A Life in Men
Gina Frangello, 2014
Algonquin Books
432 pp.
ISBN-13: 9781616201630
Summary
The friendship between Mary and Nix had endured since childhood, a seemingly unbreakable bond, until the mid-1980s, when the two young women embarked on a summer vacation in Greece.
It was a trip initiated by Nix, who had just learned that Mary had been diagnosed with a disease that would cut her life short and who was determined that it be the vacation of a lifetime. But by the time their visit to Greece was over, Nix had withdrawn from their friendship, and Mary had no idea why.
Three years later, Nix is dead, and Mary returns to Europe to try to understand what went wrong. In the process she meets the first of many men that she will spend time with as she travels throughout the world. Through them she experiences not only a sexual awakening but a spiritual and emotional awakening that allows her to understand how the past and the future are connected and to appreciate the freedom to live life adventurously. (From the publisher.)
Author Bio
Gina Frangello is a cofounder of Other Voices Books and the editor of the fiction section at The Nervous Breakdown. She is also the author of one previous novel and a collection of short stories. She lives in Chicago. (From the publisher.)
Book Reviews
Diagnosed with cystic fibrosis at age 17, Mary Grace wants to understand why her lifelong friendship with Nix went awry during an ill-fated Greek vacation before their junior year of college..... Frangello’s novel packs an emotional punch throughout, particularly in its final third.
Publishers Weekly
Mary, is diagnosed with cystic fibrosis.... In a twist of fate, [her best friend] Nicole's life ends prematurely, and Mary tries to outrun her emotional burdens by living hard and reinventing herself in London.... Ambitious in breadth and scope. —Sonia Reppe, Stickney-Forest View P.L., IL
Library Journal
In this bravura performance, a quantum creative leap...Frangello astutely dissects the quandaries of female sexuality, adoption, terminal illness, and compound heartbreak in a torrent of tough-minded observations, audacious candor, and storytelling moxie.
Booklist
A stunning novel—Frangello’s broken characters live in a world of terror and redemption, of magnificent sadness and beauty.
Kirkus Reviews
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