Fleishman Is in Trouble: A Novel
A finely observed, timely exploration of marriage, divorce, and the bewildering dynamics of ambition from one of the most exciting writers working today. Toby Fleishman thought he knew what to expect when he and his wife of almost fifteen years separated. He could not have predicted that one day, in the middle of his summer of sexual emancipation, his wife would just drop their two children off at his place and simply not return. As Toby tries to figure out where Rachel went, all while juggling his patients at the hospital, his never-ending parental duties, and his new app-assisted sexual popularity, his tidy narrative of the spurned husband with the too-ambitious wife is his sole consolation. A searing, utterly unvarnished debut, Fleishman Is in Trouble is an insightful, unsettling, often hilarious exploration of a culture trying to navigate the fault lines of an institution that has proven to be worthy of our great wariness and our great hope.
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Fleishman is in Trouble by Taffy Brodesser-Akner
373 pages
What’s it about?
Toby Fleishman has been married to Rachel for fifteen years- some of them happy. When he finally asks Rachel for a divorce, he thinks he knows what to expect. He is sorely mistaken. From dating apps, to custody of the children- nothing goes as planned.
What did it make me think about?
Anyone who reads this will think about marriage, child care issues. and the role of women in the workplace. I was so impressed with how Ms. Brodesser-Akner was able to turn the "main child care giver" on its head by making the man (Toby) have that role in this story. Toby shoulders most of the childcare responsibilities and this allows the author more freedom to explore the complicated issues of two working parents. Also, she was able to look at the role of women in todays' marriages. She does have a few things to say about working outside the home versus not working outside the home. "No one had to tell me it was harder to have a job and be a mother. It was obvious. It was two full-time occupations. It's just math. Because having a job made you no less of a mother; you still had to do all that shit, too. Keeping track of your kids from afar isn't easier. Entrusting them to a stranger who was available for babysitting by virtue of the fact that she was incapable of doing anything else is not something that fills a person with faith and relaxation. Now that I have worked and stayed home I can confirm all this. Now that I stay home I can say it out loud. But now that I don't work, no one is listening." So maybe Ms. Brodesser-Akner has a strong perspective. I did not always agree with her but it sure makes you think.
Should I read it?
This is a gem! If you can take reading explicit sex scenes then you will really enjoy this novel. It has a lot to say about marriage and the changing (or not changing) role of women in our society. Don't you just love a book that keeps you turning the pages and then at the end you realize that the novel actually had a lot to say? Be patient with this one- especially when the narrator changes in a trance way. It took me a few pages to get into it but this is a good book!
Quote-
"It was all such an insult, the Hamptons. It was an insult to economic disparity. It was an insult to leading a good life and asking hard questions about what one should sacrifice in the name of decency. It was an insult to having enough- to knowing that there was such a thing as enough."
"But also, divorce is about forgetfulness- a decision to stop remembering the moment before all the chaos- the moment they fell in love, the moment they knew they were more special together than apart. Marriage lives in service to those moments. "
If you liked this try-
Freedom by Jonathan Franzen
Here I Am by Jonathan Safron Foer
A Place For Us by Fatima Farheer Mirza
We Are All Completely Beside Ourselves by Karen Joy Fowler
Fleishman is in Trouble by Taffy Brodesser-Akner
373 pages
What’s it about?
Toby Fleishman has been married to Rachel for fifteen years- some of them happy. When he finally asks Rachel for a divorce, he thinks he knows what to expect. He is sorely mistaken. From dating apps, to custody of the children- nothing goes as planned.
What did it make me think about?
Anyone who reads this will think about marriage, child care issues. and the role of women in the workplace. I was so impressed with how Ms. Brodesser-Akner was able to turn the "main child care giver" on its head by making the man (Toby) have that role in this story. Toby shoulders most of the childcare responsibilities and this allows the author more freedom to explore the complicated issues of two working parents. Also, she was able to look at the role of women in todays' marriages. She does have a few things to say about working outside the home versus not working outside the home. "No one had to tell me it was harder to have a job and be a mother. It was obvious. It was two full-time occupations. It's just math. Because having a job made you no less of a mother; you still had to do all that shit, too. Keeping track of your kids from afar isn't easier. Entrusting them to a stranger who was available for babysitting by virtue of the fact that she was incapable of doing anything else is not something that fills a person with faith and relaxation. Now that I have worked and stayed home I can confirm all this. Now that I stay home I can say it out loud. But now that I don't work, no one is listening." So maybe Ms. Brodesser-Akner has a strong perspective. I did not always agree with her but it sure makes you think.
Should I read it?
This is a gem! If you can take reading explicit sex scenes then you will really enjoy this novel. It has a lot to say about marriage and the changing (or not changing) role of women in our society. Don't you just love a book that keeps you turning the pages and then at the end you realize that the novel actually had a lot to say? Be patient with this one- especially when the narrator changes in a trance way. It took me a few pages to get into it but this is a good book!
Quote-
"It was all such an insult, the Hamptons. It was an insult to economic disparity. It was an insult to leading a good life and asking hard questions about what one should sacrifice in the name of decency. It was an insult to having enough- to knowing that there was such a thing as enough."
"But also, divorce is about forgetfulness- a decision to stop remembering the moment before all the chaos- the moment they fell in love, the moment they knew they were more special together than apart. Marriage lives in service to those moments. "
If you liked this try-
Freedom by Jonathan Franzen
Here I Am by Jonathan Safron Foer
A Place For Us by Fatima Farheer Mirza
We Are All Completely Beside Ourselves by Karen Joy Fowler
Did not enjoy at all. Hated all the characters and felt it didn’t really go anywhere. I’ve been told to watch the show though as that might help chance my perception…
Generally enjoyed both the chatty feminist writing and the empathic story with a little twist. It felt a little unbalanced because there seems quite a lot of the first part and not enough of the third (?) part to fully develop the character.
I had high expectations for this book after hearing a few recommendations.
It was unique in terms of the narration. The characters were flawed and 3D. The way it was structured created an undercurrent of mystery and it all doesn’t come together until the final chapter. I love how my sympathies were pushed and pulled throughout the novel.
Ultimately probably a very realistic, hopeful and sad account of life, marriage, work and family dynamics. And the final lines challenge us to be able to hold and somehow accept all of those competing realities at once.
“You could die of the loneliness but you could die of the optimism too; the optimism was just as crushing in the end”
So while I can appreciate a lot in this novel ultimately it didn’t meet my expectations. The first three quarters lagged a bit too much for my liking focusing on a self absorbed character, although perhaps I only realised that at the end. To be fair none of the characters are really likeable .. fully fledged humans after all. Overall, wouldn’t say I enjoyed this book and I wouldn’t necessary recommend it.
It was unique in terms of the narration. The characters were flawed and 3D. The way it was structured created an undercurrent of mystery and it all doesn’t come together until the final chapter. I love how my sympathies were pushed and pulled throughout the novel.
Ultimately probably a very realistic, hopeful and sad account of life, marriage, work and family dynamics. And the final lines challenge us to be able to hold and somehow accept all of those competing realities at once.
“You could die of the loneliness but you could die of the optimism too; the optimism was just as crushing in the end”
So while I can appreciate a lot in this novel ultimately it didn’t meet my expectations. The first three quarters lagged a bit too much for my liking focusing on a self absorbed character, although perhaps I only realised that at the end. To be fair none of the characters are really likeable .. fully fledged humans after all. Overall, wouldn’t say I enjoyed this book and I wouldn’t necessary recommend it.
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