Audiobook8 hours
Mrs. Fletcher
Written by Tom Perrotta, Alex Allwine, JD Jackson and
Narrated by Finn Wittrock and Carrie Coon
Rating: 3.5 out of 5 stars
3.5/5
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About this audiobook
Now an HBO series starring Kathryn Hahn!
“Light, zingy, and laugh-out-loud funny” (People), the New York Times bestselling novel about sex, love, and identity as seen through the eyes of a middle-aged woman and her college freshman son.
A forty-six-year-old divorcee whose beloved only child has just left for college, Eve Fletcher is struggling to adjust to her empty nest. One night she receives a text from an anonymous number that says, “U R my MILF!” Over the months that follow, that message comes to obsess Eve. While leading her all-too-placid life—serving as Executive Director of the local senior center and taking a community college course on Gender and Society—Eve can’t curtail her own interest in a porn website that features the erotic exploits of ordinary, middle-aged women like herself. Before long, Eve’s online fixations begin to spill over into real life, revealing new romantic possibilities that threaten to upend her quiet suburban existence.
Meanwhile, miles away at the state college, Eve’s son Brendan—a jock and aspiring frat boy—discovers that his new campus isn’t nearly as welcoming to his hard-partying lifestyle as he had imagined. Only a few weeks into his freshman year, Brendan is floundering in a college environment that challenges his white-dude privilege and shames him for his outmoded, chauvinistic ideas of sex. As the New England autumn turns cold, both mother and son find themselves enmeshed in morally fraught situations that come to a head on one fateful November night.
“The sweetest and most charming novel about pornography addiction and the harrowing issues of sexual consent that you will probably ever read” (The New York Times Book Review), Mrs. Fletcher is a timeless examination of sexuality, identity, parenthood, and the big clarifying mistakes people can make when they’re no longer sure of who they are or where they belong. “Tom Perrotta’s latest might just be his best” (NPR).
“Light, zingy, and laugh-out-loud funny” (People), the New York Times bestselling novel about sex, love, and identity as seen through the eyes of a middle-aged woman and her college freshman son.
A forty-six-year-old divorcee whose beloved only child has just left for college, Eve Fletcher is struggling to adjust to her empty nest. One night she receives a text from an anonymous number that says, “U R my MILF!” Over the months that follow, that message comes to obsess Eve. While leading her all-too-placid life—serving as Executive Director of the local senior center and taking a community college course on Gender and Society—Eve can’t curtail her own interest in a porn website that features the erotic exploits of ordinary, middle-aged women like herself. Before long, Eve’s online fixations begin to spill over into real life, revealing new romantic possibilities that threaten to upend her quiet suburban existence.
Meanwhile, miles away at the state college, Eve’s son Brendan—a jock and aspiring frat boy—discovers that his new campus isn’t nearly as welcoming to his hard-partying lifestyle as he had imagined. Only a few weeks into his freshman year, Brendan is floundering in a college environment that challenges his white-dude privilege and shames him for his outmoded, chauvinistic ideas of sex. As the New England autumn turns cold, both mother and son find themselves enmeshed in morally fraught situations that come to a head on one fateful November night.
“The sweetest and most charming novel about pornography addiction and the harrowing issues of sexual consent that you will probably ever read” (The New York Times Book Review), Mrs. Fletcher is a timeless examination of sexuality, identity, parenthood, and the big clarifying mistakes people can make when they’re no longer sure of who they are or where they belong. “Tom Perrotta’s latest might just be his best” (NPR).
Author
Tom Perrotta
Tom Perrotta is the bestselling author of ten works of fiction,including Election and Little Children, both of which were made into critically acclaimed movies, and The Leftovers and Mrs. Fletcher, which were both adapted into series. He lives outside Boston.
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Reviews for Mrs. Fletcher
Rating: 3.6177062020120725 out of 5 stars
3.5/5
497 ratings54 reviews
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Very enjoyable read. A grown ups story of love, lust and relationships. Funny and still thought provoking. Very highly recommended by this reader ??
1 person found this helpful
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5I really enjoyed the characters transformations in this book. Little sad, little funny and a little sexy.
1 person found this helpful
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Not what I expected in a good way. Relatable and interesting. A time well spent.
