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Into Captivity They Will Go

Published by Central Avenue
Distributed by Simon & Schuster

About The Book

Deeply moving, sad and haunting..." Brandon Hobson, National Book Award Finalist and author of Where the Dead Sit Talking

Into Captivity They Will Go is a story for our time, told with sometimes brutal emotional honesty and always with compassion."—Jennifer Haupt, author of In the Shadow of 10,000 Hills

Set in rural Oklahoma, Into Captivity They Will Go tells the story of Caleb Gunter, a boy whose mother has convinced him he is the second coming of Jesus Christ and that together they are destined to lead the chosen into the Kingdom of Heaven.

Believing the Seven Seals detailed in Revelation have been opened, he and his mother flee their home to join a tongue-speaking evangelical church and to prepare for the end of the world, but after tragedy ensues, Caleb must rebuild his life without the only support he has ever known—his mother and the church.

An exploration of familial bonds and extremist faith, Into Captivity They Will Go is a whirlwind bildungsroman that reveals the fragility of a child's identity. It is at once a study of guilt and redemption, and a book of how shattered trust can yet still lay the foundation for an entire life.

"Into Captivity They Will Go is an immersive novel, capturing Caleb’s mindset in a way that is believable and heart-wrenching. Its visceral events grapple with topics of abuse, blind faith, and moral gray areas. As a microcosm of an apocalyptic present, Milligan’s clear understanding of Revelation provides a theological framework for his narrative that is compelling and terrifying." —Holly Jordan, Foreword Reviews

"[I]t is an intense and propulsive novel exploring what it means to be alive and spiritual in a world ignoring such ideas. I loved its rich imagery, its crystal-clear prose, and its strangeness." —Brandon Hobson, National Book Award Finalist and author of Where the Dead Sit Talking

"In a story like this, about Christian extremism in modern rural America, it'd be easy to go into ironic dark parody or grim horror, but Milligan skirts both of those and shows all the people involved as humans instead." —Molly Ringle, author of Lava Red, Feather Blue

Noah Milligan's Into Captivity They Will Go is a spectacular next read: it combines the deft characterizations of Ann Patchett with the imaginative stylings of Anthony Doerr, but sets them in the dry landscapes of Tony Hillerman. Make it your book club pick: everyone will be talking about it for weeks to come.

Noah Milligan's other books:
Five Hundred Poor
An Elegant Theory

About The Author

Noah Milligan splits his time between words and numbers and is a longtime student of physics. Born and raised in the Bible Belt, Noah Milligan is the author of the novel An Elegant Theory, the short story collection Five Hundred Poor, the poetry collaboration [Dis]Connected Volume 2 and and his most recent work, Into Captivity They Will Go.

An Elegant Theory was named a semifinalist for the Horatio Nelson Fiction Prize and a finalist for Foreword Review's 2016 Book of the Year. His short fiction has recently been published in Cowboy Jamboree, Orson's Review, Windmill: The Hofstra Journal of Literature and Art, and elsewhere.

He is a graduate of the MFA program at the University of Central Oklahoma and he lives in Edmond, Oklahoma with his wife and two children.

Product Details

  • Publisher: Central Avenue (October 1, 2019)
  • Length: 320 pages
  • ISBN13: 9781771681773

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Raves and Reviews

"[I]t is an intense and propulsive novel exploring what it means to be alive and spiritual in a world ignoring such ideas. I loved its rich imagery, its crystal-clear prose, and its strangeness." —Brandon Hobson, National Book Award Finalist and author of Where the Dead Sit Talking

“An ambitious and original novel that dares to explore – with both sharp-eyed clarity and full-hearted empathy – worlds and characters too often overlooked in contemporary fiction.” –Lou Berney, author of November Road

"Into Captivity They Will Go is an immersive novel, capturing Caleb’s mindset in a way that is believable and heart-wrenching. Its visceral events grapple with topics of abuse, blind faith, and moral gray areas. As a microcosm of an apocalyptic present, Milligan’s clear understanding of Revelation provides a theological framework for his narrative that is compelling and terrifying." —Holly Jordan, Foreword Reviews (starred)

"In a story like this, about Christian extremism in modern rural America, it'd be easy to go into ironic dark parody or grim horror, but Milligan skirts both of those and shows all the people involved as humans instead." - Molly Ringle, author of Lava Red, Feather Blue

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