Cornelius Sky, Timothy Brandoff
Cornelius Sky, Timothy Brandoff
List: $22.00 | Sale: $15.40
Club: $11.00

Cornelius Sky

Author: Timothy Brandoff

Narrator: B.J. Harrison

Unabridged: 6 hr 33 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Published: 12/01/2020


Synopsis

Cornelius Sky is a doorman in a posh Fifth Avenue apartment building that houses New York City’s elite, including a former First Lady whose husband was assassinated while in office. It is 1974 and New York City is heading toward a financial crisis. At work, Connie prides himself on his ability to buff a marble floor better than anyone, a talent that so far has kept him from being fired for his drinking. He pushes the boundaries of his duties, partying and playing board games with the former First Lady’s lonely thirteen-year-old son in the service stairwell—the only place where the boy is not spied upon mercilessly by the tabloid press and his Secret Service detail. Connie believes he is the only one who can offer true solace and companionship to this fatherless boy, but his constant neglect of his own sons and their mother reaches a boiling point. His wife changes the locks on his own door, and he finds himself wandering the mean streets of the city in his uniform, where unlikely angels offer him a path toward redemption. Cornelius Sky is an elegant picaresque that beautifully captures an opulent city on the edge of ruin and recovery.

Reviews

Goodreads review by Angela M on September 03, 2019

Cornelius Sky, Connie to those who know him, is on a downward spiral. He’s a doorman at an upscale apartment building in New York City in the 1970’s. He usually can only keep a job for about two years, until the tenants or boss have had enough of his drinking. He’s separated from his wife and two so......more

Goodreads review by Kasa on October 24, 2019

This is another of those coming-of-age-while-adult books that I've bumped up a star after reading about Timothy Brandoff, his inspiration for his character Connie Sky and how he has interwoven elements from his own life into the narrative. NYC in 1974 is a city in change (but really, when is it isn'......more

Goodreads review by Sue on July 31, 2019

Author and Novel's Backstory One hot summer's day in 1990, Timothy Brandon sought refuge in the public library. Wandering in the stacks, he discovered the numerous volumes of the New York Times Index. "I discovered two abstracts concerning family members. The first, from 1937, about my grandfather, co......more

Goodreads review by Chaya on August 07, 2019

This is a beautifully written book about the tragedy and grace to be found in the life of a doorman to the rich in 1970s New York City. Connie is an alcoholic who has been clinging to his union-protected job, and his wife and children, though he is in danger of losing both. He makes an unlikely frien......more

Goodreads review by Miriam on September 08, 2019

Read my full review here: [URL not allowed] New York in 1974. Cornelius Sky (Connie) is a doorman in the building where a former First Lady and her son (think JFK Jr.) live. Connie hangs out with the teenage boy, tries to keep him safe from the prying eyes of the paparazzi, and......more