An Available Man
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"In this tender and funny novel, award-winning author Hilma Wolitzer mines the unpredictable fallout of suddenly becoming single later in life, and the chaos and joys of falling in love the second time around. When Edward Schuyler, a modest and bookish sixty-two-year-old science teacher, is widowed,
… More »"In this tender and funny novel, award-winning author Hilma Wolitzer mines the unpredictable fallout of suddenly becoming single later in life, and the chaos and joys of falling in love the second time around. When Edward Schuyler, a modest and bookish sixty-two-year-old science teacher, is widowed, he finds himself ambushed by female attention. There are plenty of unattached women around, but a healthy, handsome, available man is a rare and desirable creature. Edward receives phone calls from widows seeking love, or at least lunch, while well-meaning friends try to set him up at dinner parties. Even an attractive married neighbor offers herself to him. The problem is that Edward doesn't feel available. He's still mourning his beloved wife, Bee, and prefers solitude and the familiar routine of work, gardening, and bird-watching. But then his stepchildren surprise him by placing a personal ad in The New York Review of Books on his behalf. Soon the letters flood in, and Edward is torn between his loyalty to Bee's memory and his growing longing for connection. Gradually, reluctantly, he begins dating ("dating after death, " as one correspondent puts it), and his encounters are variously startling, comical, and sad. Just when Edward thinks he has the game figured out, a chance meeting proves that love always arrives when it's least expected. With wit, warmth, and a keen understanding of the heart, An Available Man explores aspects of loneliness and togetherness, and the difference in the options open to menand women of a certain age. Most of all, the novel celebrates the endurance of love, and its thrilling capacity to bloom anew"--
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Add a CommentI found this book very enjoyable and written from an interesting perspective of am older lonely man. I recently read the Unlikely Pilgimage of Harold Fry by Rachel Joyce, and found this book kind of reminiscent of that one although the stories are very different. Neither are books that I would normally reach for, but I found myself liking them very much.
Such a wonderful book! I really enjoyed reading a story with a man as the central character for a change. It was a page turner and I loved the ending but was sorry it ended! I highly recommend this book and I'm looking forward to reading this authors other book.
Sixties something widower Edward Schuyler is grieving his beloved wife Bee. Following a suitable time though, his friends and family are wondering when he will relinquish his loss of a great love. What follows is an often hilarious, and sometimes poignant portrayal of Edward’s re-entry into the world of dating. The reader will never stop rooting for Edward as he encounters the grieving widow whose house is a shrine to her dead husband and the seventy-something plastic surgery addict who confesses a desperate search for vanished youth. And for a time he reunites with his former love, who left him at the altar all those years ago. I thoroughly enjoyed this tender exploration of the human spirit.
Beautifully written, careful study of a older man's life after his wife dies. SO refreshing to have a 60 something man as the main character! Funny, sweet, sorrowful, the novel would be great for book clubs. An American version of the wonderful Major Pettigrew's Last Stand.