The release date for the English version of 'American Wife' by
Curtis Sittenfeld is Sep 2008. If you enjoy this novel, it is available for buy as a paperback from Barnes & Noble or Indigo, as an ebook on the Amazon Kindle store, or as an audiobook on Audible.
Alice Blackwell muses on the peculiar and improbable route that brought her to the White House and the consequences of a life spent, as she puts it, "almost in opposition to itself" on what may turn out to be one of the most momentous days of her husband's administration.
Born into a modest Wisconsin town and with stern parents in the 1940s, Alice was a kind, scholarly only girl who quickly learned the value of manners. However, a catastrophic incident that occurred when she was seventeen destroyed her identity and taught her that life is unpredictable and luck is fleeting. Since she was serious and thoughtful and he would rather crack jokes than offer real insight, she barely gave him a second glance when they first met more than ten years later. Charlie Blackwell was the boisterous and charismatic son of a Republican party bastion family, while she was a school librarian and a registered Democrat. She was at ease in her modest and peaceful existence and had grown used to his attractions. Alice was shocked when she fell in love with Charlie.
Alice finds herself unhappy with her newfound good wealth even as she learns to navigate the bizarre traditions of the Blackwell family's country club and summer residence, all while managing their clannish energy and smug confidence. Alice is also forced into a role she did not want—one of luxury and responsibility, power and influence—when Charlie finally wins the presidency. Alice is forced to deal with paradoxes that have been building for years as Charlie's turbulent and contentious second term in the White House progresses: How could she love her spouse so much and yet be at odds with him? To what extent has she contributed to the course of her own life? When her own convictions conflict with her public character, what should she do?
New York Times bestselling author Curtis Sittenfeld has produced her most vibrant and nuanced protagonist to date in Alice Blackwell. In the exquisitely written book American Wife, class, fortune, race, and the whims of destiny are all skillfully woven together to create a stunning tapestry in which the unexpected becomes the inevitable and the joys and sorrows of closeness and love are revealed.
Bonus: A chapter from Sisterland by Curtis Sittenfeld is included in this version.