Life After Forty, Dora Heldt
Life After Forty, Dora Heldt
List: $14.99 | Sale: $10.50
Club: $7.49

Life After Forty

Author: Dora Heldt, Jamie Lee Searle

Narrator: Teri Clark Linden

Unabridged: 6 hr 15 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Published: 05/08/2012

Categories: Fiction


Synopsis

When Christine’s husband of ten years dumps her over the phone while she watches a Hugh Grant film she is sent spinning on a cathartic, self-medicated journey to the land of self-acceptance and self-reliance. Surrounded by her sister and a strong support group of friends, Christine learns how to deal with the horrors of dating, finding new appliances, and the exhilarating feeling of shopping without consequence.

An uproarious look at the suddenly single life of a divorcee, Dora Heldt’s first book to appear in English captures the zeitgeist of the new millennium with searing insight while never deigning to take itself too seriously. Sparkling dialogue and unforgettable characters create a vibrant world of sardonic, take-no-prisoners women who hold their own in a world geared toward acceptance of their younger selves. Not since Bridget Jones’ Diary or Sex in the City has anything like Life After Forty so accurately and thoroughly expressed the modern female point of view with such startling clarity.

About Dora Heldt

Dora Heldt was born in 1961 on the North Sea island of Sylt, where she trained as a bookseller. She works as sales representative for a book publisher and lives in Hamburg. Her novel Vacation with Dad (forthcoming from AmazonCrossing) was one on Germany’s bestseller list for 61 weeks. Translator Jamie Lee Searle is a freelance translator and reviewer of German-language literature for publications such as New Books in German. She lives in London and teaches German language and translation. Her thesis on Timothy Garton Ash was awarded with the 2010 Jethro Bithell Award, and she recently co-founded the publishing collective And Other Stories, which seeks to promote and publish international literature in translation in the UK.


Reviews

Goodreads review by Jana on February 09, 2012

Ich hatte Urlaub mit Papa von Dora Heldt durch Zufall in einem Hostel gefunden während ich in den letzten drei Monaten dort gereist bin. Weil ich gerade nichts andres las dachte ich mir, ich könnte dieses Buch ja mal anfangen denn es klang wirklich lustig. Ich habe das Buch bereits nach einem Tag du......more

Goodreads review by Cathe Fein on March 04, 2011

Given the book description and that this was supposedly a bestseller in Germany, I was expecting an entertaining, poignant read but I struggled through 100 pages and finally gave up. Life is just too short to spend on such bad writing. I don't know if it's the translation or the original book, but t......more

Goodreads review by Melissa on July 09, 2012

This was a predictable book about a woman about to turn forty whose husband leaves her. Her friends help her through the transition to the next phase of her life. It is good to have friends! Just makes me appreciate mine!......more

Goodreads review by Taaya on January 10, 2019

Der Stil gefällt mir, der Subtext (Sex ist wichtig, man darf dafür auch gern mal verheiratete Männer nehmen, das ist nur böse, wenn man selbst die betrogene Frau ist) geht mir aber extrem gegen den Strich. Und es ist auch traurig, dass hier selbst angeblich Stärke und unabhängige Frauen nur um die F......more

Goodreads review by D M EVANS on August 20, 2018

True to life A refreshingly sincere portrayal of an amicable divorce and the support given by other people in differing relationships. The dialogue between Edith and Charlotte with Christine is an excellent vehicle to convey the turmoil of her thoughts. An enjoyable and in several says a comforting r......more