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eBook editions

The Three Weissmanns of Westport

by Cathleen Schine

The Three Weissmanns of Westport Cover

ISBN13: 9780374299040
ISBN10: 0374299048
Condition: Standard
Dustjacket: Standard
All Product Details

 

Synopses & Reviews

Publisher Comments:

Jane Austens beloved Sense and Sensibility has moved to Westport, Connecticut, in this enchanting modern-day homage to the classic novel
 
When Joseph Weissmann divorced his wife, he was seventy eight years old and she was seventy-five . . . He said the words “Irreconcilable differences,” and saw real confusion in his wifes eyes.
 
“Irreconcilable differences?” she said. “Of course there are irreconcilable differences. What on earth does that have to do with divorce?”
 
Thus begins The Three Weissmanns of Westport, a sparkling contemporary adaptation of Sense and Sensibility from the always winning Cathleen Schine, who has already been crowned “a modern-day Jewish Jane Austen” by Peoples Leah Rozen.
 
In Schines story, sisters Miranda, an impulsive but successful literary agent, and Annie, a pragmatic library director, quite unexpectedly find themselves the middle-aged products of a broken home. Dumped by her husband of nearly fifty years and then exiled from their elegant New York apartment by his mistress, Betty is forced to move to a small, run-down Westport, Connecticut, beach cottage. Joining her are Miranda and Annie, who dutifully comes along to keep an eye on her capricious mother and sister. As the sisters mingle with the suburban aristocracy, love starts to blossom for both of them, and they find themselves struggling with the dueling demands of reason and romance.

Review:

"A geriatric stepfather falls in love with a scheming woman half his age in Schine's Sense and Sensibility — flecked and compulsively readable follow-up to The New Yorkers. Betty Weissman is 75 when Joseph, her husband of nearly 50 years, announces he's divorcing her. Soon, Betty moves out of their grand Central Park West apartment and Joseph's conniving girlfriend, Felicity, moves in. Betty lands in a rundown Westport, Conn., beach cottage, but things quickly get more complicated when Betty's daughters run into their own problems. Literary agent Miranda is sued into bankruptcy after it's revealed that some of her authors made up their lurid memoirs, and Annie, drowning in debt, can no longer afford her apartment. Once they relocate to Westport, both girls fall in love — Annie rather awkwardly with the brother of her stepfather's paramour, and Miranda with a younger actor who has a young son. An Austen-esque mischief hovers over these romantic relationships as the three women figure out how to survive and thrive. It's a smart crowd pleaser with lovably flawed leads and the best tearjerker finale you're likely to read this year." Publishers Weekly (Copyright Reed Business Information, Inc.)

Synopsis:

A New York Times Best Seller

A New York Times Book Review Editors' Choice

Betty Weissmann has just been dumped by her husband of forty-eight years. Exiled from her elegant New York apartment by her husbands mistress, she and her two middle-aged daughters, Miranda and Annie, regroup in a run-down Westport, Connecticut, beach cottage. In Schines playful and devoted homage to Jane Austens Sense and Sensibility, the impulsive sister is Miranda, a literary agent entangled in a series of scandals, and the more pragmatic sister is Annie, a library director, who feels compelled to move in and watch over her capricious mother and sister. Schines witty, wonderful novelis simply full of pleasure: the pleasure of reading, the pleasure of Austen, and the pleasure that the characters so rightly and humorously pursue….An absolute triumph” (The Cleveland Plain Dealer).

About the Author

Cathleen Schine is the author of The New Yorkers and The Love Letter, among other novels. She has contributed to The New Yorker, The New York Review of Books, The New York Times Magazine, and The New York Times Book Review.

What Our Readers Are Saying

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Average customer rating based on 2 comments:

Cathy from Olympia, Washington, June 9, 2010 (view all comments by Cathy from Olympia, Washington)
A modern twist on Sense and Sensibility complete with infidelity, divorce, soap operas and sex. Austen's main characters all make appearances-- including several greedy, grasping, conniving women out to win wealthy husbands and leaving heartbreak in their wake. Oh, and guess which Sense and Sensibility character library director Annie is?! ;-) Over all, very good, though not, perhaps a book for Austen purists.
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Bookwomyn, February 18, 2010 (view all comments by Bookwomyn)
I love this book! Divorce amongst the elderly ... family issues, problem adult 'children' - wicked 'other woman' ... what's not to love? As reviewers have mentioned it is akin to Austen's "Sense and Sensibility" - but in the 21st century. It's a great book! It's a follow up to "The New Yorkers" which was very good also.
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Product Details

ISBN:
9780374299040
Subtitle:
A Novel
Author:
Schine, Cathleen
Publisher:
Picador
Subject:
Mothers and daughters
Subject:
Domestic fiction
Subject:
General
Subject:
Literary
Subject:
Contemporary Women
Subject:
Literature-A to Z
Copyright:
Edition Description:
Trade Cloth
Publication Date:
20110201
Binding:
Electronic book text in proprietary or open standard format
Grade Level:
General/trade
Language:
English
Pages:
304
Dimensions:
8.26 x 5.51 x 0.8 in

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The Three Weissmanns of Westport Used Hardcover
0 stars - 0 reviews
$8.50 In Stock
Product details 304 pages Farrar Straus Giroux - English 9780374299040 Reviews:
"Publishers Weekly Review" by , "A geriatric stepfather falls in love with a scheming woman half his age in Schine's Sense and Sensibility — flecked and compulsively readable follow-up to The New Yorkers. Betty Weissman is 75 when Joseph, her husband of nearly 50 years, announces he's divorcing her. Soon, Betty moves out of their grand Central Park West apartment and Joseph's conniving girlfriend, Felicity, moves in. Betty lands in a rundown Westport, Conn., beach cottage, but things quickly get more complicated when Betty's daughters run into their own problems. Literary agent Miranda is sued into bankruptcy after it's revealed that some of her authors made up their lurid memoirs, and Annie, drowning in debt, can no longer afford her apartment. Once they relocate to Westport, both girls fall in love — Annie rather awkwardly with the brother of her stepfather's paramour, and Miranda with a younger actor who has a young son. An Austen-esque mischief hovers over these romantic relationships as the three women figure out how to survive and thrive. It's a smart crowd pleaser with lovably flawed leads and the best tearjerker finale you're likely to read this year." Publishers Weekly (Copyright Reed Business Information, Inc.)
"Synopsis" by ,

A New York Times Best Seller

A New York Times Book Review Editors' Choice

Betty Weissmann has just been dumped by her husband of forty-eight years. Exiled from her elegant New York apartment by her husbands mistress, she and her two middle-aged daughters, Miranda and Annie, regroup in a run-down Westport, Connecticut, beach cottage. In Schines playful and devoted homage to Jane Austens Sense and Sensibility, the impulsive sister is Miranda, a literary agent entangled in a series of scandals, and the more pragmatic sister is Annie, a library director, who feels compelled to move in and watch over her capricious mother and sister. Schines witty, wonderful novelis simply full of pleasure: the pleasure of reading, the pleasure of Austen, and the pleasure that the characters so rightly and humorously pursue….An absolute triumph” (The Cleveland Plain Dealer).

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