This memoir is the story of Anne Roiphe, a novelist, who at 69 years of age, lost her husband of almost 40 years rather unexpectedly. She was unprepared for life on her own, and she found it difficult to piece together the basics for a new life, as her grief at times seemed unbearable.Several months after her husband's death, her daughters placed a personal ad in the New York Review of Books. They described their mother as a writer, and an attractive woman who loved the ocean and books. What follows are several detailed meetings with new acquaintances, often humorous to some degree, but none of these lead to a new satisfying relationship.
I expected that this book would be a story about a widow who made a new life for herself after the death of her spouse, but although parts of this memoir were very good, I did find a good portion of the book to be one big pity-party. I realize that there are various stages of grief that one must pass through, before moving on to another stage in life, however, Ms. Roiphe was just so dependent on her former husband that I got annoyed by that: she never unlocked her door before, because he always did it; she never hailed a cab alone in NYC, because he did it. It all just seemed a bit much. Despite these criticisms, I do see how this book might comfort someone who has experienced a recent loss.
RATING - 3/5 - COMPLETED - 1/26/09
Where From: Library
Epilogue a Memoir by Anne Roiphe does not only describe the lost of her beloved Husband H, but the difficulties she has faced through out all her life. With each issue she had countered, whether it was going through the lost of her mother to her divorce in her first marriage, she had the courage to let her pain out gracefully then let her adversities get to her character. One major theme in this book is the wisdom of growing older. Anne learned that with each challenge that was brought to her in life, the challenge made her stronger. Another theme would be love. Anne had the fear that if she could never love again. That she might not be able to find someone to complete her like H did, that she was destined to be a "loveless corpse" for the rest of her life.
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