Old Girlfriends - by David Updike (Paperback)

Book Synopsis

In this brilliantly told short story collection, critically acclaimed author David Updike skillfully portrays the multi-faceted nature of love and of the heart. From a father's painful realization his son has discovered the dark heart of racism still beats, to a quiet love affair that needs an audience to bloom; from the bumbling of a professor who unwittingly falls for one of his students to the wistful memories of a bittersweet affair tinged in regret, Updike portrays the intricacies of loving someone with candor. Full of sparkling wonder and poignant melancholy alike, Old Girlfriends is a clear-eyed vision of the world we live in. Drifting from the unrequited to the secretive, the familial to the first poetic moments, this soulful collection leaves no avenue of expression untouched.

Review Quotes

"Old Girlfriends is full of such soft yet charged moments, as the author weaves everyday observances into larger truths. Updike [is] a craftsman with a style his own." --The Boston Globe

"These 10 ruminative stories set in New England sport a winning sense of whimsy, quiet surprise, and fresh, frank sensuality." --Elle Magazine

"David Updike's stories are wonderful--small enough that you are startled by the compressed, strong emotion, expansive in what they suggest about taking a stand, taking a chance, living a meaningful life. Trees are often mentioned here, and I'd say they embody a spiritual presence that presides over the stories, anchored in Earth but reaching for something higher." --Ann Beattie

"Quiet complexities emerge like ink in magic paper. The wonderment can be seen if one is watchful and David Updike is watching very carefully. Adept in language and beautiful in observation, his report back to us is clear and endearing and then suddenly when you least expect it, startling." --Susan Minot

"David Updike is clearly filled with a special kind of compassion for his characters, the flawed ones, the broken-hearted ones, the ones who break hearts themselves. Old Girlfriends is a deftly written collection, gentle, contemplative, and warming." --Jami Attenberg

About the Author

DAVID UPDIKE is the author of Out on the Marsh as well as an illustrated quartet for young readers: A Winter Journey, An Autumn Tale, A Spring Story, and The Sounds of Summer. His short stories have been published in The New Yorker, Epiphany, and Sargasso, among others. He is also a photographer and photographically illustrated the children's book, A Helpful Alphabet of Friendly Objects, written by his late father, writer John Updike. He teaches English at Roxbury Community College in Boston and lives in Cambridge, Massachusetts with his family.