A fifty-year-old Bridge game provides an unexpected way to cross the generational divide between a daughter and her mother. Betsy Lerner takes us on a powerfully personal literary journey, where we learn a little about Bridge and a lot about life.
After a lifetime defining herself in contrast to her mother’s “don’t ask, don’t tell” generation, Lerner finds herself back in her childhood home, not five miles from the mother she spent decades avoiding. When Roz needs help after surgery, it falls to Betsy to take care of her. She expected a week of tense civility; what she got instead were the Bridge Ladies. Impressed by their loyalty, she saw something her generation lacked. Facebook was great, but it wouldn’t deliver a pot roast.
Tentatively at first, Betsy becomes a regular at her mother’s Monday Bridge club. Through her friendships with the ladies, she is finally able to face years of misunderstandings and family tragedy, the Bridge table becoming the common ground she and Roz never had.
By turns darkly funny and deeply moving, The Bridge Ladies is the unforgettable story of a hard-won—but never-too-late—bond between mother and daughter.
A Bridge club provides an unexpected connection across a generational divide between mother and daughter. Betsy Lerner tells a funny, intimate, and deeply affecting story that’s a little about Bridge and a lot about life.
After a lifetime of defining herself against her mother’s Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell generation, Lerner found herself back home in the suburban town that represented everything she wanted to flee: namely the traditional life her mother stood for. Yet, when Roz needed help after surgery, Betsy stepped in. She expected a week of tense civility; what she got were the Bridge Ladies. Impressed by their faithful visits, she saw something her own generation lacked: Facebook was great, but it wouldn’t deliver a pot roast.
Tentatively at first, Betsy became a regular at her mother’s Monday Bridge club, falling under the spell of the intimidating game. Unexpectedly, the Bridge Ladies became a catalyst for change as Betsy and Roz reconciled years of painful misunderstandings and harrowing silences. The Bridge table became the common ground they never had.
Darkly funny and deeply moving,
The Bridge Ladies is the unforgettable story of a hard-won—but never-too-late—bond between mother and daughter.
"The Bridge Ladies reminded me of Tuesdays with Morrie, except it takes place on Mondays and has five Morries. Exquisitely written, in this book are portraits of five women whose like we won't see again. I devoured it in one greedy sitting, and started re-reading as soon as I finished."
