Synopsis
With his father's ashes in an urn in his trunk, Griffin drives to Cape Cod for the wedding of his daughter's friend, a trip that back memories of his childhood summers at the cape, and his honeymoon there, when he and his wife made grand plans for their married life. Their plans came true--a New England home, family, an academic life--but somewhere along the way their marriage began to fray. One year later, Griffin heads out to Cape Cod once again, this time for his daughter's wedding, but now his mother's ashes are in the trunk, and both he and his wife are seeing other people. Will the idyllic dreams of Cape Cod, weddings, and youth be completely undone by the fickle whims of life? Pulitzer Prize winner Richard Russo (EMPIRE FALLS) spins out a breezy yet deeply heartfelt tale about losing your parents, losing your faith in love, and in the continual American hunt for a better tomorrow.
| Details | | Publication Date: | 2009-08-04 |
| Size | | Length: | 261 pages | | Height: | 9.5 in | | Width: | 6.5 in | | Thickness: | 1.2 in | | Weight: | 18.4 oz |
Publisher's Note
In a comic family saga by a best-selling Pulitzer Prize winner, Jack and Joy Griffin's lives seem to always come back to Cape Cod, where they honeymooned, as they experience the ups and downs of life, including the deaths of Jack's parents, the marriage of their daughter, and Jack and Joy's divorce. 200,000 first printing.
Industry Reviews
"In this wryly funny, introspective novel, Russo eschews the broad social canvas and small-town milieu that have been mainstays of his work. The scope may be narrow, but the result is an impressively expansive analysis of familial dynamics between not only spouses but also in-laws."
(07/01/2009)
"If there's a funnier serious book than THAT OLD CAPE MAGIC, it's in orbit in the Margaret Atwood galaxy....[W]hen we finish reading THAT OLD CAPE MAGIC, we know we'll start rereading it soon. And that the characters will come to mind at the most unpredictable times. We will stay on speaking terms with them more than we do with some of our real-life cousins."
(08/02/2009)
"Richard Russo has written a novel for people who are terrified of becoming their parents, which is to say for everybody....Although this is a much smaller canvas than Russo has worked on in recent years, what THAT OLD CAPE MAGIC lacks in breadth and plot momentum it makes up for with psychological nuance about the ties that bind -- and snap. It's a marvelous portrayal of the strands of affection and irritation that run through a family, entangling in-laws and children's crushes and even old friends."
(08/05/2009)
"Russo retains a magic that is anything but black and white, stale, or trite. This novel is suffused with his signature comic sensibility, and with insights, by turns tender and tough, about human frailty, forbearance, fortitude, and fervor."
(08/09/2009)
"Russo has written six previous novels...and we've come to expect certain things: a complicated skein of plotlines, deep connection to place, and affection for the large cast of characters who blunder and struggle through his pages. THAT OLD CAPE MAGIC does not disappoint."
(08/16/2009)
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