By Hilma Wolitzer – Ballantine Books, 2012
Edward Schuyler is a 62-year-old widower whose family members secretly put him back in the dating pool with a personal ad. Edward is still grieving the loss of his beloved Bee, not ready to get into the social scene, content to putter with his 15-year-old dog and to check on his 90-year-old mother-in-law. When he does decide to try courtship again, blind dates, fix-ups and false starts leave Edward unfulfilled. Then, the woman who left him at the altar many lifetimes ago contacts him out of the blue and Edward wrestles with trusting her again. The story convincingly incorporates the nuances of dating after losing a life partner and the stumbling blocks to risking love a second time around. The Schuyler family’s dynamics are believable and the story is a pleasant glimpse into later-life dating from a man’s point of view, but this is a satisfying love story at any age.
