The Dearly Departed
The Dearly Departed by Elinor Lipman, published by Random House on June 12, 2001, is a novel that explores the complexities of family and community in King George, New Hampshire. The story follows Sunny, a distant daughter who returns to her hometown after the death of her mother, Margaret Batten, a part-time amateur actress and single mother. As Sunny navigates her reentry into a town filled with memories and familiar faces, she confronts her past and the perceptions that have shaped her identity.
Readers will find a narrative rich in psychological exploration, focusing on themes of sibling relationships and personal growth. The novel delves into Sunny’s journey as she reconnects with her roots, discovering unexpected allies among former classmates and the community that once defined her. Through this process, she begins to reevaluate her mother’s life and her own experiences, leading to revelations about family ties and self-acceptance. With 288 pages, this first edition presents a blend of social comedy and insightful wit, inviting readers to reflect on the nuances of their own connections.
Official synopsis Publisher
Everyone in King George, New Hampshire, loved Margaret Batten, part-time amateur actress, full-time wallflower, and single mother to a now-distant daughter, Sunny. But accidents happen. The death of Margaret, side by side with her putative fiance, brings Sunny back to the scene of her unhappy adolescence, to the community that remembers her solely, nervously, as “the girl who golfed.” Reentry is to be dreaded; there’s no hiding in a town with one diner, one doctor, one stop sign, one motel. Yet allies surface: The country club opens its doors to its former Orphan Annie caddie. High school classmates, even the tormenters, have grown up nicely, matured in unforeseen and gratifying ways. Maybe, Sunny begins to think, she wasn’t as beleaguered as she felt she was; maybe her mother’s life was richer than anyone suspected; and maybe the man at the funeral-the one with her face, her flyaway hair, her golf swing-is the halfbrother she doesn’t know she needs.
Elinor Lipman writes with the wry authority of a latter-day Jane Austen. The Dearly Departed is another perfect blend of social comedy, pointed wit, and precise pacing from our last urbane romantic.
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