Expiration Date

Jaffe's quirky exploration of motherly love opens with protagonist Flora Rose's dream: nine months pregnant, she sits in the "prisoner's box" of a heavenly court presided over by dead relatives. Their sentence: that she will die, 25 years from now (Flora's mother, Muriel, however, seems to have other plans for her). Flash forward 24 years, and Flora is worried. Her mother, who according to dream logic should have been dead by now, has just been left widowed. She busies herself searching for companionship and playing in bridge tournaments. But lately she seems to almost court danger: sneaker waves ("they come out of nowhere") snare her on the Oregon coast, she's dragged behind a car, and a lump appears on her arm. Knowing that Muriel would likely "lift a Volkswagen" to save her daughters, Flora begins to suspect her mother of literally protecting her from death. Jaffe marries her somber theme with keen observations, making this the rare conceptual book containing characters that readers will root for. (Apr.)