Better Homes & Husbands

by Valerie Ann Leff

980 Park, a fictional, pre-war co-op on the Northwest corner of Park Avenue and 83rd Street, houses the rich and famous-Sidney Sapphire, the blonde anchorwoman of ABC News, Angela Somoza, the gorgeous Nicaraguan jet-setter, Bob Horowitz, the former chairman of the United Jewish Appeals, and the usual collection of banking and industrial CEO's, Wall Street magnates, and white-haired philanthropists. The Brooklyn-born doorman, Vinnie Ferretti, joins the ranks when he becomes a major fashion designer.

The building's board, rich as clotted cream, sips gin in the afternoons and devises ways to keep out anyone deemed "inappropriate." Stifled resentments come to a head when the French baroness in the penthouse dies, and two Jewish families in the building suspect the co-op board of more discrimination with regard to prospective buyers than might be legal.

Better Homes and Husbands is a stylish, richly woven novel about class and caste feuds, played out with ferocity and etiquette in a posh New York apartment building during the tumultuous period of social change between 1970 and 2000.

Genres: Fiction, Chick Lit

272 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2004

Reviews

[Amy Challenger · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book has many lovely layers— first, Valerie's Leff's subtle, intellectual, slightly dark humor had me laughing out loud often and crying on the last page. I wanted to talk about these characters in a book club and wished for a sequel so that I could find out what they do next...Next, Leff incorporated layers of messages/social commentary spoken beneath the humor... including issues of racism, (and racism within races,) economic divisions, gender discrimination, educational snobbery, and simply the difficulties all people from all backgrounds face in relating to one another...Valerie Leff wove many characters together like a master storyteller...I wonder if this work might miss the reader who is simply looking for a quick fix. The personal stories covered here require a patient, compassionate reader attending to details— and a reader who can grasp all of the nuanced somewhat sophisticated messaging throughout the book. Make sure to read every page and think carefully when you read this wonderful story (or before you write a misleading review on Goodreads.)

[M · Rating 3 out of 5]

Ultimately I am giving this three stars - because for a book about Upper East Side that is a linked narrative - two strikes against it right there - I found it entertaining and well written. I thoroughly enjoyed the vignette when the doormen went on strike and the residents of the building had to open their door for the first time - there was a lot of great material there - and some of the stories were touching, or at least interesting. Towards the end, though, I got bored, and it was hard having so many stories and not one set of people to attach to, and a lot of it became ridiculous. Still, considering the last two whopping disasters I read, this was a refreshing change of pace.

[Joey · Rating 5 out of 5]

Terrific social satire about the residents of one very exclusive Manhattan apartment building -- so exclusive, in fact, that members of the board of the co-op are getting into trouble. I loved how the book moved from one apartment's family to another, as if I were riding up and down the elevator and stopping in on each floor. The sections about the granddaughter of the Nicaraguan dictator were particularly interesting and funny. Valerie Ann Leff brilliantly exposes her characters' flaws while still remaining compassionate -- by the end of the book, I actually liked the 'fascist' in paisley socks and even 'White Bread' herself.

[Christine · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very good book, chronicling 3 decades of life in the same Park Place apartment, in vignettes told by various inhabitants/employees. Author's writing is unadorned, simple and clear, and captures the scenes of the characters' lives very well. My first book of a Manhattan insider writing about contemporary New York and I enjoyed it immensely.

[Kristen · Rating 4 out of 5]

I thought this would be summer fluff and chose it for that reason, but it was actually a well-written social commentary on New York's Upper East Side during the last 50 years. Class issues, antisemitism are themes.

[Bonnie O'Donnell · Rating 3 out of 5]

i think any one of the chapters of this book could be made into it's own novel. That being said, each time I became interested in how a character felt, or relates to the others in the novel, I felt disappointed in that the next page would start up with a new person, a new perspective, and a new twist to the goings on within the building that they shared. I guess that was the point - to show a fractional peek into how the people who came and went lived. Always leave them wanting more? Well, this book succeeded in that hands down!

[Tammie Craig-niewedde · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fun little read, chronicling social status & struggles of many walks of life on New York’s Upper East Side.

[Manuel B. · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love it...but Umbridge is SOOOOO evil...*shudders* very good plot depth. I didn't like it as well as some of the others, but it's still very good...

[Kristine · Rating 3 out of 5]

