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Mother's Milk: A Novel
Mother's Milk: A Novel
Author: Edward St. Aubyn
Publisher: Grove Press, Open City Books
Category: Book

List Price: $14.00
Buy New: $3.43
You Save: $10.57 (76%)



New (22) Collectible (1) from $3.43

Avg. Customer Rating: 4.0 out of 5 stars 13 reviews
Sales Rank: 75294

Media: Paperback
Edition: 1
Number Of Items: 1
Pages: 240
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.4
Dimensions (in): 8 x 5.7 x 0.8

ISBN: 1890447420
Dewey Decimal Number: 813
EAN: 9781890447427
ASIN: 1890447420

Publication Date: November 9, 2006
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days

Also Available In:

  • Hardcover - Mother's Milk
  • Paperback - Mother's Milk
  • Hardcover - Mother's Milk: A Novel
  • Paperback - Mother's Milk

Similar Items:

  • Some Hope: A Trilogy
  • Carry Me Down
  • The Inheritance of Loss
  • The Gathering (Man Booker Prize)
  • The Night Watch

Editorial Reviews:

Product Description
A New York Times Notable Book, Mother’s Milk is a brilliantly stylish and witty novel by a master of modern British fiction. Widely acclaimed in the United States and the UK, Mother’s Milk follows the Melroses, the same family featured in St. Aubyn’s trilogy, Some Hope. First we meet Robert, who provides an exceptionally droll and convincing account of being born; then Patrick, a hilariously churlish husband who has been sexually abandoned by his wife in favor of motherhood; then Mary, who’s consumed by her children and an overwhelming desire not to repeat the mistakes of her own mother. All the while, St. Aubyn examines the web of false promises that entangles this once illustrious family, whose last vestige of wealth—an estate in the South of France—is about to be permanently donated by Patrick’s mother to a new-age foundation. The result is captivating and unexpected.



Customer Reviews:   Read 8 more reviews...

4 out of 5 stars 3.5 out of 4: Strong start, drags a bit at the end   August 14, 2008
This unique novel centers on Patrick Melrose, a London barrister, with a wife and two young sons. Patrick remains subject to the whims of his senile mother, who has converted Patrick's childhood home into a New Age retreat. Narrated by turns from the perspectives of Patrick, his wife, and their elder son, the novel vividly captures how the family members' roles shift with the birth of the second son and the deterioration of Patrick's mother. I enjoyed the shifting viewpoints and voices. The book starts particularly strong but devolves to be somewhat unbelievable and tedious by the end.


5 out of 5 stars Incredibly astute & insightful exploration of the inner workings of a family   April 15, 2008
This is a very unique & explicit exploration of familial relationships which although dark & poisonous at times rings very true & hilariously funny thanks to the authentic voices of its characters.

The author is incredibly attuned to feelings & is able to convey the inner workings of each characters mind with such astuteness that you feel they are sharing their deepest darkest secrets with you as their only confidente.

It does end a little abruptly but given that it is such an original & entertaining read I did not hold it against the author ;o)



4 out of 5 stars Good, but not as good as Some Hope   February 12, 2008
I guess everyone has to grow up and/or die, which is what happened to some of my fave characters from Some Hope. I still hope there's more to come from this author, though.


3 out of 5 stars A love hate relationship with this book   August 8, 2007
 0 out of 1 found this review helpful

I liked this book and hated it. I doidn't like the father figure, I felt he used his depression as an excuse to be cruel to his family. A selfish indivual, who blamed all his problems on his mother. The children where delightful characters. The language was wonderful, and a delight to read. The imagagry at the beginning sucked me right in and it was the langugage that kept me reading the book. I did prefer The Night Watch. (By Sarah Waters)


3 out of 5 stars What a slog..   July 17, 2007
 3 out of 3 found this review helpful

It is odd perhaps that I would describe this short novel as a "slog," but there it is. While reading it, I spent a lot of time complaining to family and friends about the hateful, annoying novel I was reading. It started out particularly bad. The first section is written from the perspective of the family's five year old. I have to say, I really don't think this guy can write kids, or maybe he was trying to imagine what it would be like to describe the thoughts of a child in very adult language - I dunno. All I can say is it was excessively annoying.

Things get a little better when the perspectives of the adults take over, particularly the pathetic and eternally unsatisfied father and husband, Patrick. Now, I will be honest. What really got to me about this novel is its unrelenting cynicism. I know that other reviewers describe this as 'acerbic wit,' but for me it was just too much. Each and every character is loathesome. Each and every aspect of their lives is a bore and a chore. Now I am a single woman, so I guess I might have to admit that reading about the discontents of married people brings some amount of satisfaction. And in fact, Patrick could be quite amusing in his rants and raves (there were probably not enough of these). Also, I should add that NO ONE dislikes excessive earnestness more than me, but this novel, as I said, was unrelenting. And do I really need to hear multiple descriptions of how disgusting fat people are? I mean, that just comes off as snobbish and unkind, not really witty. And who can't find something good to eat in New York??

As many times as I was tempted to put down this book forever, I didn't - mainly because I have a compulsion that does not allow me to stop reading a book early. But despite this, the book did win me over in a certain way, and its author is a skilled writer, even if he sees no goodness in life, love, family, or any of New York's myriad restaurants. My advice to you? If I were being honest I would say - life is short, go read the Iliad or something. But if you dislike your spouse and regret having children and really hate your mother, you might enjoy it!


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