1 person found this helpful
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Pretty hilarious and impressively well written (especially considering it’s written by a man, when in my experience they do not always write women so well, especially the sex scenes or sexual perspectives—he did a great job here). I love that a trans woman was used for the trans part. And I love the main narrator (who also did Mad Honey)
- Rating: 1 out of 5 stars1/5This was a regrettable book club selection. I’m honestly confused by the popularity of this book. I couldn’t care less about any of the pathetic characters who pretty much wined their way through the whole book. Get a life! No meaningful development of characters or story. Poorly written. Wouldn’t want to spend 5 minutes with these people. Sorry I spent the time I did reading this book.
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5This book had the perfect ending. Unfortunately the book is about an hour longer than it should be. There is a lot of raunchy humor but I like raunchy humor so it got more than a few laughs out of me. If that kind of humor offends you then stay away from this novel.
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Book is decent and modern problems but the audiobook isn’t the best reading it sounds like it is on fast forward.
- Rating: 2 out of 5 stars2/5I never write “bad” reviews but this was such a missed opportunity! Had high hopes for this one but turned out pretty boring ? nothing much actually happened, there were chances for it to get good that were not pursued :/ disappointing but was a pretty quick read anyway.
- Rating: 2 out of 5 stars2/5It was a boring story with no real arc or character development.
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Nothing special. I got all hyped up over nothing. Save your time.
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Deep dive into characters whose lives intersect. Intriguing and disturbingly honest at times about sex and self.
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5I read the non audio version of the book, so I don't know about that aspect but the story itself is quite good.
- Rating: 2 out of 5 stars2/5It seemed to dance across subjects, but never actually scratched any surfaces. Like someone telling you something an their life but leaving out the good details . The book leaves a lot to be desired .
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Very entertaining, listened to this on the long commute and found it to be amusing-insightful at times. Good character development-funny.
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5A well written, highly entertaining fictionalized account and social commentary of the modern/post modern world we find ourselves living in today. Social relations sure have changed since the relatively innocent days of The Graduate and “Here’s to you Mrs Robinson”! In fact, in some ways, you could say this is Mrs Robinson on steroids!
Lots going on here with very well developed characters and lots of commentary that is probably mostly pretty accurate. Maybe even kind of a spoof in some ways, not too sure...
Either way, this is a great listen which held my attention all the way through. Excellent narration as well, in particular the voice actor of Brandon, Fletcher’s son, who was spot on and perfect for the role.
Well worth the listen....check it out! - Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Was very entertaining. Just what I needed after indulging in so many non fiction books
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5SUBURBAN ANGST pretty far from the dour tales of Cheever and Updike, but still moving and tangible and worth reading.
- Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5So so.... not horrible. Not great. Seemed to wrap up a little too neatly
- Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5The idea of sex and gender in modern world somehow touched by the author but not with an intersectional approach.
It is mostly superficial and not go down deep enough to feminist approaches of sexual and gender. - Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Fun, easy read, silly. A suburban sex farce I guess. If it was deep it went over my head.
- Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5Pleasant, but No More
The interpersonal aspect of life can be challenging and trying when we are immersed in it and equally challenging and trying when we don’t have it in our lives. Like Eve Fletcher, her friends, and even her offensive college-age son Brendan, eventually the former is definitely preferred. So we have a story about how they work their way through a variety of common problems, making good and bad choices, to in the end either wind up with satisfying relationships or find themselves on the path to them.
Eve Fletcher manages a municipal senior center and is sending her son Brendan off to college. She’s divorced but she’s on pretty good terms with her ex, who has been remarried for quite some time, with a young second family that includes an autistic boy. Now an empty nester, she’s lonely and looking for at least companionship. One day, she receives a message, the beginning of which says, “U r my MILF.” This sends her off exploring the pornographic regions of the internet, specifically a site focused on MILF sex. Worry not; nothing prurient here, for we see what she sees through her filter. It just increases her yearning for a relationship. She takes an evening class on gender and sex to get herself out of the house. She strikes up a questionable closeness with her much younger employee, Amanda. She attracts the interest of fellow night schooler, teen Julian, who sort of resents her at first because she is the mother of Brendan, who tormented him in high school, followed on by an attraction that serves as a red herring of sorts.
