THE STEPFORD WIVES:
SUMMARY: Written in 1975 this novel follows a family that has recently moved into the seemingly perfect and quiet town of Stepford. Our heroine the shutterbug and reasonably active feminist initially seems quite at ease in her bigger than expected home, typical family and loving husband, but as the days turn into weeks and her new acquaintances slowly go from active and vocal modern women to perfectly shaped, girdle wearing and floor waxing housewives. Our heroine quickly becomes suspect of the whole town and the controlling Men’s Club in a satire that hardly has the victorious ending that we would like to expect from a text that appears so short and sweet.
POINTS OF INTEREST: There are two films based off of this short work. One from 1975 and the most recent in 2004, while I have seen both of these I can’t say that they were among the tops of my list. However the 1975 version certainly left you with that tingly feeling on your skin, you know the eerie on that sort of makes you shudder??
If you are looking for more Ira Levin give a good look to Rosemary’s Baby, it’s a little hair-raising but quite a delight for a read!
WHY MY HEART BEATS FOR THIS TEXT: For starters it was a short novel; I was amazed how much could be packed into so few pages. I took it along as my reading initially for the gym (as Fox News hardly sparks my interest) and found I had completed it the following afternoon. I must say that I haven’t spent much time in works published between 1950 and 1980 but I certainly would recommend this as a quick and thought provoking read that shows the contradictions that women were facing as they set one foot out the kitchen door and the other into that of the office.
WHAT'S UP NEXT: Peony in Love by Lisa See
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Must confess I've never read the book, only seen the movies. Would be interested to know if the screen writers were faithful to the novel. Haven't heard of See's book. Looking forward to your review. Keep reading!
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