sMothering

PUBLISHERS WEEKLY SEP 22, 2003

A starred or boxed review indicates a book of outstanding quality. A review with a blue-tinted title indicates a book of unusual commercial interest that hasn't received a starred or boxed review.sMOTHERINGWendy French. Forge, (304p) Claire McLeod works at a lousy telephone survey job, has just been dumped by the perfect guy, is unfairly suspected of having an affair with her toadlike boss and has a refrigerator whose contents resemble a science experiment gone awry. To make matters worse, her overbearing mother appears on the doorstep of her tiny Portland, Ore., one-bedroom, having mysteriously left Claire's eternally patient father back home in Omaha. While it's nice having her laundry done and her linoleum scrubbed with a toothbrush, 23-year-old Claire could do without the constant digs at her appearance, her apartment, her faltering career path and her single status; she'd gladly skip the dozens of embarrassing phone messages left with the office's smirking receptionist. But even worse is trying to negotiate a reconciliation between her mother and her once-favored older sister, now divorced and living with her girlfriend. Though Claire is determined to get her life back under control, it's nearly impossible with the maternal force of nature living on her couch. Despite her scattered life and hand-wringing self-doubt, Claire is surprisingly mature for a post-adolescent, and female readers of all ages should relate to her great love for her family, as well as to her occasional desire to throw them all out a window. French's novel stands out from its fluffy chick-lit sisters with snappy humor ("What looks good?" Claire's enamored boss asks at lunch. "The employment section," she thinks), charged family dynamics and a plot twist that will throw readers for a loop. Though there's nothing new here, this debut is warm, tender and more substantive than most of its type.