Fleishman is in Trouble

by Taffy Brodesser-Akner
Random House     2019
384 pages     Literary

Fleishman is in Trouble is a novel about a marriage that has failed. What were the reasons? What was the cause? Why? The book is an exploration of the concept, "And the two shall become one." This debut novel is a tough look at all marriage, particularly marriages in the 21st century. It is also a meditation about the value of marriage, as well as its fragility.

Toby Fleishman is a doctor in Manhattan; his ex-wife, Rachel, the owner of a successful talent agency. Apparently in the social milleau in which they travel, being a doctor is not enough and Rachel is the chief breadwinner. When the couple are divorced, Rachel must pay the alimony and Toby is totally lost. To add to the dilemma, Rachel has disappeared, leaving Toby totally in charge of his two confused children. Most of the narrative is about Toby, his anger and his angst. We also explore his search for a new sexual partner.

The story is told by Libby, a college friend of Toby's. Libby has been a journalist, but she is now a stay-at-mom of small children. After we know more about the author, we realize that Libby is a stand- in for the author. Although she seldom inserts herself in the narrative, she is astute in her portrayal of what has happened to Toby's marriage. Although Toby is sure that the fault is all Rachel's, Libby helps us understand that there is fault on all sides. We understand from her narrative that her own marriage is on pretty firm ground. She also tells the story of their old friend Seth, who after years of philandering, has set himself on a different marriage course. We watch that marriage unfold as well.

The reviewer in the Guardian says, "But Fleishman Is in Trouble is so much smarter than a Great American Novel wannabe written by another clever man." Like that reviewer, I found it incredibly profound and nuanced on the subject of marriage. To add to my enlightenment, I was with a lot of family and extended family members, all of whom had marriages to watch and evaluate. One of the concepts that Brodesser-Akner floats is that marriage has moved beyond equal partners to two individuals who have chosen to be together. There is little of the "he completes me" or "she really compliments him" that we saw in the past. At one point, Toby, in the thick of dating and having sex with women he has met on the Internet, has the thought: "Only briefly did he think to wonder if he was doing a bad job of thinking of the women he dated as people."

I have thought about the book daily since I finished reading it two weeks ago. I looked back over all the underlining I did, all the wonderful phrasing, and the great insights, and I still marvel at its profundity. This week I am watching a grandson and his girlfriend in their blossoming relationship, and I bask in the wonder of relationships--the good, the bad, and the ugly!

Taffy Brodesser-Akner is a celebrity interviewer for the New York Times Magazine. I am guessing that her years of viewing relationships from the outside have weighed heavily on her insights on marriage. I highly recommend Fleishman is in Trouble--one of my favorites of the year.

Among the Ten Thousand Things

by Julia Pierpont

Random House     2015

336 pages     Literary Fiction

I have been thinking a great deal about betrayal since I began reading Among the Ten Thousand Things. What constitutes betrayal? Can a person ever trust again after a betrayal? How do children recover from betrayal? Does the betrayer ever truly understand the ramifications of what he/she has done?  Julia Pierpont gives us a remarkable insight into betrayal and infidelity in a very honest, raw portrayal of a family in crisis. 

Jack, the husband of Deb and the father of Simon (15) and Kit (11) has an affair with a young woman—the beginnings of the betrayal. Deb discovers that he is having an affair but chooses to ignore it. When the affair ends, the young woman, feeling betrayed and abandoned, sends a package to Deb including all the miscellany of  the affair—emails, text messages, and online chats. (There is a lesson in this right off the bat.) The package is intercepted by daughter Kit, who thinks it is an early birthday present. Not quite understanding everything the package includes, she knows it is something salacious and wrong, so she gives it to her brother, Simon. Simon is so disgusted by what he reads that he passes it on immediately to his mother. Now, Deb, Jack, and the children must deal with the infidelity and ultimately, with the betrayal. Among the Ten Thousand Things explores how each family member, including Jack, responds to the letters, the betrayal, and the fallout.

