- Paperback: 192 pages
- Publisher: Grove Press; Reprint edition (Sep 12 2002)
- Language: English
- ISBN-10: 0802139302
- ISBN-13: 978-0802139306
- Product Dimensions: 21.7 x 16.1 x 1.3 cm
- Shipping Weight: 222 g
- Average Customer Review: 3.3 out of 5 stars See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
|
||||||||||||||||||
|
||||||||||||||||||
|
||||||||||||||||||
Product Details |
Product Description
From Amazon
The Bulgari Connection finds Fay Weldon on familiar ground, chronicling the pains and pleasures of the battle of the sexes, in this enjoyably funny novel. Set in glamorous contemporary London, Weldon's novel begins with the proverbial love triangle. Wealthy, dissatisfied self-made businessman Barley Salt leaves his frumpy wife Grace for the glamorous TV presenter Doris Dubois. Grace concedes that her husband "has aged better than I have", and that Doris "is 23 years younger than I am. She is slimmer than I am, and more clever". Grace tries but fails to run Doris over, and for her pains is sentenced to three years in jail. However, when she meets the struggling young artist Walter Wells, with his preference for "the blown rose not the bud", Grace literally has a new lease of life. As her life takes on new meaning, Barley and Doris start to lose control of their own self-centred lives.
The Bulgari Connection is a fast-moving, readable novel of greed, middle-aged deceit and love, but feels like it was written in the 1980s, not the early 21st century. Weldon's attempts at a very English version of magic realism evoke strong echoes of Oscar Wilde's The Picture of Dorian Gray (as the novel itself admits). This is effortless Weldon, but many of her fans will feel that it is marking time rather than breaking new ground. --Jerry Brotton --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
From Booklist
Weldon is at her wicked best in this crisp, hilarious page-turner about ambition and love. Barley Salt (a millionaire, not a condiment) is one of those silver-haired, square-jawed gentlemen born to wear expensive suits, get rich, and fall for younger women, but he seriously miscalculated when he took up with Doris Dubois. Host of a hip but fatuous TV arts program, Doris is a delectably evil femme fatale, and Barley's first wife, Grace, was right to try to run her over. Just out of prison, Grace runs into the glamorous couple at a charity function where a portrait of the hostess wearing a fabulous Bulgari necklace that Doris covets is auctioned off. The young and handsome painter falls instantly in love with the much older ex-con, and soon Grace grows more lithe and youthful while Walter thickens up and slows down. Meanwhile, Doris and Barley are finally seeing each other clearly, to their mutual dismay. Weldon's diabolically clever satire of greed, fashion, sex, and age is smart entertainment of the highest order. In a curious twist, it turns out that Weldon accepted money from Bulgari for product placement. Donna Seaman
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.
Tag this product(What's this?)Think of a tag as a keyword or label you consider is strongly related to this product.
Tags will help all customers organize and find favorite items. |
Customer Reviews
|
Share your thoughts with other customers:
|
||||||||||||||||||||||
|
Most helpful customer reviews
3.0 out of 5 stars
For Weldon fans.,
By algo41 "algo41" (philadelphia, pa United States) - See all my reviews
This review is from: The Bulgari Connection (Paperback)
This is typical of Weldon's less important books. It is a light, but biting comedy, with an insensitive husband, a scorned wife who ends up on top, and a little bit of magic. It is "current" with an older woman-younger man romance. I believe Weldon was too heavy handed with the husband's new wife even for this type of book. At the same time, Bulgari Connection is quite readable, and possibly cathartic for some readers. It captures the emotions and motivations of the husband very well. For a better, more complete novel, I would recommend Worst Fears by Weldon. If you are very interested in the husband's character , and have the time, you might consider Tom Wolfe's "A Man in Full".
4.0 out of 5 stars
She's no one's commodity,
By Marcia Mardis (Ann Arbor, MI USA) - See all my reviews
This review is from: The Bulgari Connection (Hardcover)
Despite its corporate underwriting, Fay Weldon's The Bulgari Connection is certainly not evidence of a sellout. After all, Bulgari's funding is undoubtedly a one time deal--c'mon Weldon fans, can you really see Fay writing about jewelry from now on? Her structure is unmatched and her vocabulary is robust; Fay Weldon's work, regardless of financial backing, is not factory-farmed like so much popular literature. The plot is tight, typical, and right on. Stupid men fare badly in Weldon's world--but not as badly as annoying women! This book was a breeze to read and as enjoyable as a gorgeous little custom-designed bauble. After all, isn't it kind of exciting to see if there's another underwriter in the wings? At least she's up front about where the money comes from.
3.0 out of 5 stars
Corporate Authors?,
By A Customer
This review is from: The Bulgari Connection (Hardcover)
While the book is alright and up to Weldon's usual standards, I'm appalled that she was paid by Bulgari to mention their line of jewellry and whatnot in her book. Read the book, count how many times "Bulgari" is mentioned, and then feel free to research these claims on the web. It's sick, and it's a disgrace to see a story developed because of a paid endorsement. Commercial endorsements are everywhere now - can we at least keep books as the last bastion of non-commercial thought?!
Share your thoughts with other customers: Create your own review
Want to see more reviews on this item?
|
|
Listmania!
Look for similar items by category
Look for similar items by subject
Feedback
Would you like to update product info or give feedback on images?
