NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • “Captures the angst and anxiety of modern life with . . . astute observations about interactions between the haves and have-nots, and the realities of life among the long-married.”—USA Today
A provocative novel that explores what it means to be a mother, a wife, and a woman at a moment of reckoning, from the #1 New York Times bestselling author of Miller’s Valley and Still Life with Bread Crumbs.
Some days Nora Nolan thinks that she and her husband, Charlie, lead a charmed life—except when there’s a crisis at work, a leak in the roof at home, or a problem with their twins at college. And why not? New York City was once Nora’s dream destination, and her clannish dead-end block has become a safe harbor, a tranquil village amid the urban craziness. The owners watch one another’s children grow up. They use the same handyman. They trade gossip and gripes, and they maneuver for the ultimate status symbol: a spot in the block’s small parking lot.
Then one morning, Nora returns from her run to discover that a terrible incident has shaken the neighborhood, and the enviable dead-end block turns into a potent symbol of a divided city. The fault lines begin to open: on the block, at Nora’s job, and especially in her marriage.
Praise for Alternate Side
“[Anna] Quindlen’s quietly precise evaluation of intertwined lives evinces a keen understanding of and appreciation for universal human frailties.”—Booklist (starred review)
“Exquisitely rendered . . . [Quindlen] is one of our most astute chroniclers of modern life. . . . [Alternate Side] has an almost documentary feel, a verisimilitude that’s awfully hard to achieve.”—The New York Times Book Review
“An exceptional depiction of complex characters—particularly their weaknesses and uncertainties—and the intricacies of close relationships . . . Quindlen’s provocative novel is a New York City drama of fractured marriages and uncomfortable class distinctions.”—Publishers Weekly
Industry Reviews
"Captures the angst and anxiety of modern life with . . . astute observations about interactions between the haves and have-nots, and the realities of life among the long-married."-USA Today
"Lives of Manhattanites have long fascinated discerning writers, from Wharton to McInerney, and with her ninth novel, bestselling [Anna] Quindlen takes her place within this pantheon. . . . [Her] quietly precise evaluation of intertwined lives evinces a keen understanding of and appreciation for universal human frailties. Complex themes and clever motifs make this eminently suitable for book groups."-Booklist (starred review)
"Exquisitely rendered . . . [Quindlen] is one of our most astute chroniclers of modern life. . . . [Alternate Side] has an almost documentary feel, a verisimilitude that's awfully hard to achieve."-The New York Times Book Review
"An exceptional depiction of complex characters-particularly their weaknesses and uncertainties-and the intricacies of close relationships . . . Quindlen's provocative novel is a New York City drama of fractured marriages and uncomfortable class distinctions."-Publishers Weekly
"With her signature wisdom and wit, Quindlen takes readers on a romp through a New York City zip code many would kill to call home. When an act of violence rocks this tight-knit neighborhood, fault lines spread through friendships, marriages and brownstones. The takeaway? Be careful what you wish for-and all is not what it seems behind those warmly lit windows. Quindlen once again proves she's the doyenne of hyper-local drama, this time with a dark and dangerous eye."-People, Book of the Week
Praise for the bestselling fiction of Anna Quindlen
"Overwhelmingly moving . . . In this novel, where so much is about what vanishes, there is also a deep beating heart, of what also stays."-The New York Times Book Review, about Miller's Valley
"Leaves the reader feeling grateful, wide awake, lucky to be alive."-Michael Chabon, about One True Thing
"Taken as a whole, Quindlen's writings represent a generous and moving interrogation of women's experience across the lines of class and race. . . . Quindlen has delivered a novel that will have staying power all its own."-The New York Times Book Review, about Still Life with Bread Crumbs
"A poignant story of sisterhood, and the universal struggle to find one's true purpose . . . Quindlen's superb, generous storytelling has never been more rewarding."-BookPage, about Rise and Shine
"Anna Quindlen is America's Resident Sane Person. She has what Joyce called the common touch, the ability to speak to many people about what's on their minds before they have the vaguest idea what's on their minds."-The New York Times, about Blessings
"In a tale that rings strikingly true, Quindlen captures both the beauty and the breathtaking fragility of family life."-People, about Every Last One
