The Stepford Wives by Ira Levin

The Stepford Wives by Ira Levin
Buy The Stepford Wives by Ira Levin at Amazon.co.uk or Amazon.com
Category: General Fiction
Reviewer: Katie Pullen
Summary: When Joanna Eberhart and her family move to Stepford, Joanna soon wonders why all the wives are submissive, beautiful and obsessed with housework, and before long finds herself on a mission to uncover the truth behind their perfect smiles. Originally published nearly forty years ago, Levin's tale of men creating perfect wives is still as relevant and shocking today, and is a must read for anyone who has seen the films but perhaps never read the book.
Buy? Yes	Borrow? Yes
Pages: 208	Date: July 2011
Publisher: Constable
ISBN: 978-1849015899
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It can't be a coincidence that Stepford women are all the way they are says Bobbie, Joanna Eberhart's only friend in Stepford. Joanna has recently come to live in the idyllic suburban town of Stepford with her husband and two children. She is an independent woman with her own part-time career as a photographer, is intelligent, liberated and has a keen interest in feminism.

As Joanna tries to make friends with the other Stepford wives she soon finds they are all the same - beautiful, submissive, obsessed with housework, and with no interest in activities outside the home, unlike their husbands who all belong to the rather sinister and secretive Men's Association. However, when Joanna meets and befriends her non-housework obsessed neighbour Bobbie the two begin to realise that there is something rather strange about the women of Stepford.

But when Bobbie turns into a Stepford wife too, Joanna becomes convinced that the Men's Association is somehow behind this change in the women's characters. As she delves deeper Joanna becomes desperate to leave Stepford, convinced she is next, but is it already too late for her?

I would imagine most people have heard of The Stepford Wives, whether through the book, films or TV sequels, or perhaps just from the phrase Stepford Wife which is still used today. I certainly had, although I had never read the book. So I was surprised that such a well-known story is indeed such a short one. However, packed within these pages is a taut, dramatic and suspenseful tale, which completely draws the reader in. If you already have a pretty good idea where the story ends up like I did, there is still much to be enjoyed as you spot the clues as to what's really going on, which are delicately laid before Joanna. I was amazed she didn't put two and two together sooner.

Although Joanna is clearly an intelligent woman you can forgive her for not realising what is happening at the Men's Association straightaway, after all I'm sure most of us would never believe what the men were really up to if we were Joanna. From the start her story is very much dialogue driven which adds a certain pace to it, and the entire novella, although quick to get through is a genuine page turner and one I could not wait to finish, particularly to see if everything I already knew about The Stepford Wives was true.

I can now clearly see just why this excellent novella has been adapted for the screen on more than one occasion and why people are so fascinated by it. It has an entirely original story that takes us from a seemingly idyllic suburbia into the realms of science fiction and horror, realistic female characters that are easy to warm to and feel genuine empathy for and an eerie suburban setting that I doubt any of us would ever want to live in, let alone visit. Highly recommended.

I'd like to thank the publishers for sending a copy to The Bookbag.

Further Reading Suggestion: If you like the sound of this book, you may also enjoy Margaret Atwood's The Robber Bride, or Rosemary's Baby by Ira Levin.

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