The Family Markowitz - Softcover

"Exceptionally well-written: funny and wise and keenly observed . . . One of the most engaging, maddening and recognizable families to come along in years . . . An enchanting book." --Michiko Kakutani, "The New York Times" "Deft and affectionate . . . Goodman is brilliant at capturing the clutter of both interior and exterior life." --Naomi Glauberman, "Los Angeles Times" ""The Family Markowitz "is a revelation . . . Goodman's prose has a steady, silent reserve that always indicates she has better things on her mind." --Dwight Garner, "Salon"

In "The Family Markowitz", Allegra Goodman writes with wit and compassion of three generations of Markowitzes making their way in America. At the centre is Rose, the cantankerous matriarch, who longs for her earlier life in London and Vienna but is now forced into dependency on her sons Ed, an academic expert on terrorism (ahead of his time!), and Henry, an artistic expatriate with a taste for antiques and post modern poetry. Also in the family circle are Sarah, Ed's wife, who teaches creative writing and longs for a more literary life, and Sarah and Ed's daughter Miriam, a medical student who causes great alarm in her largely assimilated family by rediscovering Judaism.