Living With Men : A Novel

Abstract

This is a work of fiction based uopn autobiographical materials. George Santayana said, "To embroider upon experience is not to bear false witness to oneself." It is a first person narrative with the general theme of family llfe, the protagonist represents the rewards and limitations of living with a man and raising young men. Her counterpart, now dead, devoted herself to it career rather than family life. Flashbacks to their common experience in deciphering coded messages during wartime serves as a literary device leading to the 'deciphering' of the dead woman's character. The style is episodic and informal, relying heavily on dialogue. The introspective insights might place it in the tradition of Virginia Woolf's "Mrs. Dalloway." As a book reviewer for the past decade, I have had access to a good deal of Feminist literature. While not specifically in that genre, my book does address the questions raised by such contemporary authors as Midge Dector and Doris Lessing.