A Regular Couple

by Curtis Sittenfeld

Curtis Sittenfeld's A Regular Couple follows Maggie, a star lawyer who while on her honeymoon encounters her one-time nemesis, Ashley, the faded queen bee of her high school. Discovering that the erstwhile prom queen is married to a bore, Maggie might have felt pity for Ashley. But old resentments surge, and she can't quell the questions that rage within her. Could her wonderful new husband really love her, plain as she is despite her star-lawyer status? Or is he only with her for her money? Is she still that same gullible high-school girl? Shouldn't Maggie be married to the bore, and doesn't her new husband belong with Ashley?

Genres: Fiction, Chick Lit, Short Stories, Romance, Contemporary Romance, Contemporary, Womens Fiction

44 pages, ebook

First published December 30, 2009

About the author

Curtis Sittenfeld is the New York Times bestselling author of six novels, including Rodham, Eligible, Prep, American Wife, and Sisterland, as well as the collection You Think It, I'll Say It. Her books have been translated into thirty languages. In addition, her short stories have appeared in The New Yorker, The Washington Post Magazine, Esquire, and The Best American Short Stories, for which she has also been the guest editor. Her nonfiction has appeared in The New York Times, The Atlantic, Time, and Vanity Fair, and on public radio's This American Life.

Reviews

[Julie Ehlers · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was fun! I hope Curtis Sittenfeld releases a collection of her short stories someday, because I always like them but I'm sure I've missed a bunch.

[Ember DeBoer · Rating 3 out of 5]

I love Sittenfeld's writing style (which I was first introduced to in the novel Prep): she writes the way my high school girlfriends and I chat with each other. This short story was very relatable in regard to the struggle to transcend or "break free" of who we were (or at least who we were "pegged" to be) in high school. Much like the struggle not to be perceived and treated as our early, unfinished selves during family gatherings, I think many of us also hope to come across as someone more confident, cool, and successful than we once were when we run into high school classmates. The encounter between the main character and the "it" girl from her high school days, while on her honeymoon no less, allows the reader an inside look at main character's thoughts--both the rational and irrational ones--and is well-balanced between the "what you'd like to happen" (expected) conclusion and one that demonstrates that what we'd think is a satisfying closure to such an encounter may not, in the end, actually give us peace.

[Liz · Rating 3 out of 5]

Short that's part of her collection in "I'll think it, you say it."

[Cynthia Meister · Rating 5 out of 5]

Short stories, the great ones, the ones that leave you with something you didn’t have when you started reading, yet at the same time are devoid of tired cliches and predictable dialogue, are rare. They require the structure of a skilled writer and the keen insights of a person with eyes that see beneath the surface and touch a part of the soul. A story that has been told before, but not nearly so well.

Short stories, the great ones, the ones that leave you with something you didn’t have when you started reading, yet at the same time are devoid of tired cliches and predictable dialogue, are rare. They require the structure of a skilled writer and the keen insights of an author whose eyes see what’s on the surface and captures what lies underneath without underestimating the reader. In short, a story that has been told before, but not nearly so well.

[Carol Pierson Holding · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fun - flash back to a universal experience of high school insecurity with a grown up reversal at the end.

[Lisa Koivu · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not that great but the way Curtis immediately pulls you into the story is masterful.

[Stephanie Sun · Rating 3 out of 5]

Diverting, slightly dark.

Like Sittenfeld, Maggie, the main character in A Regular Couple, unexpectedly became famous in 2005. This story explores some interesting ideas about how power dynamics in relationships (both casual platonic and marital) can shift so easily, based on so little; and the uneasiness that this can cause those lucky enough to come out on top.

Not a bad read, but some/aspects of its dialogue, execution, and conception were half-baked.

[H · Rating 5 out of 5]

Despite being a short story, this is probably my second-favourite of Sittenfield's works, my favourite being American Wife.

The premise and internal dialogue is excellent. Who hasn't thought about what they'd do if they re-met the popular people they hated from high school, as adults? Maybe my low self-esteem is showing here.

[Swati Daftuar · Rating 3 out of 5]

Really enjoyed this, but the end sort of flattened the story for me. In a way, it was just right, but I think I was expecting more- dramatic reveals or confessions or something-- none of those would have suited the story particularly well, and Sittenfeld's version is the fitting one, but it is also so tame that I felt cheated.

[Tracy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Short story about a plain Jane lawyer who marries an unambitious man who is happy to spend her money. They run into another couple on their honeymoon and she is confronted with the discomfort of their difference in status and wonders about the state of her marriage.

[Joseph · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great short story that says worlds about marriage. Just like Tolstoy's Anna Karenina it offers wisdom without casting dispersions. I likey.

[Kim · Rating 4 out of 5]

LOVE Curtis Sittenfeld. Enjoyable short story.

[Monica Haley · Rating 4 out of 5]

Entertaining short story

[Veronica · Rating 5 out of 5]

Even though a short story- once again, Curtis Sittenfeld delivers and leaves you wanting more.

[Patti · Rating 4 out of 5]

Curtis Sittenfeld never disappoints! I just wish this were a novel and not a short story. I want more!

[Morgan Schulman · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wow. I hated high school with every once of my being, but it's always anti- climactic to see the tables turned. An interesting but depressing story, if you are up for moral ambiguity.

[Marceline · Rating 3 out of 5]

Perfect size to read on your iPhone kindle app.

[John Nullmeyer · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love this author and stumbled across this short from the Atlantic. Definitely recommend!

[Rachel · Rating 2 out of 5]

Meh.

[Catrien Deys · Rating 3 out of 5]

Nice quick read, would have liked it to last a bit longer, but it didn't linger.

[Gigi · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another home run from Sittenfeld. I wish she'd publish more short stories between novels!

[Alison · Rating 3 out of 5]

This short story isn't necessarily something to seek out, but it was interesting and well-done. I'm impressed how well I felt I knew/understood the main character in such a short story.