The Road Taken

Bestselling author Jaffe (Five Women) pulls off an impressive feat, packing most of the major events of the last century into one family saga that starts with Rose Smith, born January 1, 1900. Rose is 10 when the book opens, attending her mother's funeral, and as Jaffe follows the protagonist and her family through the decades, the author skillfully incorporates such sweeping developments as the changing roles of women, new medical discoveries and evolving opinions about war, sexuality and individual rights. Rose is 18 when her first love is killed during WWI, not in battle but by the influenza epidemic. She marries for companionship and moves from her Connecticut hometown to Greenwich Village. Her brother, Hugh--whose childhood penchant for dressing up in women's clothes foreshadows his sexual coming of age--visits Rose and finds his element in the then-underground homosexual world in the Village. Moving in with Rose's family, Hugh acts the role of a carefree bachelor until Rose discovers his secret. Decades later, Hugh becomes an advocate for AIDS awareness. Rose's children offer Jaffe further opportunities to integrate signs of the times into the narrative: Peggy marries her WWII soldier pen pal and lives a suburban life; the independent ""Disco"" Joan becomes a hip fashion editor; and Ginger contracts polio just before the Salk vaccine is released. Jaffe's compelling use of personal disasters, conflicts and love relationships reveals the broad range of the ways kin relate--the secrets, the interminable feuds, the special closeness. In this uplifting story of how family ultimately provides the vital core for the human experience, Jaffe also convincingly depicts a century of social change. Literary Guild and Doubleday Book Club alternate selections; audio rights to Dove. (July) FYI: Jaffe established the Rona Jaffe Foundation, which offers awards and funding for women writers.