MAN AND WIFE

Sequel to the English bestseller Man and Boy (2001) continues the saga of Harry Silver’s woes as a confused husband, sentimental son, and obsessive father.

London television producer Silver’s career eggs are all in one basket with cocaine-addicted Irish comedian Eamon Fish’s late-night talk show of lame homespun jokes and banter, Fish on Friday. But Harry still prefers his job to the quagmire of family. “It is easier to feel like you are some kind of successful human being at work,” says our hero. “Whatever you do, don't try feeling like a successful human being at home.” Poor Harry is not much past thirty yet already conflicted and suspicious in his second marriage to lovely Cyd of the never-ending legs and the burgeoning catering business. In addition, he has a bitter, remarried ex-wife, a seven-year-old son he adores but sees only on Sundays, and a sophisticated eight-year-old stepdaughter with a penchant for frosted flakes and the Lucy Doll, which comes in various incarnations such as Lucy Doll Ballerina, Lucy Doll Rock and Roll . . . you get the idea. Lucy Doll also has a boyfriend, Ibiza DJ Brucie Doll, and the two of them have a much better relationship than hapless Harry does with any of the females in his life except his beloved mother, recently widowed after a long and happy marriage that her son cannot stop idealizing even as he contemplates infidelity with Kazumi, the woman his ex-wife roomed with in Japan. In short, Harry Silver is a modern male mess, and the burning question is: Can he ever get himself and his life together? More specifically: Can he ever achieve family bliss, which he purports to long for and pine after, while behaving like a self-obsessed dolt in every situation except when it comes to Mum?

A lot of whining, a lot of stock characters, some funny bits, and a sappy ending—just possibly a formula for success.