A Special Providence

Aug 17, 2025 11:01 PM

Author:Richard Yates

Bobby is eighteen and lost on the battlefields of Europe, stumbling his way through World War II. He has turned out to be the heroic soldier he imagined and his experience of battle principally involves fear and confusion. Back home, his mother Alice puts all her hopes in her son, and dreams of his return and starting a new life for them both.

Richard Yates's novel is both tender and ironic as he follows Bobby's adventures and disasters and reflects on the intense but complicated bond between mother and son.

Reviews

A beautiful book

—— Joan Didion

Wonderful

—— Andre Dubus

So quotidian, so possible, so plausible, that it is more terrifying to read...than to read of the disasters and massacres of kings

—— Harper's

Every good writer I know acknowledges Yates as a master

—— Kurt Vonnegut

Yates's trademark blackness does not seem out of place or excessive... the skilful sketches of Prentice's colleagues bring an element of humanity to a sordid and inhumane topic

—— Leyla Sanai , www.rocksbackpagesblogs.com

The chaotic tale of the hapless Lucy will strike a chord with any woman who hasn't quite mastered the art of being a domestic goddess

—— Instyle UK

An hilarious read

—— Sainsbury’s Magazine

Perfect for failed domestic goddesses everywhere

—— heat

Smart, funny, and well-observed...a must read for any woman who loves to laugh at the often unintentional humor in domestic life

—— Karen Quinn, bestselling author of The Ivy Chronicles

The latest literary sensation

—— The Sun

Neill bucks the chick-lit trend with prose that's clever and endearing, and frazzled parents will love the way she nails the sticky, hair-pulling mania of domestic life

—— Washington Post

A deftly executed domestic comedy

—— Boston Globe

Hilarious . . . Plays with the chaos and comedy of 30-something metropolitan maternity and brings it to an unexpectedly moving conclusion

—— Anna Wintour , Vogue

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