Emma's Table

I read voraciously, and was surprised to discover how very much I enjoyed this novel. It positively sings. Honestly, the prose pace is right in step with the story. Additionally, both theme and characterization are fully realized. Truly, this book is a well-written and thought-provoking look at a tranche de vie, i.e., New York social class and its effects on those who live in the city. This book is a permanent addition to my library (and that's my highest encomium).

Philip Galanes has given us a peek into the fabulous world of Emma Sutton, the high priestess of good taste and her Manhattan life. The book is infused with perfect details about how the rich and fabulous live. So that's great, of course. But Galanes delves deeper into Emma's coterie. Benjamin, a social worker who works as Emma's weekend assistant. Gracie, a heartbreakingly sweet and obese nine year old he's put in charge of at her public school. Tina, her overworked but whip-smart mother. Cassie, Emma's adrift daughter. All these characters come together in a wonderful story that's full of surprises and depth. Galanes is a terrific writer, whose next book I eagerly await. Highly recommended.

The central character in Philip Galanes' second novel EMMA'S TABLE is Emma Sutton, a sixty-two-year-old "tarnished queen orf interior design," who is a household name and media darling, because of regular appearances on the Oprah Show but who has recently served a term in federal prison for income tax evasion. Although a huge success professionally in spite of her recent incarceration, she needs work in her personal life: for starters her relationships with her ex-husband Bobby who has recently moved back in with her, and their thirty-something-year-old daughter Cassy. In a word Emma is the high priestess of detail-- and Mr. Galanes gives us dozens of examples-- but she usually totally misses the big picture. Add a gentle public school social worker Benjamin who is Emma's assistant on weekends, his vegan girlfriend Melora who teaches yoga, a mother with the burden of an obese nine-year-old daughter, a Japanese diplomat in search of a Nakashima table and a pet trainer to the mix, then invite them all to an elegant dinner, and you have a delicious comedy as light as a chocolate mousse and just as sweet. Mr. Galanes' prose is easy and his humor gentle with practically a metaphor per page, most of which work very well. Cassy has "all whippet-sharp features," the overweight Gracie is "as wide as a penny that had been left on the train tracks" and is a child who loves colors and the "prettiest shade of yellow she can imagine of course is like a stick of butter." Emma, the always perfectionist, in a quite funny scene ruins a dinner because she has to cook too many vegetables with a roast to accommodate the vegan and throws the cooking time off. And in the most gentle and cleverest of scenes, Emma rearranges all of her husband's Bob's furniture when she discovers his hidden apartment. As we expect in a comedy, in the end we like all these less-than-perfect characters, including Emma.

I am always looking for something enjoyable to read and it is soooo hard to find. This is exactly the right book. Not cliched, not too lightweight and definitely not heavyweight, just right. After reading about 50 pages I turned to the back cover and was surprised to see that the author was male. (Yes I am the kind of reader that picks a book up and starts reading without too much foreplay.) Mr. Galanes writes women as true as (dare I say it) Jane Austen, from the heart. Perfect book to take on vacation or a long weekend. Yes the main character Emma reminds one of a certain someone who shall not be named but after a while she becomes herself and not the other one. One quibble: the cover photo. Dog in book is a poodle which the photo is not. Also Emma has very little to do with said dog. Which makes the cover photo a shameless attempt to get my attention, which it did.

When I first picked up this book, I thought it would be a chick lit book. Its not. Author Philip Galanes has written a deeply moving, sad but uplifting novel. The storyline starts off at an auction house where our main character Emma (who strangely reminds me of (....). She is determined to get a special dining room table and will go to any lengths to get it. I thought this was a very interesting opening chapter as it totally threw me off for the rest of the book. I was certain we would be heading in the direction of so much of the standard stuff these days - rich celebrity spends too much money and we get to hear all about it. Well, this book is NOT about this in the least. Once Emma gets her table, it is hardly mentioned again, but we are introduced, slowly to all the other characters who live in this novel. Benjamin is Emma's assistant, who also happens to be a social worker. Casey is Emma's daughter and she is a mess and her father seems to be a huge part of this reason - then we have Tina and Gracie. Tina is Gracie's mother and suffers from every insecurity known to man and little Gracie is a young girl who is suffering emotionally, mentally and physically from being grossly overweight. ALL of the characters in this book are deeply flawed and are not particularly likeable at times. Yet, this makes the storyline work. It gives the author and the readers a chance to get to know each of them on a very personal level. No one is one dimensional in this book. For every unkind thought Emma has, she will turn around and severely chastise herself for it, for every horrible act of self-desctruction Casey poses, she will try to redeem herself. Interestingly enough, all of the characters don't actually end up in the same room at the same time until well into the novel - this disappointed me a little. I love the small exposure we get to the blossoming relationship that could have developed between the sad, lonely, broken and older Emma and the sad,lonely, broken and younger Gracie. This book is not at all what I expected and I am grateful for that. It does not figure into the standard yarn, which makes this story one that needs telling. The author tends to use flowery descriptions at times, which I thought was appropriate for this book ot storytelling. You will thoroughly enjoy this read - even if you probably won't end up liking most of its characters. This is a good buy.