Realities

by Marian D. Schwartz

A year after her husband’s suicide, Jenny Weaver impulsively moves from a suburb in the Northeast to California. Her young children adjust to the move, but she does not. She has made only one friend, and she isn’t sure of how to handle the children’s problems.

In a moment of deep frustration and loneliness, she begins writing to her dead husband, Richard, establishing an intimate connection in which she tells him about her daily life.

She also writes about the past, the forces that led to the destruction of their marriage and the life they had worked hard to build. When the past becomes threatening, she decides not to write to him anymore, but she finds it impossible to stop. The answer to their children’s question -- “How-and why-did-Daddy-die?”—is in the past, and she can’t hide from the truth forever.

In this intimate personal narrative, Jenny confronts her challenges as a widow and a single mother.

Genres: Chick Lit

370 pages, Kindle Edition

First published August 27, 1981

About the author

I was born and raised in Buffalo, New York. Reading was my escape from the legendary Buffalo winters and probably contributed to my becoming a writer. You can find my books on APPLE, BARNES & NOBLE, WALMART and KOBO.

Reviews

[Lynn · Rating 4 out of 5]

The most interesting thing about this novel was that it had no chapters, but was an ongoing series of letters written by a woman, Jenny, to her dead husband. I had never seen this before, and if someone had described it, I would have thought it didn't sound like something which would appeal to me but in fact, it was very effective.

This is a well-told story, of a woman who is struggling to come to terms with the death of her husband. The reason for this (and I apologize if this is construed as a spoiler, but the fact is important to the rest of this review) is that the husband elected to kill himself. Jenny is left with two small children, and a whole bunch of people who won't have anything to do with her any longer, so she runs away to make a new life in California for herself and her children.

It's a wonderful back story, of her relationship with her husband, her parents, her old "friends" back in Eagles Landing woven in seamlessly with the events of the day. Jenny uses the letters as therapy, to reconcile herself to what has happened, to become less bitter about the way her husband chose to get out of his financial problems, to heal herself.

Jenny talks to her dead husband and each segment is a separate letter where she relates what happened to her that day, or since she last wrote. It flows well. At first I assumed Jenny was blameless, but as the letters continue, it is apparent that Jenny isn't quite as innocent as we first might believe, that she is a deep character, with short-comings and faults, insecurities and regrets. The only criticism I had was the end seemed to just end. As if the author needed to resolve all the issues because it was time to end it. Jenny writes of a decision she makes, before we knew the event that occurred which caused the decision to be made. Maybe I just wanted the book to go on and on, but it seemed to end abruptly.

This was a comforting book. I don't know how else to say it. I relished the times when I could come back to it. There wasn't one part that was boring. I would recommend this to all lovers of women's fiction. It's enjoyable from cover to cover (or from 1 to 100%) and hard to put down. I gave this four stars, but I debated about giving it five.

[Richda Mcnutt · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'm always hooked by the description of a book as being written in the form of letters - which may indicate that there's a voyeur residing within. Further adding to the hook was the revelation that these letters were to a dead person: Jennie's husband, who committed suicide. Reading the letters was painful at times, due to Jennie's growing self-awareness and acknowledgement of her own failures. The book cold have been dismissed as a soap opera-ish narrative, but as the title suggests, it was an honest depiction of the day-to-day struggles and triumphs of a young woman left alone with two small children. Frustrated, worried about her children, out-of-place in a strange new world (widowhood and California), dealing with work schedules, an unreliable vehicle, loneliness, emotionally distant and non-helpful parents - she somehow manages to not exactly transform her life, but to re-form it into an existence that she feels can move with her into a more satisfying future.

[Susan P. · Rating 5 out of 5]

"Realities" is an absorbing story of a young widow's efforts to cope with her husband's suicide and her new life as a single working mother. The plot unfolds in an interesting way - as a series of undated journal entries in which Jenny, the young wife, writes to her dead husband about her feelings of loss, rage and triumph as she negotiates this difficult transition. The characters and dialogue are so well-written and ring so true that I felt myself propelled through the book. I highly recommend it as a fascinating examination of a marriage and the aftereffects of suicide on a family.

[Nancy S · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this book. I am tired of novels that are predictable - there are so many! - and this one is not. Jenny is a young mother whose husband committed suicide. She is not perfect, and she makes mistakes, but it was a pleasure to see her grow and learn from her mistakes.

There are some minor grammatical errors, but I will probably read something else by this author.

[Rebecca Goerz (Wheeler) · Rating 3 out of 5]

I had a hard time with the continuous flow of writing with no chapters or other separations. The story wasn't too bad, I enjoyed it at times. The ending seemed very sudden leaving me with unanswered questions as to what happened.

[Dorothy Schweer · Rating 3 out of 5]

Title attracted me to reading book

I felt book was interesting but that it got to be a little lengthy in revealing the details related to suicide and the failure of the business. However, writer was able to hold my attention as I continued to seek the answers.

[Stephanie Scarbrough · Rating 5 out of 5]

This story is unique, entirely told in letters from Jenny to her late husband. I like the different style. I was invested in the story and the characters, and was sympathetic to the situation that the characters were in. Good read! I'd love to see what's next for Jenny and her family.

[Emily · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of the best books I have ever read. The premise was both heartbreaking and inspiring, and the writing was beautiful. I loved it!

[Becky · Rating 3 out of 5]

Weak ending, but totally absorbing otherwise.

[Patricia Fitzmaurice · Rating 4 out of 5]

I found this book very moving, I really did enjoy it. I finished the book it two days because I did not want to put it down.

[Marcia · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is written as one long letter from a wife to her late husband. I was captivated and could not put this down because I couldn't wait to find out what happened next. Utterly compelling!

[Diana · Rating 4 out of 5]

Even though this book dealt with a difficult subject, it didn't seem too heavy. It was well written, and suprisingly enjoyable.

[Sari · Rating 3 out of 5]

The story was good, but the lack of chapters made it difficult to pinpoint a stopping place.