Family

A story on relationships, this time a marriage. Plastic surgeon husband falls for a child badly burned in a backyard fire at a sleepover. The caring he feels for this child carries over to the child?s single mom. It tests the strength of his marriage of 7 yrs.

affairs are bad, this book ties to make you think differently, it was ok, but I never loved any of the characters ( )

Emily Giffin seems obsessed with infidelity in all of its facets, from the girl who stole her best friend’s fiancé (Something Borrowed) to the woman who flirts with rekindling a passionate love affair with an ex-boyfriend although she is happily married to a wonderful, though dull, man (Love the One You’re With) to a back and forth portrayal of two women betrayed by one man who supposedly loves them both (Heart of the Matter). Giffin may or may not be happily married in real life, but her understanding of infidelity seems to touch on all sides. Like Georgia O’Keefe and her fascination with flowers, Giffin’s fascination with infidelity keeps surfacing in her novels as if she is trying to write her way to understanding. Although Tessa seems real as a stay-at-home mother and Valerie seems real as a working single-parent, it is Nick Russo, the husband, who seems more complex than either of the women. Nick isn’t a typical no-good cheating husband, but he’s not a saint either. He prioritizes his work as a surgeon from which he obtains most of his self-esteem and he neglects his family, especially his children who do not even miss him when he and Tessa are separated. I am both intrigued and sickened by the sorry excuse of a husband who confesses more out of fear than out of his own truth, which would be his desire to leave his current life behind and start over with Valerie and Charles who view him as a heroic man who put back together the pieces of their lives. Nick’s affair with Valerie seems natural since he invests all of himself into his work, leaving nothing for his wife and children at home. His detachment from home and attachment to Valerie and Charles seemed “real” and his life with Tessa and the children did not. I think the ending may have been more satisfactory if Nick had left Tessa and the children or tried to juggle living two separate lives or frustrated Valerie with not leaving his family to create a new one with her. Nick’s struggle to reconcile his work persona with his home persona would have been more intriguing than the betrayed wife and victimized girlfriend routine. Since Giffin seems obsessed with infidelity, I would not be surprised to see this theme re-explored with new characters picking up where this book left off. ( )

When I started this book, I thought it would be another rich woman, seemingly perfect life, jerk of a husband kind of book. While it starts that way, the ending is good, and there is definitely food for thought. The message was a good one. A tragedy for a little boy changes the lives of people around him, and two women learn a lot about themselves in the process. ( )