Meaningful Adjacencies (Paperback) (ISBN-13: 9798199020015)

"a heartfelt and deeply considered work that finds power in the individual stories it tells, and the message is moving: Even in moments of profound loss, human beings continue to reach for one another. An affecting portrayal of ordinary people responding to extraordinary circumstances." - Kirkus Reviews

Where were you on 9/11?

Seven New Yorkers' lives become deeply connected by both the World Trade Center attack and the hands of fate. Melvin, an unfulfilled night janitor; Lisbeth, a bitter single mother; Eddy and Diana, devoted Ecuadorian siblings; Jazmin, a cynical beauty; and Richard and Otto, an estranged father and son-strangers to one another-each find themselves in danger that Tuesday morning. As the day unfolds, the decisions they make influence the trajectories of one another's lives. What begins as a fight for survival ultimately becomes a journey of self-forgiveness and finding the grace to grow.

Along the way, we encounter memorable icons from New York City's rich cultural landscape, fact-based Twin Tower construction anecdotes remembering the innovation born within the buildings, Philippe Petit's wire-walking presented with startling angst as it was a well drafted rebellion of unknown proportions, the parallel life of a Minoru Yamasaki building presently standing in Saudi Arabia, and biopolitical issues in the representation of Powhatan, a peregrine falcon, and Hajji, a camel. The rebirth of a resurrection plant within the Rub' al Khali desert pays to the momentous ending.

Meaningful Adjacencies is a contemporary fiction novel that interweaves the minute details of these seemingly ordinary character's lives during the twenty-four hours of September 11, 2001. Through their experiences, the novel offers a thoughtful exploration of finding meaning amidst tragedy.

Author: Melody Cleven
ISBN-13: 9798199020015
Publisher: Independently Published
Language: English
Published: 05/28/2026
Pages: 208
Format: Paperback
Weight: 0.63lbs
Size: 9.00h x 6.00w x 0.48d

Review Citation(s):
Kirkus Reviews 10/15/2026