The Bridge Ladies: A Memoir - Softcover

"Lerner's memoir makes a case for spending time together under the rules of neutrality imposed by a game, and approach to living that refrains from over-sharing and outward complaining to concentrate on the task at hand. The bridge ladies are there for one another, even as they keep their feelings to themselves and play on."--New York Times Book Review

"A heartfelt and affecting memoir."--Washington Post

"A deeply affecting memoir...a generous and honest examination, she honors these women's lives"--Boston Globe

"In her absorbing memoir, Lerner probes marriage, career, motherhood, depression, aging, death, religion and sex, discovering that, although the Bridge Ladies' generation differs from hers, they share common values of love and kinship. This beautifully written, bittersweet story of ladies of a certain age and era will have wide appeal."--Publishers Weekly (starred review)

"Through the alchemy of a grand game, Betsy Lerner has woven a universal coming-of-age story for both mother and daughter. A poignant, humorous and often painful struggle through the pageantry of playing cards; a woman's face on every one."--Patti Smith, author of Just Kids and M Train

"This is the best book about mothers and daughters I've read in decades, maybe ever. It's about mother-daughter conflict, the desire to love and be loved, aging and loss, discovery and renewal. Betsy Lerner is a beautiful, achingly honest writer, and The Bridge Ladies is at once heartbreaking and hilarious."--Amy Chua, Yale Law Professor and author of Battle Hymn of the Tiger Mother and The Triple Package: How Three Unlikely Traits Explain the Rise and Fall of Cultural Groups in America

"A smart and colorful memoir."--Maureen Corrigan, NPR's Fresh Air

"A book for two generations."--Dallas Morning News

"The Bridge Ladies is an uplifting account of a baby boomer's attempt to understand her mother's generation. Lerner never lets herself off the hook, either, and the result is candid, fresh and enlightening."--Providence Journal

"Betsy Lerner's ladies are our ladies, our mothers, grandmothers, and aunts. Lerner takes us back to their tables, capturing a group of wonderful American women--growing older now and braving new battles--with sweetness, humor and sharp perceptiveness. This is a book with heart and feeling."--George Hodgman, author of Bettyville