Book jacket showed a good pedigree – parts of it had appeared in The Antioch Review, Chelsea, Lilith, and other journals, and the author is codirector of the Great Smokies Writing Program at UNC-Asheville. The Prologue had a promising start – an abstract of the building that this novel would revolve around, previewing the premise of the Lives that are Lived Here over a span of 30-some odd years, ending with “On the Upper East Side of Manhattan, the building, 980 Park Avenue, holds these stories within its walls, silent, like a book …” OK, I thought, someone who cares about words, about language, about sentences –
But then the characters were cardboard, with names like Dick Sapphire and Claudia Bloom, and Angelita Somoza, a niece or granddaughter or something of the Nicaraguan dictator, and a baroness living in the penthouse with guests like Jacqueline Onassis. Thin stories, held together by threads, no core of strong characters that you spent enough time with to care about. Some attempts at humor that, instead of being funny, wore little signs that said I am an attempt at humor. It took up most of the plane flight and then a couple of hours at a vacation place, and then it was over. I was glad I’d checked it out from the library instead of spending money on it and thought several times: OK, the good thing about a so-so novel is that it shows me an attainable goal. I read Barbara Kingsolver and ruefully conclude I will never come close to that, as long as I live, and that is probably an accurate assessment. I read this one, though, and say Now THAT I think I can do. And there’s stuff to be learned here, sort of: What makes these cardboard characters instead of flesh and blood ones that you learn to love or hate or care about so deeply that you miss them when the book’s over? How do you learn to construct real people instead of cardboard ones? Rule number one, after reading this book, is to stay away from silly names. Sandra Payne, who got pregnant at 16 and caused her parents no end of pain. Beverly Coddington, who took care of everyone but herself. Shelly Sapphire who became Sidney Sapphire when she started a career as a news anchor at 42. I like subtlety and this book just wasn’t subtle enough to be great – though face it, it had enough pretty good stories going that I finished it.

[MBenzz · Rating 3 out of 5]

I really looked forward to reading this book. It sounded like a pretty neat idea, a book following the lives of the residences of an upscale NYC building. But, it fell a little flat for me.

First off, I agree with the other reviewers who already mentioned this...this is NOT a novel. It's a collection of short stories that have one thing in common, the people at the center of the stories either live or work in the same building....that's it. Some are connected slightly, as friendly acquaintances, or members of the co-op board, but their lives don't really intersect.

Also, many of the stories left me feeling unfulfilled. Like Sandra Payne and her half American half Jamaican son Marley...what became of them? Did Sandra's father Charles actually leave Marley the apartment, did Sandra ever tell Marley about his real father? And the story of Madeline Sapphire...whatever became of her and her Italian lover? Did he leave his wife, did they continue their affair? And the last story about Beverly Coddington...what did she end up doing? Did she leave her rich comfortable life for the pharmacist? Did she end up carrying on an affair with the man?

I just had so many questions at the end of this book. I didn't find it very satisfying at all. But, on the other hand, it's a quick read that does have some interesting moments. In the end, I could take it or leave it. I'd recommend it only if you have nothing better to read, but it's not a total waste of time.

[Devon · Rating 3 out of 5]

I enjoyed Valerie Ann Leff's debut novel centering on the inhabitants of 980 Park Ave, a fictional co-op in Manhattan. Each chapter focused on a different tenant in the building as well as a different year, all the while tying in characters and events from other stories so that the reader is never left wondering what ever happened to so and so. I was rather impressed how Leff managed to keep each characters voice fresh and distinct throughout the book making the reader believe that many different people are indeed telling the story.

`BETTER HOMES &HUSBANDS' is charismatic, appealing and never dull, a great first effort from an author we should all keep an eye out for. Anyone who loves to relax and curl up with a good book at the end of a long day I highly recommend this delightful novel to you!

[Ashley · Rating 1 out of 5]

Utterly forgettable. The characters were half-formed and flat, there was a complete lack of a storyline or plot, and nothing earth-shattering or important happened.

"Better Homes and Husbands" follows some of the residents of a chi-chi apartment building in Manhatten, beginning in the 1970s until roughly 2000. While some chapters did delve more deeply into a few specific characters and their stories, it was always interrupted with the next chapter jumping forward a few years and focusing on a new set of characters.

It was fine, mindless reading for the gym, but very fluffy and kind of... pointless.

[Ladyslott · Rating 3 out of 5]

Disappointing. I thought the book had a good premise, the stories center around the inhabitants of one building on Park Avenue in NY, across a period of thirty years.

The book had a great opening chapter, but in the end I don't think there was enough character development. I don't like books that don't delve into why characters act in certain ways, and this book just gave a serious of vignettes of several characters without giving enough why's to their stories. I came to like several of the story lines and characters in the book and would have enjoyed reading more about them.

[Eli · Rating 1 out of 5]

This book didn't do a lot for me. Kissing in Manhattan by David Schickler is a much better collection of stories/novel about the interconnected lives of a building's tenants.

[Jessica Stern · Rating 4 out of 5]

The title of this book makes it sound sleazier than it is. It's a really good read, a series of short stories following the occupants of one particular NYC building through the years. Nicely done and moving at times.

[Melissa Cavanaugh · Rating 2 out of 5]

The author's characters were more like caricatures in this series of interlocking stories in a white glove co-op building on the UES. And most annoying, a few of the story lines were left unresolved! Two stars only because of my obsession with the rich and WASPy.

[Betty · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a real cute book and I enjoyed it a lot. There was not a continual theme with any one character....just several stories about people who lived in the same expensive apartment building in New York. Quite entertaining.

[Brittany · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book! East reading, interesting story lines... even the dated references were of interest. Despite the shallow, sex and the city style title and cover, it is a mature read with complex characters.

[Monica · Rating 2 out of 5]

I enjoyed how the characters were all somehow connected, I just would have appreciated an update on the resolutions to the situations they found themselves in. Eh.

[Barb · Rating 3 out of 5]

Cute quick read

[Jennifer · Rating 5 out of 5]

Love love love. A world I'll never be a part of and a great visit!

[Diane · Rating 2 out of 5]

I had a hard time staying with this book. I never felt any connections to the building or the residents.