"Cain was Gregor von Rezzori's last book, a pendant to his monumental The Death of My Brother Abel, and in it he revisits the themes that he explored throughout his literary oeuvre: the origins of Nazism, the physical and moral ruin of Europe, the Americanization of the world, the ever-diminished role of beauty in daily life. But Cain, even as it looks back toward Rezzori's lifework, also represents an advance towards an ever more daringly improvisatory...

Pete Simon's all-American life was everything he ever wanted: a good home, a satisfying career, and a marriage still strong and loving after nearly twenty years. But in the days following the assassination of John F. Kennedy, everything is about to change. It starts with the appearance of an old man at his door, ranting madly about money, death, and forgiveness. The man is a stranger to Pete--but not to his wife Lily. Only later does the truth come...