We have much more sympathy for Simon and Kit than we do for the parents, although each parent tries in their own way to ease the pain for the children. Simon is more mature than one might expect, but he is also a typical teenager in his self-centeredness. Kit chooses to try to figure out the sexual context of the letters in the package by writing them into Seinfeld episodes—her favorite TV show. 

By following the paths taken by each of the characters, USA Today says "The shock of the new in Among the Ten Thousand Things comes less from its references to email and sitcoms than from its 28-year-old author's profound grasp of family dynamics, from her expert ventriloquism (her shifting between the various characters' voices and perspectives is distinct and assured), and from her structural boldness." One of the most striking portions of the book occurs right in a middle section in which the author tells us what is going to happen to the family in the years following the betrayal. It is an interesting place to put the first of two epilogues, but it causes the reader to truly ponder consequences. Some reviewers felt that the epilogue in the middle made the last half of the book extraneous, but I felt that it enhanced the drama.

Pierpont gives us a great insight into how individuals respond to family crisis.

I have witnessed several betrayals in my lifetime—some more debilitating than others. The truth that Pierpont expresses is that betrayal continues to color the life experience of all affected participants. Betrayal is something that just can't be glossed over or forgotten. The author speaks to this in the final epilogue of the book. Simon and Kit (now Katherine) are returning to their family apartment to gather up their childhood belongings. After lunch "Katherine paid the bill while Simon plucked dusty mints from the bowl by the register. When she pulled out her wallet, a strip of toilet paper flew out too. The mess of her bag was the first time Simon wondered if her life was not all the things she wanted it to seem." 

The review in USA Today.

The story of how Pierpont, a first time author, sold the manuscript. In Vogue.

Julia Pierpont's website.

  

  

Sweet Nothings

by Janis Thomas

 Berkley Books  2013

386 Pages     Fiction

The title says it all--"Sweet Nothings."  It is a trifle, a cupcake of a novel. It can be read in a couple of sittings, much like a cookie can be eaten in a couple of bites. But like a cookie, or a cake, you just gotta have a book like Sweet Nothings occasionally. Janis Thomas, the author, calls her books "Chick lit grows up" by which she means matrimonial suburbia, where the mundane aspects of life take over.

Sweet Nothings is a book about resilience. Ruby is the owner of a sweets bakery called Muffin Tops. In the opening chapters of the book her husband leaves her and their two children for another woman--not a sweet young thing, but a woman of his own age. This is almost a bigger insult than if he had left Ruby for a 20-something hottie. Ruby pulls herself together in short order with panache and great humor. She has a very rye way of looking at the world, but she is nothing but honest with herself, her children, and her world. She figures out a way to make her bakery profitable so that she can support her family. Ruby is a very likeable character, and her journey to a new life is inspiring. The closing lines of the book share her journey: "It's never too late to dream. It's never too late to believe."

The beauty of Sweet Nothings is that the serious topic of a woman left in the lurch could have been told with pain and suffering, but instead it is told with humor.There's a lot of baking in this book which adds to its enjoyment. Although there is very little remarkable about Sweet Nothings, it was a perfect book to read the week before our huge family descended on us for Christmas. Thank goodness for that, because there was no way that I could have read a heavy book as I was doing my own cooking and baking before the holidays. It actually may be the reason that I baked more than I usually do. Ruby's efforts inspired me.  My children and grandchildren should thank her.

Ruby reminded me a little of Diane Mott Davidson's character Goldy, and although there is no mystery involved in Sweet Nothings, the feistiness and humor are similar. I also remembered a friend whose husband left her for another middle-aged woman. She came to work one day with a picture of her ex with the new woman, who looked older and chubbier than my friend. The first thing out of my mouth was "He left you for her!" My friend told me that was the best thing that anyone said about the divorce. Ruby had some of those same emotions. All jilted women should be so strong.

Janis Thomas' website: http://www.janisthomas.com