Today a Woman Went Mad in the Supermarket: Stories

In this sage collection of stories, many of which were published in the 1960s and ’70s, Wolitzer (An Available Man) considers love, marriage, and motherhood. The title story is narrated by a woman who regrets her inability to help when she sees a woman with two children having a nervous breakdown in a supermarket. In “Mrs. X,” a housewife receives a note signed from an “anonymous friend" hinting that her husband is having an affair and grows angry at the friend for interfering in their lives. In “Overtime,” a husband and wife allow the former’s needy ex to move in with them temporarily—with unsurprisingly uproarious results. In the affecting “Mother,” a woman who has just given birth worries that something is wrong with her premature baby and leaves the maternity ward to search the hospital for her. Several of the stories revolve around a New York couple, Paulette and Howard; in a contemporary story, the couple must cope with the coronavirus pandemic: “We were going to have a Zoom meeting, whatever that was,” Paulette narrates about a March 2020 book club meeting, her memories undercut with a wistfulness over the devastation that would come in the months to follow. Throughout, Wolitzer captures the feel of each moment with characters who charm with their honesty. The result is a set of engaging time capsules. (Aug.)

This review has been updated to more accurately reflect the plot of the story "Mrs. X."