Her life turned upside down by a grim diagnosis, a small-town Maine woman sets about writing a "How To" life manual for her handsome yet hapless husband in a novel Elinor Lipman (Good Riddance, On Turpentine Lane) calls "smart, funny-quirky, and so very satisfying."
Annie and her devoted but comically incompetent childhood sweetheart Sam are the owners and operators of Annie's, a gourmet sandwich shop, home to the legendary Paul Bunyan Special Sandwich--their "nutritionally challenged continual source of income and marital harmony and local fame."
But into their mostly charmed marriage comes the scary medical diagnosis for Annie--and the overwhelming challenge of finding a way to help Sam go on without her. Annie decides to leave Sam step-by-step instructions for a future without her, and considers her own replacement in his heart and their bed.Her best-laid plans grind to a halt with the unexpected appearance of Ursula, Annie's Manhattan diva of a mother, who brings her own brand of chaos and disruption into their lives.
Minus Me is a poignant and hilarious novel about the bonds of marriage, the burdens of maternal love, and the courage to face mortality, "with an ending readers will cherish (Caroline Leavitt, Pictures of You)."
"Medwed's lovely novel of marriage, motherhood, love and loss is so real that at times it feels like non-fiction. It's a timely reminder that in the worst of times, we sometimes rediscover the very best of ourselves." --Jodi Picoult, New York Times bestselling author of A Spark of Light.
Genre: Literary Fiction
Annie and her devoted but comically incompetent childhood sweetheart Sam are the owners and operators of Annie's, a gourmet sandwich shop, home to the legendary Paul Bunyan Special Sandwich--their "nutritionally challenged continual source of income and marital harmony and local fame."
But into their mostly charmed marriage comes the scary medical diagnosis for Annie--and the overwhelming challenge of finding a way to help Sam go on without her. Annie decides to leave Sam step-by-step instructions for a future without her, and considers her own replacement in his heart and their bed.Her best-laid plans grind to a halt with the unexpected appearance of Ursula, Annie's Manhattan diva of a mother, who brings her own brand of chaos and disruption into their lives.
Minus Me is a poignant and hilarious novel about the bonds of marriage, the burdens of maternal love, and the courage to face mortality, "with an ending readers will cherish (Caroline Leavitt, Pictures of You)."
"Medwed's lovely novel of marriage, motherhood, love and loss is so real that at times it feels like non-fiction. It's a timely reminder that in the worst of times, we sometimes rediscover the very best of ourselves." --Jodi Picoult, New York Times bestselling author of A Spark of Light.
Genre: Literary Fiction
Praise for this book
"Medwed’s known for her delicious wit, and here she’s brilliantly crafted a profoundly warm and intimate novel about what it means to try to manage the tumult in our life—and the life of a loved one. In her trademark sparkling prose, Medwed shows us how sometimes our best made plans (and manuals) meant to get us where we’re sure we want to go can actually derail us from our best selves and the very route we actually need to travel instead. Sprightly and absolutely delightful with an ending readers will cherish." - Caroline Leavitt
"Such a sharp eye, wry voice, and warm heart at work here! Annie’s plight kept me reading hungrily: Will her many fears be realized? Will ‘in sickness and in health’ be tested? Has there ever been a more entertaining drama queen of a mother? So much to love! Minus Me is vintage Medwed: smart, funny-quirky, and so very satisfying." - Elinor Lipman
"Medwed writes with heart and charm, warmth and wisdom. She knows how to evoke laughter and tears, balance the joys and the challenges of the complicated relationships she describes, and bring to life an entire Maine town." - Stephen McCauley
"Minus Me is a charming and hopeful story about love and destiny...about the family you have and the family you choose in the mouth-watering milieu of a gourmet sandwich shop. It transported me to beautiful Passamaquoddy, Maine, a place I very much loved being in and gave me characters in Annie, Sam and Ursula who I loved spending time with. A perfect read to escape the world." - Miriam Parker
"Medwed's lovely novel of marriage, motherhood, love and loss is so real that at times it feels like non-fiction. It's a timely reminder that in the worst of times, we sometimes rediscover the very best of ourselves." - Jodi Picoult
"Such a sharp eye, wry voice, and warm heart at work here! Annie’s plight kept me reading hungrily: Will her many fears be realized? Will ‘in sickness and in health’ be tested? Has there ever been a more entertaining drama queen of a mother? So much to love! Minus Me is vintage Medwed: smart, funny-quirky, and so very satisfying." - Elinor Lipman
"Medwed writes with heart and charm, warmth and wisdom. She knows how to evoke laughter and tears, balance the joys and the challenges of the complicated relationships she describes, and bring to life an entire Maine town." - Stephen McCauley
"Minus Me is a charming and hopeful story about love and destiny...about the family you have and the family you choose in the mouth-watering milieu of a gourmet sandwich shop. It transported me to beautiful Passamaquoddy, Maine, a place I very much loved being in and gave me characters in Annie, Sam and Ursula who I loved spending time with. A perfect read to escape the world." - Miriam Parker
"Medwed's lovely novel of marriage, motherhood, love and loss is so real that at times it feels like non-fiction. It's a timely reminder that in the worst of times, we sometimes rediscover the very best of ourselves." - Jodi Picoult
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