Why read Why Did I Ever?

Book cover of Why Did I Ever

Book description

"Tense, moving, and hilarious . . . [A] dark jewel of a novel." ―Francine Prose, O, The Oprah Magazine

Three husbands have left her. I.R.S. agents are whamming on her door. And her beloved cat has gone missing. She's back and forth between Melanie, her secluded Southern town, and L.A.,…

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Why read it?

1 author picked Why Did I Ever as one of their favorite books. Why do they recommend it?

Eliza Robertson

Author

Why Did I Ever falls into my favorite genre of fiction, which I will describe loosely as “narrated by a sardonic, wincingly funny, tragic woman.” (See also: Lorrie Moore, Amy Hempel, Lauren Groff, Mary Gaitskill, among others.)

The narrator, Money, is a self-sabotaging script doctor whose daughter, Mev, is addicted to opioids, and whose son is under police protection following a violent assault.

As a seemingly directionless woman who spends much of the book driving or sourcing Ritalin, Money counts, in my books, as a “transgressive” mother. She’s also charming and likable. This book is dark and deeply affecting at…

From Eliza's list on featuring transgressive mothers.