Diana Lively is Falling Down by Sheila Curran is a book that I bought when it first came out because it just sounds so fabulous! (Alas, it's still on my TBR pile, but that's not dig on the book. Pretty much everything is still in my TBR pile. That, alas, is the curse of being a writer.) At any rate, I'm thrilled to have the chance to give the book a plug!




Here's a bit about the book:

Diana Lively is Falling Down WILL DELIGHT MOTHERS WHO THINK,
AND THOSE WHO VOW TO THINK, IF THEY COULD ONLY FIND THE TIME

Diana Lively is a talented British architect who builds dollhouses so she can tend to her three children and overbearing husband. Stranded in an unhappy marriage by what she perceives as her children’s best interests, Diana must find a way to reclaim her power while holding fast to duty, honor and housewifely sanity. When an Arizona tycoon enters Oxford’s gated halls with the offer of a year in America, Diana’s world is turned upside down and inside out, with surprising effects.

This comic, intelligent and entertaining novel spotlights the ways in which nurturing can come from the most unlikely sources and achieve the most unexpected outcomes. Ultimately, this novel retrieves motherhood from the dust bin of roles taken-for-granted and catapults it into a sphere of influence all its own. At the same time, the plot consistently counters stereotypical notions of maternal devotion. After reading this book, which links mother-love to respect for Nature, the Earth-embedded bumper stickers proclaiming Love Your Mother will suddenly seem both perfectly reasonable and patently obvious.



Here's some praise:


Beautifully detailed and rich in exceptional characterization, Curran's novel
gently reminds readers that fantasy has a place in everyone's life. Uniquely uplifting and never didactic, this is a gem.

“BOOKLIST,” Starred Review


DIANA LIVELY IS FALLING DOWN is a terrific pick-me-up. You couldn't find two more disparate landscapes than Oxford, England and Arizona, and that's exactly what one British woman discovers when she crosses the Pond to find herself a fish-out-of-water -- only to realize that for the first time in her life, this means she can stand on her own two feet. Filled with characters who make you laugh out loud even as they break your heart, this is a funny, warm, inventive, original book.
Jodi Picoult, NYT bestselling author of VANISHING ACTS, and MY SISTER’S KEEPER

Brilliant, touching, and funny as hell, Diana Lively packs a powerful punch. A poignant and biting satire... this spirited romp through an Englishwoman's Arizona deserves a unique place of honor on any bookshelf... Wry, engaging, and wise beyond words, Diana is bound to delight and amaze. Carlos Eire, 2003 National Book Award winner for WAITING FOR SNOW IN HAVANA

Captivating, fast-paced, no-holds-barred storytelling, Diana Lively is Falling Down defies pigeon-holing. Wrestling the complexities of motherhood, loss and betrayal, politics, the environment, and theme parks, it is at once intimate, domestic, and worldly. A debut to celebrate! Julianna Baggott GIRLTALK, THE MISS AMERICA FAMILY, THE MADAM

And a bit about the author

The writer, Sheila Curran, is a mother, faculty wife, writer and giver of dinner parties. In her career as a trailing spouse, she’s observed the ways in which one’s identity can change and shift, depending on random circumstance and networks of support from family and friends. Her husband, who is not at all like the villain in this novel, is an accomplished writer, gardener and cook. The couple and their children have lived in England, Arizona, Boston, New York, Chicago, Virginia, Georgia, Florida, and Ohio.

Visit her online at http://www.sheilacurran.com