French Exit
By Patrick DeWitt
- Release Date: 2018-08-28
- Genre: Literary Fiction
Description
Now a Major Motion Picture Starring Michelle Pfeiffer and Lucas Hedges, directed by Azazael Jacobs
A Recommended Read from:
Vanity Fair * Entertainment Weekly * Vulture * The Millions * Publishers Weekly * Esquire
From bestselling author Patrick deWitt, a brilliant and darkly comic novel about a wealthy widow and her adult son who flee New York for Paris in the wake of scandal and financial disintegration.
Frances Price – tart widow, possessive mother, and Upper East Side force of nature – is in dire straits, beset by scandal and impending bankruptcy. Her adult son Malcolm is no help, mired in a permanent state of arrested development. And then there’s the Price’s aging cat, Small Frank, who Frances believes houses the spirit of her late husband, an infamously immoral litigator and world-class cad whose gruesome tabloid death rendered Frances and Malcolm social outcasts.
Putting penury and pariahdom behind them, the family decides to cut their losses and head for the exit. One ocean voyage later, the curious trio land in their beloved Paris, the City of Light serving as a backdrop not for love or romance, but self destruction and economical ruin – to riotous effect. A number of singular characters serve to round out the cast: a bashful private investigator, an aimless psychic proposing a seance, and a doctor who makes house calls with his wine merchant in tow, to name a few.
Brimming with pathos, French Exit is a one-of-a-kind 'tragedy of manners,' a send-up of high society, as well as a moving mother/son caper which only Patrick deWitt could conceive and execute.
Reviews
Great characters
4By KLM4030Great characters, kind of a predictable/nothing plot but I felt that was ok because of how fast paced it was. Just the right amount of quirkiness in each character and scenario to be endearing without trying to hard. Looking forward to seeing the movie.Fun, whimsical story
3By CaliRyaSuch a wonderfully quirky book that stands out for its uniqueness. I thoroughly enjoyed it, even as the storyline became a bit of a stretch around half way in. Although, I couldn’t help being disappointed by the ending, which felt a bit depressing to me.Delightfully weird
5By KiKi & BernseySo weird. Delightfully weird.collection of perfect sentences
4By rojorojoFunny, weird, and full of lovably messed up characters. The writing sparkles.