The Understudy: A Novel by David Nicholls (.ePUB)
File Size: 847 KB
The Understudy: A Novel By David Nicholls
Requirements: .ePUB reader, 847 KB
Overview: The follow-up to Nicholls’ hilarious debut novel, A Question of Attraction (2003), is a smart, funny, bighearted romantic comedy. Struggling British actor Stephen McQueen is fast approaching his midthirties with nary a smidgen of the success of his namesake, a leading factor in the breakup of his marriage. His most lucrative gig required him to dress up as a squirrel. Now he is the understudy for the “twelfth sexiest man alive,” action-film star Josh Harper, who is trying to shore up his acting cachet by doing a stint as Lord Byron in a West End play. Despite his stunning good looks and enviable success, Josh has trouble holding up his end in a conversation that does not revolve around teeth whitening; his wife, Nora, however, is a completely different story: warm, witty, and self-deprecating. Nicholls expertly mines his rich premise for all it’s worth, hilariously riffing on fame, vanity, and the actor’s lot. What raises his material far above standard-issue light comedy, though, is the way Nichols always seeds his polished banter with deeper emotional issues. The sometimes tender, sometimes painful scenes between Stephen and his seven-year-old daughter, especially, are achingly authentic.
Genre: Fiction > General Fiction/Classics
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