The Husband's Story: A Novel

Godfrey Loring has spent years building a life of sophistication and elegance alongside his wife Edna. Now he sits back and tells the truth about how they got there. Born in Passaic to families as unglamorous as any other, the Lorings nonetheless clawed their way into the upper echelons of American society. But the climb has cost them something fundamental. Edna, once a girl of simple dreams, has become consumed by status, endlessly polishing their fabricated pedigree while Godfrey watches with a weary, darkly amused detachment. The novel opens with a devastating meditation on American aristocracy: we learn how the Duke of Somewhere once gathered his illustrious relatives for a picnic, only to discover them populated by tramps, bartenders, jailbirds, and chimney sweeps. The joke, of course, is that American families are no different. They just take themselves far more seriously. Through Godfrey's sardonic narration, Phillips dissects the hollow pretensions of social climbing, the resentments that fester in unequal partnerships, and the uncomfortable question of whether anyone truly belongs anywhere.