Dave on Divorce

Laura Dave knows divorce. Okay, maybe she doesn't know divorce in the biblical sense, but she sure knows how to write about it.

Dave's first novel, London Is the Best City in America, was a refreshing and well-received entry into the chick-lit genre. Telling the story of two siblings who help each other out of their own individual, self-spun relationship webs, there was nothing trite, nothing contrived and nothing even slightly Shopaholic about London, which made it an instant hit with the Cosmo crowd and the literati crowd alike. When rumors started milling that Reese Witherspoon had optioned the movie rights to London, no one was surprised and everyone began wondering when Dave's next book would come out.

A short two years later, Laura Dave has given us another finely-crafted novel filled with intense yet believable characters and achingly familiar situations that most people have had to face within their own families. The Divorce Party is exactly what the title suggests: a long-married couple invites their children and friends to celebrate their 35th wedding anniversary at their home in Montauk, and ends up breaking the news to all assembled that they are, in fact, getting divorced.

The children and parents must then explore what the divorce will mean to this family and their love for each other, especially to their son and his newly-minted fiancee whose dreams of happily-ever-after are suddenly put into perspective. Elle calls it a "darkly humorous" novel that explores "the dimensions of love" and Bookreporter praises it as "a riveting story about love that causes us to reflect on our own relationships." No longer does talk about movie rights involve rumors; with The Divorce Party, the talk is all true. Jennifer Aniston and her production company, Echo Films, have purchased the rights through Universal Studios.

Laura Dave will be reading from The Divorce Party and signing copies of her books tomorrow night at the Central Branch of the Houston Public Library beginning at 7:00 p.m. "An Evening With Laura Dave" is part of the Summer Reading Program that is being sponsored by the Houston Public Library system, which will run through August 1st.

Head out to the newly-renovated and reopened Central Branch tomorrow evening and visit with Laura Dave while you still can. At this rate, she won't be on the public library circuit for too much longer.

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An Evening With Laura Dave, 7:00 p.m.
Central Branch, Houston Public Library
500 McKinney
832-393-1313