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Sign up todayFrances and Bernard
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“This is a lovely, melancholic epistolary novel. I like these quieter books that explore the nooks and crannies of human relationships, particularly those of the will-they-won’t-they variety. All the better if the deeper questions of faith are involved, which they are here. Oh, and lots of New York. Basically, if you liked Christina Haag’s Come To The Edge (which, if you’ve ever talked to me about books, you will be sick of hearing about), you will probably enjoy this too. The writing is lovely.”
— Claire • East City Bookshop
Bernard Elliot, a poet, and Frances Reardon, a fiction writer, meet at a writers' colony during the summer of 1957 and begin a friendship and correspondence. Bernard, well-born and Harvard-educated, is gregarious, reckless, and passionate; Frances, the precocious daughter of a middle-class Irish family, is circumspect, wry, and more than a little judgmental. What starts as an exploration of faith eventually becomes a romance, a development complicated by Bernard's fall into manic depression and Frances' struggle to decide whether she is strong enough to weather the illness with him for the long term.
The novel is anchored by two deeply imagined, fully inhabited characters who give voice to a love story that is as emotionally powerful as it is intellectually spirited.
Carlene Bauer is the author of the memoir Not That Kind of Girl, described as “soulful” by Walter Kirn in Elle and “approaching the greatness of Cantwell” in the New York Post. She has written for the likes of n +1, Slate, Salon, and the New York Times.
Angela Brazil is an AudioFile Earphones Award–winning narrator and a professional actor who is proud to be a long-standing member of the Resident Acting Company at Trinity Repertory Company. She also teaches at the Brown/Trinity Conservatory.
Stephen R. Thorne, winner of multiple AudioFile Earphones Awards for narration, is a professional actor and member of the resident acting company at Providence’s esteemed Trinity Repertory Company, where he has played Hamlet, Henry V, and Tom Joad.
Reviews
“In Frances and Bernard Ms. Bauer attempts to walk a tricky line, giving her characters enough life of their own to seem more than historical glosses, while borrowing from Lowell and O’Connor’s stature so that Bernard and Frances become sufficiently formidable literary figures to carry the show.”
“Bauer…writes with authority and gusto about issues of faith. The prose here is exquisite, winding between narrative momentum and lofty introspection. And she employs the epistolary form nimbly, providing an intimate, uncluttered space for her characters to develop. The most unexpected pleasure of this period love story is spending time in the company of people who are engaged in the edifying pursuit of living as Christians—a good reminder that, regardless of the current upheaval in the church, the big questions are still worth asking.”
“Graceful and gem-like…Through Bauer’s sharp, witty, and elegant prose, [Frances and Bernard] become vibrant and original characters…These are not your typical lovebirds, but writers with fierce and fine intellects…We are reminded of the power of correspondence—the flirtation of it, the nervousness, the delicious uncertainty of writing bold things and then waiting days, weeks, or even months for a reply. After finishing this sweet and somber novel, we might sigh and think, ‘It’s a shame we don’t write love letters anymore’—before stopping for a moment to marvel at the subtlety of what Bauer has wrought out of history and a generous imagination, and being thankful that someone still is.”
“Short but satisfying…Well written, engrossing, and succeeds in making Frances and Bernard’s shared interest in religion believable and their relationship funny, sweet, and sad. A lovely surprise.”
“Bauer’s account of the ups and downs of Frances and Bernard’s relationship is by turns beautiful and heartbreaking. Her story is enhanced by the superb narration of Angela Brazil and Stephen Thorne…Both narrators excel at bringing forth the joy and pain in the letters…[their] delivery is natural and expressive, taking Bauer’s lovely work and making it a memorable listening experience.”AudioFile
“Gracefully written, Bauer’s fluid prose is at once solemn, tender, and witty as she ponders the cost and duty of art and love.”
“A debut novel of stunning subtlety, grace, and depth…Bauer’s piercing novel is dynamic in structure, dramatic in emotion and event, and fierce in its inquiry into religion, love, and art.”
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