Weaving between heartbreaking memories of her marriage and the pressing needs of her new day-to-day routine, Roiphe constructs an elegant literary pastiche, not of grief but of renewal. She begins her memoir just as the shock of her husband’s death has begun to wear off and writes her way into the then unknown world of life after love. In beautifully wrought vignettes, Roiphe captures the infinite number of "firsts" that lie ahead, from hailing a cab to locking and unlocking the door at night, to answering responses to a "singles ad" placed by her daughter.

ANNE ROIPHE is the bestselling author of fifteen books, including Fruitful, which was a finalist for the 1996 National Book Award. She has written for the New York Times, New York Observer, Vogue, Elle, Redbook, Parents, and the Guardian. Her work has been anthologized in more than ten collections of essays and is represented in more than fifteen college textbooks. She lives in New York City.