Mary Ann in Autumn
Armistead Maupin, Harper, $25.99 (304p) ISBN 978-0-06-147088-2
In the sure-to-please follow-up to Michael Tolliver Lives, the bestselling Tales of the City reboot, it's been 20 years since series anchor Mary Ann Singleton left her family and headed to New York. Maupin's San Francisco is comforting in its familiarity, and the gang is (mostly) all here, older, wiser, and settled in: Michael "Mouse" Tolliver is married to Ben; Shawna, Mary Ann's estranged daughter, is a popular sex blogger who is dating Otto, an enigmatic professional clown; and grand dame Anna Madrigal, once landlady to Michael and Mary Ann, is still kicking in her late 80s. Into this milieu returns Mary Ann, who ditched her husband and the young Shawna for a career in television. Now, nearing 60, she's back with news she can't bear to tell anyone but Michael. From the haven of his tiny garden cottage, Mary Ann regroups and confronts some uncomfortable chapters in her past. As ever, Maupin's edgy wit energizes the layered story lines. His keen eye for irony and human foible is balanced by an innate compassion in this examination of the life of a woman of a certain age. (Nov.)
Details
Reviewed on: 08/30/2010
Release date: 11/01/2010
Genre: Fiction
Paperback - 382 pages - 9780062002488
Hardcover - 304 pages - 9780061470882
Other - 336 pages - 9780062020147
Open Ebook - 368 pages - 9781448110506
Paperback - 368 pages - 9780552777070
Paperback - 364 pages - 9780552777063
Paperback - 287 pages - 9780061470899