Love and Other Impossible Pursuits
By Ayelet Waldman
-pgs: 340
An interesting tale of a woman’s struggle to deal with being her husband’s second wife, the stepmother to his son, the other woman to his former wife, and the mother of his dead child. It is clear in the first chapter that the main character has suffered a great loss and is not dealing with her loss in a manageable way. This book has a flawed main character who needs to grow, experience and learn before she can become the wife, stepmother and mother she has pictured herself capable of being. I was pleasantly surprised by this story. Waldman does an excellent job of making this story very real and plausible. Her main character is definitely someone who you could relate to in the situation that she is in and that engages you in the story. This tale is like any piece of popular fiction engaging and easy to read. However, the first chapter is a little slow as the author attempts to establish the character and the conflicts. Once you get past this, the story is very enjoyable. Waldman currently writes the mystery fiction series The Mommy Track Series and this tale is from her early writings. A good story that was unexpected but enjoyable.