Harper Paperbacks
Good Riddance
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Good Riddance
Author(s): Elinor Lipman
In a delightful new romantic comedy from Elinor Lipman, one woman’s trash becomes another woman’s treasure, with deliriously entertaining results.
Daphne Maritch doesn't quite know what to make of the heavily annotated high school yearbook she inherits from her mother, who held this relic dear. Too dear. The late June Winter Maritch was the teacher to whom the class of '68 had dedicated its yearbook, and in turn she went on to attend every reunion, scribbling notes and observations after each one—not always charitably—and noting who overstepped boundaries of many kinds.
In a fit of decluttering (the yearbook did not, Daphne concluded, "spark joy"), she discards it when she moves to a small New York City apartment. But when it's found in the recycling bin by a busybody neighbor/documentary filmmaker, the yearbook's mysteries—not to mention her own family's—take on a whole new urgency, and Daphne finds herself entangled in a series of events both poignant and absurd.
Good Riddance is a pitch-perfect, whip-smart new novel from an "enchanting, infinitely witty yet serious, exceptionally intelligent, wholly original, and Austen-like stylist" (Washington Post).
Review(s):
A New York Times Editors' Choice A LibraryReads Pick Included in the Publishers Lunch "Publishing Preview"
“Effortlessly charming . . . The book inspires a very specific kind of modern joy.”
"A clever romantic comedy from a pro . . . The rollicking plot ultimately leads to romance, revealing this witty story’s warm and fuzzy heart."
"[Lipman] has long been one of our wittiest chroniclers of modern-day romance. [Her] writing is brisk and intelligent, and if the plot of this novel is zanier than her usual fare, that too may show just how plugged-in she is to out farfetched times."
"A vastly entertaining screwball comedy...Witty, dippy and daft, we have here a genuine, guilty pleasure."
“The ultimate V-Day binge read.”
“Lipman is the easiest writer to read, but she stays with you because she’s such a good writer…A true pleasure…[She] is such a fine stylist…[Good Riddance] is hilarious, [with] wonderful romantic elements [and] a witty line on every page, in every paragraph.”
"Lipman is a writer to savor. Her wit is at once light and serious, ringing with humanity, and her tangled plots are full of surprises...Her writing is reminiscent of the late, fine writer Laurie Colwin."
“To the many readers who have happily drowned their worries in the sparkling waters of Lipman’s fizzy fiction, it is obvious that Lipman was born to entertain us . . . Lipman writes with a light, wry touch that tips a hat to life’s many challenges but never throws in the towel.”
“When you come to the end of Good Riddance […] you’ll definitely be delighted.”
ISBN: 9780358108559
Author(s): Elinor Lipman
In a delightful new romantic comedy from Elinor Lipman, one woman’s trash becomes another woman’s treasure, with deliriously entertaining results.
Daphne Maritch doesn't quite know what to make of the heavily annotated high school yearbook she inherits from her mother, who held this relic dear. Too dear. The late June Winter Maritch was the teacher to whom the class of '68 had dedicated its yearbook, and in turn she went on to attend every reunion, scribbling notes and observations after each one—not always charitably—and noting who overstepped boundaries of many kinds.
In a fit of decluttering (the yearbook did not, Daphne concluded, "spark joy"), she discards it when she moves to a small New York City apartment. But when it's found in the recycling bin by a busybody neighbor/documentary filmmaker, the yearbook's mysteries—not to mention her own family's—take on a whole new urgency, and Daphne finds herself entangled in a series of events both poignant and absurd.
Good Riddance is a pitch-perfect, whip-smart new novel from an "enchanting, infinitely witty yet serious, exceptionally intelligent, wholly original, and Austen-like stylist" (Washington Post).
Review(s):
A New York Times Editors' Choice A LibraryReads Pick Included in the Publishers Lunch "Publishing Preview"
“Effortlessly charming . . . The book inspires a very specific kind of modern joy.”
"A clever romantic comedy from a pro . . . The rollicking plot ultimately leads to romance, revealing this witty story’s warm and fuzzy heart."
"[Lipman] has long been one of our wittiest chroniclers of modern-day romance. [Her] writing is brisk and intelligent, and if the plot of this novel is zanier than her usual fare, that too may show just how plugged-in she is to out farfetched times."
"A vastly entertaining screwball comedy...Witty, dippy and daft, we have here a genuine, guilty pleasure."
“The ultimate V-Day binge read.”
“Lipman is the easiest writer to read, but she stays with you because she’s such a good writer…A true pleasure…[She] is such a fine stylist…[Good Riddance] is hilarious, [with] wonderful romantic elements [and] a witty line on every page, in every paragraph.”
"Lipman is a writer to savor. Her wit is at once light and serious, ringing with humanity, and her tangled plots are full of surprises...Her writing is reminiscent of the late, fine writer Laurie Colwin."
“To the many readers who have happily drowned their worries in the sparkling waters of Lipman’s fizzy fiction, it is obvious that Lipman was born to entertain us . . . Lipman writes with a light, wry touch that tips a hat to life’s many challenges but never throws in the towel.”
“When you come to the end of Good Riddance […] you’ll definitely be delighted.”
ISBN: 9780358108559