The Other Woman: Twenty-one Wives, Lovers, and Others Talk Openly About Sex, Deception, Love, and Betrayal (Hardcover)

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Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

The Other Woman may be a topic of eternally prurient interest, but the main attraction of this strong collection of 21 personal essays is the top-drawer writers such as Diana Abu-Jaber, Laurie Stone and Susan Cheever. Narrated from the point of view of the marriage wrecker or that of the wife who suffers the anguish of triangulation in a trusting relationship, these tales drip with the bitterness of experience. In "Palm Springs," Mary Jo Eustace records the shattering moment when she was stranded on vacation with her small children, and her husband revealed he had fallen in love with his movie co-star. Jane Smiley's terrifically funny "Iowa Was Never Like This" describes the incorrigible but enchanting litany of love's fickle nature. Dani Shapiro's "The Mistress" recreates her several years' affair with the much older stepfather of her college friend—and the lies she finally uncovered by hiring a detective. And in her plainspoken "The Uterine Blues," Connie May Fowler wonders when women are going to smarten up and stop sabotaging one another by sleeping with each other's husbands. The anthology features tales from women of all ages, lesbians and women who have been abused physically: it is a candid and truly fascinating look at how men and women love and hurt. (June)
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Product Description

She's been called the harpy, the Jezebel, the Lorelei, the bitch...and other choice names. In truth, she is someone's daughter, mother, friend, confidante. She seduces husbands, breaks up marriages, and occasionally becomes a stepmother. Sometimes, she is even a victim. So who is this creature who arrives like a wrecking ball to destroy lives and families? She is the Other Woman--but she's only half the story. For every Other Woman, there is a wife or girlfriend whose relationship has been devastated--or surprisingly--blissfully liberated. Some women find themselves playing both roles during the course of a lifetime. With 21 insightful essays (20 written specifically for this anthology) from the list of America's most respected and award-winning female authors, this collection explores the highly personal, sometimes anguished, sometimes hilarious, but always compelling experiences of women on both sides of these highly charged and emotional situations.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 288 pages
• Publisher: Grand Central Publishing (June 13, 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0446580228
• ISBN-13: 978-0446580229
• Product Dimensions: 8.3 x 5.8 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 14.4 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (15 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #220,180 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

23 of 24 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Finally the truth is spoken!, June 18, 2007

By	Sunny Beech (Carolinas) - See all my reviews

At last we're pulling back the bedsheets on this topic. The essay by Dani Shapiro was devastating and the diatribe against mistresses by Connie May Fowler was a wake-up call. How many women have not been on one side of the equation? Or all of them? And this collection opens up the idea of what it means to be the Other Woman - it looks at a daughter's viewpoint, a sister-in-law's, etc. It shows how wide-reaching the aftermaths of adultery are. I've been on all sides. None of them are good. We need to dialogue on the causes or open up the questions of monogamy, marriage, and faithfulness. Well worth reading.

17 of 20 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Shared experiences, August 23, 2007

By	K. P. Boosman "kwan yin" (Apex, NC) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

I really wasn't sure if I was going to like this book. I was a wife that had "the other woman" in my life (though I didn't know it at the time) so I was curious to see how other people got through it and was also curious to hear things from the persepctive of The Other Woman. I've got to say that some of the women betrayed really mirrored my experience...the shock, "out of body" feelings, etc. But, I also felt some compassion for The Other Woman. Everyone likes to feel unique and to be special and I can understand getting swept up with that, even if it's with another woman's husband.

Overall, I really enjoyed reading this. I think the short essays work very well for this type of book. You could read one and then put the book down for awhile to ponder it. I felt a sisterhood with all the women who told their stories...ultimately we are just looking to love and to be loved...but some of us go about it the wrong way or with the wrong person.

7 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great summer read, July 18, 2007

By	Heather Miller (Outer Banks, NC) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This is a perfect read for when you're too busy to sit down and get into an entire story. I also recommend that you prefer some "spice" in your reading. The stories are short, yet so satisfying. All of these authors were cleverly picked and I would love to see Volume 2. Lesbian, straight, cheater, cheatee, it's all here. Bravo V. Zackheim, do it again please!