Lucky Us

by Joan Silber

Book Overview

"A love story of our time." --Ha Jin, author of The Boat Rocker

Once upon a very recent time in New York City, there was a couple, two ordinary single people who met the way city people meet. Even though mismatched, they fell in love. And after some hesitations they decided, finally, to marry-only to look up and find their world caving in around them.

Sexy, vivacious Elisa, of the miniskirts and tiny T-shirts, still in art...

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1565123204
• ISBN13: 9781565123205
• Release Date: October 2001
• Publisher: Algonquin Books
• Length: 242 Pages
• Weight: 0.88 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.1" x 5.4" x 7.3"

Customer Reviews

Unable to put down because I was unable to imagien what the characters would say next

My wife brought this book home and I happened to read the first page. Could not put this book down. Very simple story about two very mismatched people and what happens when they start to live their lives together. It is a very quirky love story and not something I'd normally even pick up , but I kept turning the pages to find out what happens next to Gabe and Eliza. At first I thought the power of the writing was because the author didn't use adjectives but she does use adjectives. She just writes in a very spare manner and nothing you could imagine her characters saying is ever said because the author knows we have already imagined the words they should say so why say them. And then the characters say and do something we never could have dreamed they would do. Loved the book.

deliciously selfish

Elisa is such a interesting character that i read this cover to cover. Gabe could have used a little excitement however, but reading his point really evolved Elisa in my mind. She handles her disease a little too lightly, maybe making it less scary that it really is. I really did enjoy this book, constantly waiting to see what Elisa would do next.

Modern Day Love Story

"Lucky Us" is a great contemporary love story. I randomly selected this novel from the library, and I found myself unable to put itdown. The story was intriguing and exceptionally touching. Gabe and Elisa are an incrediably mismatched couple that face the pressures and problems of modern day relationships. You'll find yourself curious to know the outcome of Elisa's attitude towards life after being infected with HIV. Along with how this issue will affect their future as a couple. Also, will their past burdens affect their personalities, decisions, and roles in life? Joan Silber's lively characters and lovely prose make every page of this book a pleasure to read.

A wonderful book by a writer with authority

Any book by Joan Silber is one that a reader can plunge into without the slightest hesitation, as opposed to those books a reader doesn't quite trust to be the real thing. This is a tale told with easy authority requiring nothing from the reader but attention. This is a wondrful novel, as are Ms. Silber's other books. She has her own particular voice, which is recognizable anywhere, but it is never a distraction; it's just one more element that makes her work so singular. Pay no attention to the jacket flap, which is glib and cute--the book is often funny, but it's never cute. This is a love story, I suppose, but that's too simplistic a definition. Lucky Us is a reflection of life as we live now, made utterly compelling by the depth of Ms. Silber's fully imagined characters. It is imppossible to put it down after the first sentence! Enjoy it!