Really, Eve is the focus of the novel and the other characters, of which there are quite a few, revolve around her in some way. Brendan is the most significant of them. For some reason not readily apparent in the novel, he is the only character who gets to tell his story himself; he is the only first-person narrator. The other characters, including Mrs. Fletcher, benefit from a third-person narrator. Benefit seems the right word, since left to his own devices, Brendan comes across as callow and superficial. And he gets a lot of page time. What to make of this, you find yourself wondering. The author certainly wouldn’t use a first-person character in what is essentially a third-person novel for no reason, other than variety. Speculate away readers. While he undergoes the biggest change, he is the most broadly drawn and unrealistic character in the novel. At least let’s hope not every young man’s focus is eating, drinking, partying, sex, and constant rudeness and insensitivity. Brendan brings this quote to mind: “George Amberson Minafer had got his comeuppance.”
But enough with digression. If you like your characters to generally be identifiable and mostly agreeable, you enjoy a gentle hand at the narration wheel, you especially need for things to turn out for the best, and you don’t mind a touch of sleepiness in your reading, you’ll want to add Mrs. Fletcher to your reading list. - Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Almost put down several times but finally finished it. Not a bad book but the ending was disappointing.
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5A fast and very readable book with tons of ironic humour that seems so fit for these times. Couldn't put it down and wonder why not 5 stars? Anyway, loved it.
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5This book deals with a lot of feelings about sexuality and age. It shows how anyone at different points in their lives can be trying to find themselves. Life changes. People change.
- Rating: 2 out of 5 stars2/52.5 Books like this one make me feel like such a square. Compared to Mrs. Fletcher, my life is pretty vanilla. She just sent her only child, Brendan to college and as a divorced, middle-aged woman (tho younger than I am!) she starts to look for outlets for herself. Work is fine -- she runs a Senior Center, but that isn't really the place to find friendship. Eve signs up for a course about gender at the community college and has her consciousness raised and her world starts to include MILF porn sites and also breaking down gender and age (younger! Julian who is her son's classmate) barriers in her sex life. Meanwhile her son Brendan has his consciousness raised at college by a strong girl who doesn't put up with his standard jerk behavior which borders on misogynistic. He gets his comeuppance, though it's unclear if he gets the message. He is a little dense. There is a lot of humor here and Perrotta is one for satire, so there's an inherent outrageousness, but still. Eve travels full circle by the end, back to a respectable upper middle class, middle aged lifestyle. Good for Perrotta for tackling the topic of gender and being ahead of the #metoo movement. The squirminess is my own issue.
- Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/53.5 This book is nuts. It's funny (disturbingly) cringey, and it's nuts.
I still struggle-one POV is 1st person, and the rest 3rd. Very odd flow for me. - Rating: 1 out of 5 stars1/5After reading The Leftovers by Tom Perrotta, I thought I'd enjoy anything else he wrote. Nope. This is a raunchy, coming-of-age, empty-nest syndrome, mid-life crisis novel that's sleazy. Middle-aged Eve Fletcher has a sexual awakening after her son goes to college and faces some moral dilemmas such becoming addicted to online porn, whether it's okay that she's dating a guy who is her son's age, & whether she'd like a lesbian relationship.The son peaked in high school where he was a star football player and got good grades. He went to college for all the partying: smoking pot, drinking, sex, etc. He was so immature he became unable to cope with the fact that studying was involved.This novel was about a mother and son who both lost their way, had very little plot and unlikable characters. It was not what I expected from Tom Perrotta. He tried to be current with a transgender character but the story line was so ridiculous, I found it amusing. I liked nothing about this novel.
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5An entertaining read, but everyone was just a little too mild mannered.
- Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/53.5. Meandered some. The description of Mrs. Fletcher's porn viewing habits was spot on, though.
There were some good insights around modern relating, sexual fluidity, sexual politics and women as objects. Easy read. - Rating: 2 out of 5 stars2/5I received this book for free through Goodreads First Reads. I wasn't a fan of it, I didn't like the choices the mother made, or how everyone was going through conflicts then it all wrapped up and ended happily ever after. It felt too fake and too forced for my liking.