List About Books The Widower's Tale
| Title | : | The Widower's Tale |
| Author | : | Julia Glass |
| Book Format | : | Hardcover |
| Book Edition | : | Special Edition |
| Pages | : | Pages: 416 pages |
| Published | : | September 7th 2010 by Pantheon (first published 2009) |
| Categories | : | Fiction. Contemporary. Family |
Julia Glass
Hardcover | Pages: 416 pages Rating: 3.66 | 10368 Users | 1458 Reviews
Interpretation In Favor Of Books The Widower's Tale
In a historic farmhouse outside Boston, seventy-year-old Percy Darling is settling happily into retirement: reading novels, watching old movies, and swimming naked in his pond. His routines are disrupted, however, when he is persuaded to let a locally beloved preschool take over his barn. As Percy sees his rural refuge overrun by children, parents, and teachers, he must reexamine the solitary life he has made in the three decades since the sudden death of his wife. No longer can he remain aloof from his community, his two grown daughters, or, to his shock, the precarious joy of falling in love.One relationship Percy treasures is the bond with his oldest grandchild, Robert, a premed student at Harvard. Robert has long assumed he will follow in the footsteps of his mother, a prominent physician, but he begins to question his ambitions when confronted by a charismatic roommate who preaches—and begins to practice—an extreme form of ecological activism, targeting Boston’s most affluent suburbs.
Meanwhile, two other men become fatefully involved with Percy and Robert: Ira, a gay teacher at the preschool, and Celestino, a Guatemalan gardener who works for Percy’s neighbor, each one striving to overcome a sense of personal exile. Choices made by all four men, as well as by the women around them, collide forcefully on one lovely spring evening, upending everyone’s lives, but none more radically than Percy’s.
With equal parts affection and satire, Julia Glass spins a captivating tale about the loyalties, rivalries, and secrets of a very particular family. Yet again, she plumbs the human heart brilliantly, dramatically, and movingly.
Specify Books As The Widower's Tale
| Original Title: | The Widowerʼs Tale |
| ISBN: | 030737792X (ISBN13: 9780307377920) |
| Edition Language: | English |
| Setting: | Massachusetts(United States) |
Rating About Books The Widower's Tale
Ratings: 3.66 From 10368 Users | 1458 ReviewsWeigh Up About Books The Widower's Tale
This was the first time I've read Julia Glass, and I was awed by her character development and stunning prose. I love books that make me think, "Oh, how I wish I could write like this!" Glass's characters are authentic. They deal with their own foibles, beliefs, hurts and carefully guarded self-perspectives as they also attempt to maintain sometimes-fragile family relationships. I thoroughly enjoyed observing the process of Percy's emergence from 30 years of living in the past to reach a futureI'm very bitter about this book: it got rave reviews for its touching character studies and perceptive social commentary, so I bought it and waited for a pleasant Friday evening to start reading. I made it through about six chapters and gave up, and I was PISSED. The main character is a 70-year-old man. He came to adulthood in the 50s, right? Here's how he talks to a salesgirl: "I'm having one of those -- what youngsters so blithely call 'a senior moment.' I thank you for your cordial
Julia Glass gifts her readers with a stunning tale, a tale that encompasses multigenerational relationships, love and self-forgiveness, family loyalty and betrayal, the meaning of parenthood, and the intricate web of human connections.Percy Darling a 70-year-old retired librarian with an offbeat wit and courtly manners is at the vortex of this novel, the only character that narrates from the first-person perspective. He has spent years in self-afflicted soltitude following the senseless and
Glass is, quite simply, a wonderful writer, and her newest book The Widowers Tale is a fantastic addition to her growing canon. In her elegant and intelligent, yet breezy and accessible prose, the author tells a multi-layered family story that centers around a seventy year old retired librarian. Percy Darling may be resigned to spend his retirement in a quietly vigorous manner, but the goings-on of his family and his own unexpected romantic feelings toward a local artist conspire to change the
I strongly recommend this poignant book which brings forth characters you'd love to meet starting with the Widower Percival Darling. Retired Harvard librarian Percy has lived over 30 years without his beloved Poppy and has raised their two daughters, workaholic, overachiever breast oncologist Trudy and aimless Clover who has left her husband and two children in New York. At 70 cantankerous Percy has a well established rich life but he's forced to make some changes as he allows his property to be
A very leisurely read (perfect for my week-long vacation), but in the end a delightful book. I loved crochety old Percy Darling, and Celestino, the illegal Guatemalan immigrant, who reminded me of an old friend. Despite the fact that the book revolves around mostly privileged people in a fictionalized version of Lincoln, MA, I found it had much to say about the human condition -- and was generally reassuring in the end. I think I'll search out more of her books.
I'm very bitter about this book: it got rave reviews for its touching character studies and perceptive social commentary, so I bought it and waited for a pleasant Friday evening to start reading. I made it through about six chapters and gave up, and I was PISSED. The main character is a 70-year-old man. He came to adulthood in the 50s, right? Here's how he talks to a salesgirl: "I'm having one of those -- what youngsters so blithely call 'a senior moment.' I thank you for your cordial
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