"We think we know the ones we love." So Pearlie Cook begins her indirect and devastating exploration of the mystery at the heart of every relationship: how we can ever truly know another person. It is 1953 and Pearlie, a dutiful young housewife, finds herself living in the Sunset District in San Francisco, caring not only for her husband's fragile health but also for her son, who is afflicted with polio. Then, one Saturday morning, a stranger appears on her doorstep, and everything changes. All the certainties by which Pearlie has lived and tried to protect her family are thrown into doubt. Does she know her husband at all? And what does the stranger want in return for his offer of a hundred thousand dollars? For six months in 1953 young Pearlie Cook struggles to understand the world around her, and most especially her husband, Holland. Pearlie's story is a meditation not only on love but also on the effects of war, with one war recently over and another coming to a close. Set in a climate of fear and repression–political, sexual, and racial–The Story of a Marriage from bestselling author Andrew Sean Greer, portrays three people trapped by the confines of their era, and the desperate measures they are prepared to take to escape it. Lyrical and surprising, The Story of a Marriage looks back at a period that we tend to misremember as one of innocence and simplicity.
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"Don't be fooled by the slim size of this luminous book. What a beautiful meditation, full of surprises and heartbreak and light. It asks the question How well can we really know someone? Its poetic answer lies in a well-told, lyrical story of one marriage. This is art." — Kim (5 out of 5 stars)
"Don't be fooled by the slim size of this luminous book. What a beautiful meditation, full of surprises and heartbreak and light. It asks the question How well can we really know someone? Its poetic answer lies in a well-told, lyrical story of one marriage. This is art."
Try Andrew Sean Greer's The Story of a Marriage for a compelling and unexpected story of a highly unusual marital dilemma in early 1950s San Francisco...It is Merkerson's deep and rich vioce that gives true voice to Pearlie Cook and the agonizing choice she must face about giving up or fighting for her husband. Greer's writing is sensitive without ever descending to sentiment, and literary without any condescension to his characters or his storytelling.
“Merkerson's nuance and projection inject character elements in Pearlie that while not present in the beginning of the novel come to fruition later on, thus performing the intriguing feat of vocal foreshadowing.
... [a] convincing performance. [Merkerson] conveys the subtle strength that emerges in Pearlie's voice as the story reveals how she matures and triumphs over unexpected challenges.
...be drawn in by S. Epatha Merkerson's extraordinary, finely nuanced performance, to find out, as Pearlie ultimately does, who Holland really is, where his passions lie and how the story of this marriage played out.
Andrew Sean Greer is a devastating new writer
[Greer] has an eerie maturity not often found in young novelists. His prose, incantatory but not overheated, idles along with a top-hatted, almost courtly elegance.
" I liked it and he writes really well. I wonder how many couples suffer in potentially wonderful relationships because of lack of communication. "
" WOW!!!I can see how his book has gotten such good reviews. It lived up to those high praises. It was full of surprises and kept me reading long into the night. It certainly has book group discussion written all over it! "
" About the 50's, aftermath of WWII, Korean War, marriage, knowing someone else, etc., etc. Was good. "
" Good and easy read for an airplane ride. More like a short story that became a nice little book. "
" Good, a little confusing, but I enjoyed. "
" Beautiful writing, interesting period ('50s America) with some unexpected twists; not as great as "Max Tivoli" but still a good read "
" This book is beautifully written . . . lovely language . . . very poetic. But, the characters didn't feel real to me. I couldn't connect to them or their struggles. While reading, I kept thinking how appropriate this takes place in San Francisco because it all feels so foggy. "
" I declared this novelist my new favorite this week. This book is a masterpiece. "
" Baffled and sometimes perplexed by it as well...interesting. "
" The prose of this novel was very beautiful and the poetry of it made the plot twists seem even more surprising. I will definitely add more Andrew Sean Greer to my reading list. "
" Really good -- subtle but surprising. My jaw literally dropped at least three times. "
" Dark weird story told by a woman about her marriage to a gay man, who she didn't know was gay for many years. "
" Really good book. Good for our book club discussion. "
" a very romantic writing...i juast read excerpt..i have yet to read the entire book "
" the twists in Greer's story are not added for simple shock effect...they work to bring you into his story and keep you there. I was very impressed. "
" I really loved this book. Beautiful. "
" What a touchingly beautiful book. "
" Great book to read, enjoyed every page. Not sure I understood the end though. "
" Don't bother. Read "The Confessions of Max Tivoli" instead. That's a winner. I want my 3 hours back for this one. "
" From the get go, this book portrays the inaccuracies of memories and emotions. "
" One of the most gripping and most lyrical explorations of the mystery at the heart of every relationship - how we can ever truly know another person. Beautifully written. "
" Started out really good but lost steam. Narrator was just too distant and the main event was revealed so early in the book but then took forever to get there. "
" Intriguing from beginning to end, well-written without being self-consciously so. First edition, hardback. "
" This book was very interesting and a great book club book. Lots to discuss but not for everyone. "
" It's beautifully written, but some of the plot is a little clunky. "
" wonderful story, a couple of quick turns! "
" I liked the quiet tone of this book, but I found the writing confounding at times. It was not always clear to me what the characters thought, or why they chose to do what they did. Nevertheless, I thought the story was compelling. "
" Decent tale, but I just could not get into the writing style. "
Andrew Sean Greer is the Pulitzer Prize-winning author of six works of fiction, including the bestsellers Less and The Confessions of Max Tivoli Greer has taught at a number of universities, including the Iowa Writers Workshop, been a TODAY show pick, a New York Public Library Cullman Center Fellow, a judge for the National Book Award, and a winner of the California Book Award and the New York Public Library Young Lions Award. He is the recipient of a NEA grant, a Guggenheim Fellowship, and the 2018 Pulitzer Prize for Fiction
S. Epatha Merkerson plays the role of Lieutenant Anita Van Buren on the perennial hit series Law & Order. An Emmy, Golden Globe, and SAG Award winner, Merkerson has won critical acclaim for her brilliant work in theater, television, and film. She is a native of Detroit and received a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree from Wayne State University. She lives in New York City.
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