{"product_id":"2940170176106","title":"Sweetness #9: A Novel","description":"\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\"Funny and moving. After this, nothing will ever taste the same again.\"--T. C. Boyle\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e \u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cbr\u003e It's 1973, and David Leveraux has landed his dream job as a Flavorist-in-Training, working in the secretive industry where chemists create the flavors for everything from the cherry in your can of soda to the butter on your popcorn. While testing a new artificial sweetener--\"Sweetness #9\"--he notices unusual side-effects in the laboratory rats and monkeys: anxiety, obesity, mutism, and a generalized dissatisfaction with life. David tries to blow the whistle, but he swallows it instead. Years later, Sweetness #9 is America's most popular sweetener--and David's family is changing. His wife is gaining weight, his son has stopped using verbs, and his daughter suffers from a generalized dissatisfaction with life. Is Sweetness #9 to blame, along with David's failure to stop it? Or are these just symptoms of the American condition? David's search for an answer unfolds in this expansive novel that is at once a comic satire, a family story, and a profound exploration of our deepest cultural anxieties. Wickedly funny and wildly imaginative, \u003ci\u003eSweetness #9\u003c\/i\u003e questions whether what we eat truly makes us who we are.\u003c\/div\u003e","brand":"Hachette Audio","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":47117162840304,"sku":"2940170176106","price":25.98,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0737\/7593\/9824\/files\/2940170176106_p0.jpg?v=1763704152","url":"https:\/\/shop-qa.barnesandnoble.com\/products\/2940170176106","provider":"Barnes \u0026 Noble (DEV)","version":"1.0","type":"link"}