdiv class=\"\"\u003e\n\u003csection class=\"text-token-text-primary w-full focus:outline-none has-data-writing-block:pointer-events-none [\u0026amp;:has([data-writing-block])\u0026gt;*]:pointer-events-auto R6Vx5W_threadScrollVars scroll-mb-[calc(var(--scroll-root-safe-area-inset-bottom,0px)+var(--thread-response-height))] scroll-mt-[calc(var(--header-height)+min(200px,max(70px,20svh)))]\" dir=\"auto\"\u003e\n\u003cdiv class=\"text-base my-auto mx-auto pb-8 [--thread-content-margin:var(--thread-content-margin-xs,calc(var(--spacing)*4))] @w-sm\/main:[--thread-content-margin:var(--thread-content-margin-sm,calc(var(--spacing)*6))] @w-lg\/main:[--thread-content-margin:var(--thread-content-margin-lg,calc(var(--spacing)*16))] px-(--thread-content-margin)\"\u003e\n\u003cdiv class=\"[--thread-content-max-width:40rem] @w-lg\/main:[--thread-content-max-width:48rem] mx-auto max-w-(--thread-content-max-width) flex-1 group\/turn-messages focus-visible:outline-hidden relative flex w-full min-w-0 flex-col agent-turn\"\u003e\n\u003cdiv class=\"flex max-w-full flex-col gap-4 grow\"\u003e\n\u003cdiv dir=\"auto\" class=\"min-h-8 text-message relative flex w-full flex-col items-end gap-2 text-start break-words whitespace-normal outline-none keyboard-focused:focus-ring [.text-message+\u0026amp;]:mt-1\" tabindex=\"0\"\u003e\n\u003cdiv class=\"flex w-full flex-col gap-1 empty:hidden\"\u003e\n\u003cdiv class=\"markdown prose dark:prose-invert wrap-break-word w-full light markdown-new-styling\"\u003e\n\u003ch4\u003eRalph and Molly Fawcett are intelligent, difficult siblings growing up inside the suffocating manners of an upper-middle-class California family.\u003c\/h4\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eAfter illness sends them to their uncle’s ranch in Colorado, they find a rougher world of animals, work, weather and adult violence—one that seems to promise freedom from the performance of being well-bred children. At its centre is Molly: sharp, secretive, increasingly estranged from the femininity being prepared for her. Stafford writes adolescence not as gradual maturation but as a brutal split between the self one experiences and the person other people insist on seeing. Molly and Ralph’s intimacy is fierce but unstable, damaged by puberty, shame, rivalry and the unequal futures assigned to boys and girls. The mountain lion they hunt becomes something wild onto which the family projects fear, mastery and desire.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eFirst published in 1947, the novel is remarkable for its psychological coldness and exact sensory intelligence. Stafford’s prose is elegant without being consoling; she observes domestic cruelty, bodily awkwardness and childhood perception with the precision of someone dissecting a social ritual after the guests have gone home. This edition includes a foreword by Hilton Als.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eFaber Editions, 2023 paperback; first printing of this edition. Very good condition with light shelf wear.\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003c\/section\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e","brand":"bower studio","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":45910489432147,"sku":null,"price":14.0,"currency_code":"AUD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0689\/0268\/2707\/files\/Untitleddesign-2026-08-05T123003.175.png?v=1785897026","url":"https:\/\/bowerbooks.com\/products\/the-mountain-lion-by-jean-stafford","provider":"bower books","version":"1.0","type":"link"}