The Book of Candy

by Susan Dworkin

Here is the story of the transformation of a suburban housewife into a tough-minded community leader that recalls elements of both Portnoy's Complaint and Diary of a Mad Housewife. Susan Dworkin is the award-winning author of Stolen Goods, a Literary Guild Editor's Choice.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1568580789
• ISBN13: 9781568580784
• Release Date: January 1996
• Publisher: Four Walls Eight Windows
• Length: 359 Pages
• Weight: 1.16 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.3" x 5.9" x 8.6"

Customer Reviews

Larger Than Life Characters

Susan Dworkin introduces the reader to her characters by placing them in the middle of a catastrphic event, a tsunami, that gets the ball rolling. The main characters survive, and one of them, a rabbi turned comedian, undergoes something that is mystical and perhaps miraculous. None of these people go unaffected by the event. The lives of these people - the comedian, an r & b singer, and a Jewish mother - intersect each other, directly and indirectly, over the course of the story. These intersections are often comedic if not completely coincidental, but the author does a nice job of establishing this style and tone early. By the end we believe that any crossing of paths is possible. Dworkin's characters, and the situations they find themselves in, are larger than life. This is not realism. But the author makes an impact by providing rich and often humorous detail for how her characters grow, and how their lives impact each other, even when thousands of miles apart. Ultimately, every character, even the minor ones, have experienced profound change. By the climax every character, especially the Candy of the title, is radically different. The tsunami as an inciting device may not completely work, but it does serve as a nice metaphor for how we have to have strength and courage to overcome forces external and internal. The book never quite rises to the level that the opening tsunami portends it might, but it is a fun read, littered with vivid, memorable, and wonderful characters. 4 out of 5