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37

ebook
2 of 2 copies available
2 of 2 copies available
On the eve of her thirty-seventh birthday, Fran Clark finds herself in a role she would never have envisioned: that of a surprisingly desperate housewife. As Fran halfheartedly attempts to relaunch her once-vibrant career as a voiceover artist and obsesses over keeping up with the ruthless mothers' scene at her children's school, she begins to realize that her thirty-seventh year isn't going to resemble the midlife bliss she had imagined. Instead, she makes excuses for the fact that she's depressed and drinking — a lot. But when Fran realizes she has failed her children one too many times, and begins to suspect her husband is having an affair, she knows she has hit rock bottom. It is Fran's two closest friends who ultimately come to her rescue. She learns to thank them for her salvation — not because they are there for her, but because she discovers how to be there for them. Literate and well written, 37 is a searingly intimate and compulsively readable novel, a very modern diary of a (not quite) mad housewife. Filled with acute, often bitingly funny observations about motherhood, friendship, and the claustrophobia of suburbia, this pitch-perfect novel will resonate with any woman who has ever been stricken with self-doubt. 37 is Maria Beaumont's third novel. After the mums from her kids' school have finished with her, it may be her last.
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    • Publisher's Weekly

      October 22, 2007
      British author Beaumont’s American debut tells the story of a once successful London voiceover artist nearing the end of her 30s and possibly a divorce. Narrator Fran Clark, a 36-year-old stay-at-home mother of two, has been stuck in a rut for nearly 11 years. Her marketing genius husband Richard’s career has taken off, and though he’s spending less time at home, he wants Fran to get back into the voiceover game because he thinks it’ll make her happier. Fran, however, chickens out before every audition and soon suspects Richard’s cheating on her. Run-ins with gossipy mothers at the children’s school, missed auditions, accusations of unfit parenting by the school principal, a dangerous flirtation with alcoholism and her friends’ separate life dramas provide the obstacles to Fran’s mission of getting herself sorted out. It’s enjoyable mommy lit, aided by ample doses of British humor, breezy storytelling and an upbeat feel even in the down moments.

    • Publisher's Weekly

      Starred review from March 31, 2008
      Nothing could be more challenging for an audiobook reader than to take on the character of a voice-over artist. Fran Clark, a well-to-do Londoner burnt out thanks to two small children, an unfaithful husband and two unexpectedly pregnant friends, is in the grip of early onset midlife crisis and a career-ruining case of stage fright. Kate Reading's bravura performance nails down every character, including the mothers in a posh London district, a Germanic school administrator, many small children and Fran's charming but wayward husband, who is given a suave, sexy voice that ignites his thousand-watt smile. The grand finale finds Fran attempting to impress her children's friends and their parents by imitating the cast of The Simpsons
      , Bette Davis and a few politicians, all in a few moments' time, during which she switches back and forth to the reactions of her audience. Reading turns this amiable novel into a tour de force performance that is funny, fast-moving and fearless. Simultaneous release with the Hyperion hardcover (Reviews, Oct. 22, 2007).

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Languages

  • English

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