Atwood wondered: are marriage and childbearing the true legacy of all women?įifty-three years after Margaret Atwood published THE EDIBLE WOMAN, a new Canadian author, Robin Yeatman, has stepped forward to ask, in her debut novel, BOOKWORM, what has changed for women? Atwood pondered the possibility: are perfect men, everywhere, the balm to calm all women? Fifty-three years have passed since Ms. In short, Marian feels as though a peter is trying to eat her.įifty-three years have passed since Ms. Marian can't figure out why she isn't thrilled to be the future wife of Peter, a handsome and successful man whose name has a double meaning, a play on “perfect” and the male genitalia. It was called THE EDIBLE WOMAN, and it featured a quirky protagonist, a woman named Marian McAlpin, who is quickly approaching her wedding day, an event celebrated by all. Marian can't figure out why she isn't thrilled to be the future wife of Peter, a handsome and successful man whose name h On the very last day of the year 1969, a young Canadian author named Margaret Atwood stepped forward from the male-dominated milieu of fiction writing and handed the world her debut novel. On the very last day of the year 1969, a young Canadian author named Margaret Atwood stepped forward from the male-dominated milieu of fiction writing and handed the world her debut novel. It's all just harmless fantasy born of Victoria's fevered imagination and her books-until, one night, fiction and reality blur and suddenly it seems Victoria is about to get everything she's wished for. She begins to fantasize about nocturnal trysts with cafe man, and imaginative ways (poisoned pickles were an inspired choice in Jane Smiley's A Thousand Acres) of getting rid of the dread husband.

Frustrated, and desperate to change her life, Victoria retreats to the dark places in her mind and thinks back to all the stories she's ever read in hopes of finding a solution. The handsome book lover must be her soul mate. A woman yearning for her own happy ending, Victoria is sure it's fate. One day, in a favorite cafe, she notices an attractive man reading the same talked-about bestselling novel that she is reading. Burdened with overbearing in-laws, a boring dead-end job she can't seem to leave, and a best friend who doesn't seem to understand her, Victoria finds solace from the daily grind in her beloved books and the stories she makes up in her head. Victoria is unhappily married to an ambitious and controlling lawyer consumed with his career. Burdened with overbearing in-laws, a boring dead-end job she can't seem to leave, and a best A wickedly funny debut novel-a black comedy with a generous heart that explores the power of imagination and reading-about a woman who tries to use fiction to find her way to happiness. A wickedly funny debut novel-a black comedy with a generous heart that explores the power of imagination and reading-about a woman who tries to use fiction to find her way to happiness.

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