Diana Lively is Falling Down [Paperback]

Sheila Curran (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: July 5, 2005

Like the legendary London Bridge, Diana Lively has been transplanted from England to the Arizona desert.

Trained as an architect and top in her class, she makes dollhouses. Widowed at a young age, she distrusted people who were kind to her, and married Ted, the one man who wasn't. Maybe it's a good thing that Diana Lively's life is suddenly out of her control.

A brash American billionaire wants to put up a King Arthur Theme Park smack in the middle of the Arizona desert. With dollar signs dancing in its head, Oxford University is only too happy to send Ted Lively, their resident Arthurian expert, to consult on the project. There, in the most unlikely place, in the most surprising ways, Diana is about to discover that the happiness she thought was lost forever can shower down on her again, can flood her dry life like a lake in the desert, and make it bloom.

Oh, and Ted. Ted is about to discover that there is justice in the world...

Editorial Reviews

From Booklist

Diana Lively's family has lived in England forever, but now her brilliant but abusive husband, Ted, an expert on Arthurian legends, is being sent to Arizona by Oxford University. Diana doesn't want to go. She is certain that Phoenix is a place where scorpions run wild in the streets, black-widow spiders dangle from every ceiling, and rattlesnakes wait around every corner. She is devoted to the marriage, however, so she packs up the children and heads for what she believes is the primitive Arizona wilderness. Ted has been summoned to the desert by Wally Gold, the "Ammo King," who has decided to honor his late wife by building the King Arthur Theme Park and Museum. Wally allows Diana's family to stay on his property free of charge, and soon everyone has bonded, except Ted. Beautifully detailed and rich in exceptional characterization, from the Betty Crocker-esque teenage son to the four-year-old kleptomaniac, Curran's novel gently reminds readers that fantasy has a place in everyone's life, and dreams can come true. Uniquely uplifting and never didactic, this is a gem. Shelley Mosley
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

About the Author

Sheila Curran lives in Tallahassee, Florida, and is herself the wife of a professor.

Product Details

• Paperback: 432 pages
• Publisher: Berkley Trade (July 5, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0425202429
• ISBN-13: 978-0425202425
• Product Dimensions: 7.7 x 5 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 11.2 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (12 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,322,460 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

I am a Food Evangelist, pressing recipes on my friends until they cry for mercy
The longest I've managed to stay on a diet can be counted in hours and on one hand. I am terrified of making phone calls to people I don't know, even if it's to get my washer repaired or hire a sitter. I once successfully gave up drinking for three days until my children and husband begged me to just have one beer.

I have been kept alive, literally and figuratively, by the affection and support of my family and friends, whose sum total is my proudest boast and matters much more to me than my bank balance or intelligence quotient.

To make money I've written grants, waited tables, tended bar and worked in the admissions office at an alcoholic treatment center. I have two children, a Master's degree in Comparative Literature, a standard poodle who gets suicidal when I leave the house, and an annoying habit of either talking-too-much-while-speaking-too-loud or having absolutely nothing to say, sometimes within the same five minutes.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Delightful, July 11, 2005

By 

T. Fessenden (Phoenix, AZ) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Diana Lively is Falling Down (Paperback)

I'm struck by how rare it is for anyone to be able to write about all the kinds of characters that people this book without reducing them to caricature, and managing to be funny AND lyrical at the same time. "Diana Lively" ought to get the readership of "Bridget Jones's Diary" and the critical acclaim of "Three Junes." Every page is a wonder and a delight.
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9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars witty and touching, July 10, 2005

By 

Paul Shepherd - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Diana Lively is Falling Down (Paperback)

Diana Lively is such a different character--so original. I love her quiet daring, and the sense of adventure that surrounds her in this book. And the other characters pack just as much of a punch as Diana does--the men especially had depth in ways that surprised. Sharp humor, a smart plot, and a cast that has you by the teeth from the start.

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Life is laughing, July 25, 2005

By 

Marie Dee "Diane" (Tallahassee, FL, USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Diana Lively is Falling Down (Paperback)

I met the author at a recent benefit for Healthy Start for Kids and Refuge House, a women's shelter from domestic violence. It was a nice time and I really enjoyed hearing her read from herr book. I was so intrigued that I went home and read it over the weekend.

It was very imaginative and the characters so outrageously absurd, that I thoroughly enjoyed it and laughed out loud often. It is especially funny to me how she portrayed the mind of the little four year old kleptomaniac - quite clever.

Having lived with the British on a base in Germany in the 70's, I have a great appreciation for the culture, wit and language of the people. Obviously, she does too.

Note to author:

Thanks for writing such a fun novel. Hope to see more of your work in the future. I hope you are getting lots of attention for your writing