Noted playwright Wasserstein offers up 35 essays, most of which have appeared over the years in such publications as the New Yorker, Harper's Bazaar, Allure
and the New York Times Magazine.
Now in her late 40s, the humorist tackles topics such as dieting, the theater, her late cat, Manhattan real estate and Thanksgiving. She also trains her eye on public figures such as Hillary Rodham Clinton, Bette Midler and Jamie Lee Curtis. The book falls prey, however, to the usual dangers of such collections: repetition (The Heidi Chronicles,
for which she won the Pulitzer Prize in 1988, is mentioned countless times) and staleness (e.g., the Clinton-Dole debates are one essay's backdrop, and an observation that Brad Pitt and Gwyneth Paltrow "really, really love each other" undermines the opening of another). Here, we meet a single woman who, despite the trappings of success and fame, is dealing with pedestrian issues and anxieties. While these brief anecdotes tap familiar humor wells and sometimes wax sentimental, readers are duly rewarded by the final two longer essays: one deals with the breast cancer of Wasserstein's sister and the other with Wasserstein's pregnancy at age 48. Both pieces are moving, written with notable humor and heartbreaking poignancy, as when she describes her premature newborn daughter, just out of intensive care: "Lucy Jane was almost weightless. Her tiny legs dangled like a doll's. Her diaper was the size of a cigarette pack. I opened my sweater and put her inside. Her face was smaller than an apple." Wasserstein, once described as a Neil Simon for the feminist set, may at times alienate male readers, not through bashing (the men who appear are essentially likable) but rather through their exclusion from the emotional lens. Wasserstein writes for a certain audience. And for the most part, they should not be disappointed. Agents, Lynn Nesbit and Eric Simonoff. (May 15)
Forecast: Fans of Wasserstein's plays will enjoy these glimpses into her private musings and personal life. Moreover, with an eight-city author tour and an appearance on NBC's
Today show on May 8, she will surely broaden her appeal, ensuring healthy sales of the 25,000-copy projected first printing.
