The strikingly inventive British author ( The Shrapnel Academy , The Life and Loves of a She-Devil ) delivers another biting satire on men's inhumanity to women. Weldon sets the scene in a small town where upper-class Natalie is left suddenly penniless after her husband scarpers with his secretary. Sonia, a woman similarly deserted but accustomed to coping with draconian welfare officials, gives Natalie and her children shelter as well as priceless advice. As local males lust for Natalie's body (and the posh house they assume will come with it), Sonia plans a twist on the annual town carnival, a demonstration hinted at throughout the narrative, and occuring at the novel's horrifying conclusion. This strong story about damaged lives is memorable as well for the lusty humor that makes all Weldon's books irresistible. Literary Guild, Doubleday Book Club alternates. (November) From: Reed Elsevier Inc. Copyright Reed Business Information

Natalie Harris, a young housewife and mother living a quiet life in southern England, finds out what the real world is like when her husband walks out on her. Vulnerable and naive, she slides all the way down the social scale until she is no better off than Sonia, the narrator. The world according to Sonia, who has ended up in a psychiatric hospital and tells the story retrospectively, revolves around a single theme: unscrupulous and corrupt men victimize women. Even depression is a male disease that women catch. This angry feminist novel is deftly told and sometimes funny, but more often it is mean-spirited and depressing, and the climax is nasty.Bryan Aubrey, Fairfield, Ia. From: Reed Elsevier Inc. Copyright Reed Business Information

Fay Weldon was born in Worcester, England, where her father was a physician and her mother a writer. She was educated at the University of St. Andrews, from which she received her M.A. in 1954. Six years later, she married Ronald Weldon. Weldon worked as a propaganda writer for the British Foreign Office and then as an advertising copywriter for various firms in London before making writing a full-time career. Since the mid-1960's she has written novels, short stories, and radio and television plays.

The central subject of all Weldon's writing is the experience of women, especially their relationships with men. According to Weldon, "Women must ask themselves: What is it that will give me fulfillment? That's the serious question I'm attempting to answer." Despite her concern with women, Weldon has been criticized by some feminist groups for apparently presenting fictional women with very limited options.

Weldon's style is marked by a careful attention to detail, vivid images, a sharp wit, and a wry sense of humor. Although most of her male characters are disagreeable, they are not the true villains of her novels. Her villains are, in fact, the traditional roles that men and women play. Weldon looks at women in many different circumstances - at work, at home, at play, in politics, and especially in love - and shows not only how they are manipulated by men, but also how they allow themselves to be manipulated.

Recently, Weldon's novel The Life and Loves of a She-Devil (1983) has been made into a popular movie. It was formerly a successful television miniseries.

(Bowker Author Biography) Distributed by Syndetic Solutions, Inc.