Uncoupling

Author(s): Meg Wolitzer

Fiction

From the "New York Times"-bestselling author of "The Ten-Year Nap, " a funny, provocative, revealing novel about female desire. When the elliptical new drama teacher at Stellar Plains High School chooses for the school play "Lysistrata"-the comedy by Aristophanes in which women stop having sex with men in order to end a war-a strange spell seems to be cast over the school. Or, at least, over the women. One by one throughout the high school community, perfectly healthy, normal women and teenage girls turn away from their husbands and boyfriends in the bedroom, for reasons they don't really understand. As the women worry over their loss of passion, and the men become by turns unhappy, offended, and above all, confused, both sides are forced to look at their shared history, and at their sexual selves in a new light. As she did to such acclaim with the "New York Times" bestseller "The Ten-Year Nap, " Wolitzer tackles an issue that has deep ramifications for women's lives, in a way that makes it funny, riveting, and totally fresh-allowing us to see our own lives through her insightful lens. Read an essay about writing "The Uncoupling" from the author, Meg Wolitzer."


Product Information

"While zestfully exploring the nexus between complacency and desire, Wolitzer''s hip, glib, impish scenario shrewdly examines the intricate connections between war and sex and perceptively illuminates the power of timeless literature."
-"Booklist" (starred) "Wolitzer''s new novel, after "The Ten-Year Nap" and "The Position," is another well-written and engrossing tale. And this one is definitely more of a tale than a story. In the town of Stellar Plains, NJ, a new, bohemian drama teacher arrives at the local high school. She selects as the school play "Lysistrata," Aristophanes'' comedy in which the women decide to stop having sex with their men to convince them to stop fighting in a war. As the actors rehearse, a cool wind of a spell passes through the women of Stellar Plains. It touches other teachers and students alike. The chill makes the women want to abstain from sex. So what happens when an entire town of women start to push away their men for no apparent reason? Otherwise happy couples break up. The novel flits from English teacher to gym teacher to the lead actress in the play and on and on. It reads and infects like a dreamy fairy tale with beautifully expressive and strangely enticing writing. VERDICT Wolitzer again tackles a complicated and provocative subject, female sexuality, with creativity and insight. Her fans and readers of women''s fiction that''s smart and snappy will want this."
-"Library Journal" (starred)
"Wolitzer makes it work, thanks to sharp characterizations and acute observations on everything from the digital generation gap to the accommodations made in a long marriage. . . . A risky strategy pays off for a smart author whose work both amuses and hits home."
-"Kirkus"
"A high-school performance of Lysistrata has a mysterious effect: The women of a New Jersey town become increasingly disinterested in sex with their partners. In the alternately hilarious and poignant events that follow, couples reexamine their

General Fields

  • : 9781594487880
  • : Riverhead Books
  • : Riverhead Books
  • : 0.476
  • : April 2011
  • : 231mm X 155mm X 28mm
  • : United States
  • : books

Special Fields

  • : Meg Wolitzer
  • : Hardback with dustjacket
  • : 813.54
  • : very good
  • : 271