Mrs. Fletcher : a novel /

WHY BUDDHISM IS TRUE: The Science and Philosophy of Meditation and Enlightenment, by Robert Wright. (Simon & Schuster, $17.) Can Buddhism's central tenets lead to more enlightened individuals and societies? Wright, the author of "The Moral Animal," draws on evolutionary psychology and neuroscience to make his case, weighing the advantages of mindful meditation and how it can potentially benefit humanity. THE END OF EDDY, by Edouard Louis. Translated by Michael Lucey. (Picador, $16.) This autobiographical novel follows gD0UARD a young gay boy's coming-ofage in working-class France. Growing up in a stagnating factory town, where violence and xenophobia are endemic, Eddy was subjected to torment that was only compounded by his sexuality; ultimately, his attraction to men may have been his salvation. CATTLE KINGDOM: The Hidden History of the Cowboy West, by Christopher Knowlton. (Mariner/Eamon Dolan/Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, $15.99.) Cattle ranching took off in the 1870s, with wealthy Northeast entrepreneurs lured by the promise of the West's rewards. Knowlton picks three novices, including Teddy Roosevelt, to illustrate the industry's boom and bust; for all the eager forecasting, the era of the cowboys lasted less than two decades. THE AWKWARD AGE, by Francesca Segal. (Riverhead, $16.) When a widowed English piano teacher and an American obstetrician fall in love in North London, their blossoming romance faces just one hurdle: their teenage children, who can't stand each other. As the families work to knit together, some prototypically English scenarios arise ("polite, brittle, utterly empty" conversations, for starters), adding humor to the drama. Our reviewer, Hermione Hoby, called this tidy novel a "spry and accomplished comedy of manners." THE SHOW THAT NEVER ENDS: The Rise and Fall of Prog Rock, by David Weigel. (Norton, $17.95.) Weigel delves into the genre's history, including what it inherited from predecessors like the Beach Boys and the Beatles and its resonance today. As John Williams wrote here, the book is "a new history of the genre written by an ardent, straight-faced defender who also understands what is most outlandishly entertaining about it." PERENNIALS, by Mandy Berman. (Random House, $17.) Camp Marigold is the backdrop for this debut novel, where teenagers navigate the perils of female adolescence: puberty, friendship and, above all, sex. At the core is the friendship between Sarah and Fiona, two girls who go on to become counselors, but the book expands to include memories from generations of campers and even Marigold's director.

Perrotta's astringent style is on full display in this story of 46-year-old Eve, who is not looking forward to being alone now that she's divorced and her only child is off to college. On her first night as an empty nester, Eve receives an anonymous raunchy text message calling her a MILF. She's not sure what to make of this she's certainly never considered herself sexy and can't imagine why anyone else might. But the text is the catalyst for her midlife sexual awakening, and she finds herself cruising the Internet for lady-friendly porn. When her heightened sexuality crosses over into the real world, though, it impacts her job, her friendships, and her sense of self. Meanwhile, her jock son is not succeeding at college not with the ladies or academically. But Eve is too distracted by her new freedom to notice. Perrotta is known for his send-ups of suburban stagnancy and he certainly succeeds at that here but the complete lack of likable characters might make this one a hard sell to readers new to his work.--Vnuk, Rebecca Copyright 2017 Booklist

Divorced since her husband decamped years ago, 46-year-old Eve Fletcher is bereft when her son, Brendan, whom she has helicopter-parented, goes off to college. Receiving a shocking anonymous email-"U r my MILF! Send me a naked pic!!"-reawakens her sexual fantasies. Watching porn satisfies her for a while, but soon she's tempted to kiss her assistant at her job as director of a senior center. Then 17-year-old Julian, who was in Brendan's high school class, confesses that he has the hots for her. Eventually there is a session of three-way sex that leaves Eve (her given name can't be accidental) free to discover the sexual partner who will make her happy. Meanwhile, Brendan, who has considered college a chance to party and get wasted every night, while "trash-talking and playing video games" receives some jolts to his self-satisfied ego and comes home to finish growing up. Perrotta (The Leftovers) covers the gamut of sexual issues in this made-for-TV comedy of errors: Brendan's former girlfriend rebels against being a sexual doormat; Brendan's roommate vows to stop sexually demeaning girls. Every character here exists in a state of sexual arousal, and the happy ending finds each of them in a satisfying relationship. (Aug.) © Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.

Eve Fletcher, divorced mother of one, has lost her purpose. Her son heads off to college, leaving her to find a new focus for her life. Her job as the director of a senior center is challenging, but leaves plenty of time for new interests. One night she receives an anonymous phone call referring to her as a MILF. To define the term she turns to the Internet. As she satisfies her curiosity she almost inadvertently develops a porn habit. Her new interest in sex launches her into a variety of potentially self-destructive practices. Meanwhile Eve's son struggles to find a place for himself as a newly independent adult. His learning curve is steep. Campus events lead him to reassess his approach to women, friends, family, and responsibility. His life also seems fraught with potential self-destruction. The upheaval in his life leads him to return home unannounced on the night Eve impulsively acts on her new-found sexual fantasies. Best-selling author Perrotta (Election) captures the confusion and mental gymnastics of a change in family life. He nails the difficulties associated with discarding long-standing habits and seeking out new ways of making life meaningful, from the perspective of both the adult and the child. VERDICT Readers of general fiction with adult content will enjoy this recommended title. [See Prepub Alert, 2/27/17.]-Joanna Burkhardt, Univ. of Rhode Island Libs., Providence © Copyright 2017. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.

In Perrotta's latest (Nine Inches: Stories, 2013, etc.), a mother and son experience existential tizzies following his departure for college.As is often the case with Perrotta's fiction, it takes a while to warm up to his protagonists, who make their first appearances while engaged in off-putting, though wincingly credible, behavior. Brendan Fletcher nurses a hangover while his mother lugs his boxes and suitcases downstairs and packs the van; Eve is both such a patsy and so weirdly controlling that once they get to Berkshire State University, she hangs around Brendan's dorm, "organizing his closet and dresser just the way they were at home," before her mortified son makes it clear that she should, like, leave. We soon grow fond of Eve, compassionate director of the Haddington Senior Center and, after she signs up for a community college course on "Gender and Society," the friend and confidante of its transgender professor, Margo Fairchild. Brendan initially seems set to be the same sexist jock in college that he was in high school, until he's thrown radically off course by a girl named Amber. It's not such a stretch that she gets him involved in the Autism Awareness Networkhis stepbrother from his father's new marriage is on the spectrumbut getting him to join a protest about Michael Brown's death in Ferguson is pretty startling. Of course, it's mostly because Amber is really pretty, but Perrotta invites us to appreciate the slow growth of Brendan's awareness that there are actually other people in the universe in tandem with Eve's pleasant discovery of her unexpected sexual appeal for younger menand a taste for internet porn. Perrotta's eye for contemporary mores and social details remains razor-sharp; his portraits of the substantial supporting cast are equally keen and tempered with compassion. There are no bad guys here, just fallible human beings trying to grab some happiness. The deliberately inconclusive conclusion points Eve and Brendan toward that goal but doesn't promise they'll get there. More spot-on satire with heart and soul from a uniquely gifted writer. Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.