When It Happens to You: A Novel in Stories

· HarperAudio · Narrated by Molly Ringwald
5.0
1 review
Audiobook
6 hr 18 min
Unabridged
Eligible
Want a free 15 min sample? Listen anytime, even offline. 
Add

About this audiobook

When it happens to you, you will be surprised. That thing they say about how you knew all the time, but just weren't facing it? That might be the case, but nevertheless, there you will be.

Molly Ringwald mines the complexities of modern relationships in this gripping and nuanced collection of interlinked stories. Writing with a deep compassion for human imperfection, Ringwald follows a Los Angeles family and their friends and neighbors while they negotiate the hazardous terrain of everyday life—revealing the deceptions, heartbreak, and vulnerability familiar to us all.

In ""The Harvest Moon,"" a stay-at-home mom grapples with age, infertility, and an increasingly distant husband. In ""Ursa Minor,"" a former children's television star tries to rebuild his life after being hospitalized for ""exhaustion."" An elderly woman mourns the loss of her husband and her estranged relationship with her daughter in ""The Little One."" In ""My Olivia,"" a single mother finds untapped reserves of strength to protect her flamboyant six-year-old son who wishes only to wear dresses and be addressed as Olivia. And in the devastating title story, a betrayed wife chronicles her pain and alienation, leading to an eviscerating denouement.

As the lives of these characters converge and diverge in unexpected ways, Ringwald reveals a startling eye for the universality of loss, love, and the search for connection. An unflinching yet poignant examination of the intricacies of the human heart, When It Happens to You is an auspicious literary debut.

Ratings and reviews

5.0
1 review
marilyn jackson
July 24, 2022
Subscribe Please
Did you find this helpful?

About the author

Molly Ringwald's work in film is characterized by what the renowned New Yorker film critic Pauline Kael called her ""charismatic normality."" Throughout her extensive career, she has worked with such directors as Paul Mazursky, John Hughes, Cindy Sherman, and Jean-Luc Godard. Her writing has appeared in The New York Times, Parade, Esquire, and the Hartford Courant. She lives with her husband and three children in Los Angeles.

Rate this audiobook

Tell us what you think.

Listening information

Smartphones and tablets
Install the Google Play Books app for Android and iPad/iPhone. It syncs automatically with your account and allows you to read online or offline wherever you are.
Laptops and computers
You can read books purchased on Google Play using your computer's web browser.