An audio book.
Michael, a German orphan born in Germany, 1942, has been adopted by an American couple in New York. They're expecting a child of their own soon, which increases his sense of insecurity. He spends summer at Cape Cod with rich Mrs Kaplan and her fatherless grandson, Richie. On the long train trip he recalls his 2 years in an american camp - babies were preferred for adoption. At Cape Cod he talks to Mrs H, 67 y.o. wife of an artist. She's an artist too, frustrated. The PoV starts with Michael's mother, then the boy, then the artist's wife, then the boy, then the artist, the PoV sometimes shifting in mid chapter while one character stares at the next.
Michael likes Catherine, Mrs Kaplan's daughter, who has terminal cancer. Richie's angry at men who chat her mother up. The artists compete to gain the affections of the 2 boys. The male artist was famous, but recently he's not been successful.
Mrs Kaplan arranges a party. Before the artists arrive, Mr H wonders if he should confess something to his wife. At the party we witness old jokes and arguments revived, and tactics to avoid the boring guests. Michael, to his surprise, is presented by Mrs Kaplan as a successful result of her charity - the event is a fundraiser. Later Michael's accused of stealing some of the collected money. Finally Richie confesses that he did it. Mrs H attacks her hunband for wrecking her career. Also she's recognised some of the women in his paintings - she'd thought she was the model. He's tried to get her stuff sold but it's not very good. Fed up with the unjust criticism he leave her - for a few hours at least.
Other reviews
- Alan Murrin (The set piece in this novel is a party hosted by the Kaplans and it is almost 100 pages long. The author describes the gorgeous sense of anticipation in a house about to come alive. New players arrive and depart and cross paths with the central characters and Dwyer Hickey builds tension from even the most seemingly ordinary interactions)
- Goodreads
- lonesome reader
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