French Exit

A Novel

By: Patrick deWitt

Narrated by: Lorna Raver

Length: 6 hrs and 53 mins

Publisher's summary

From best-selling author Patrick deWitt, a brilliant and darkly comic novel about a wealthy widow and her adult son who flee New York for Paris in the wake of scandal and financial disintegration.

Frances Price - tart widow, possessive mother, and Upper East Side force of nature - is in dire straits, beset by scandal and impending bankruptcy. Her adult son Malcolm is no help, mired in a permanent state of arrested development. And then there’s the Price’s aging cat, Small Frank, who Frances believes houses the spirit of her late husband, an infamously immoral litigator and world-class cad whose gruesome tabloid death rendered Frances and Malcolm social outcasts.

Putting penury and pariahdom behind them, the family decides to cut their losses and head for the exit. One ocean voyage later, the curious trio land in their beloved Paris, the City of Light serving as a backdrop not for love or romance, but self destruction and economical ruin - to riotous effect. A number of singular characters serve to round out the cast: a bashful private investigator, an aimless psychic proposing a seance, and a doctor who makes house calls with his wine merchant in tow, to name a few.

Brimming with pathos, French Exit is a one-of-a-kind 'tragedy of manners,' a send-up of high society, as well as a moving mother/son caper which only Patrick deWitt could conceive and execute.

©2018 Patrick deWitt (P)2018 HarperCollins Publishers

Fun quick read, excellent characters

this book was witty and funny and had excellent characters. highly recommend to someone looking for an entertaining escape.

Fun cast of characters.

Even the least likable characters end up being endearing. And you have to like Small Frank.

deWitt deLivers Eccentric Quirky Characters

Have you ever read a novel with a central character consistently delivering a flat affect performance in each and every scene, yet who is endearing and extremely well developed?
Do you enjoy mother-son relationships which seem to have an implied but never blatant oedipal undercurrent?
Do you relish a peek into great wealth while secretly celebrating old-money's sudden losses?
Do you keep any DSM (a DSM-V isn't necessary) in your reference library?
Are you fascinated by stories of stilted relationships - familial, financial, friendship, romantic - unfolding into richly satisfying conclusions?
Do you love cats, New York and Paris?
French Exit provides drama, quirky characters, eccentric behavior, some surprises, love of more than one sort, betrayal, eating and drinking to excess, a private investigator, private schools, some Paris flats, some park benches and a few homeless beings in this extremely well written and entertaining novel.

Wild, wacky, and also touching

I thoroughly enjoyed this odd little story. Some reviewers found it tragic and the ending sad, but not me. The story follows the weird and wonderful life of a rich society Grande Dame, her lumpen and clueless but faithful son, and the spirit of her late husband, reincarnated in her cat. Her extravagant lifestyle has depleted the family fortune, but rather than face the music or attempt to straighten things out, she flees with son and cat to Paris, to recapture the wonder of her past. In defiance of impending penury, she lives her flamboyant life on her terms, and finally makes the emotional connections with others that had eluded her all her life. The characters are quirky and wonderful, and their floundering attempts to find love, purpose, dignity, and that elusive human connection all play out quietly in the background, until it all comes together in what I found a very satisfying conclusion.

Great Book

It’s slow and hard to get into in the beginning but once you get into it, it’s a great story and funny. I read this book twice and I still enjoyed it every time.

Funny, Serious and Sad

The story was funny, adventurous, serious and also sad. The voices we're perfect for the story line.

Enjoyed the story, characters, and narrator

deWitt's quips, descriptions, characters, and dialogue really made this book worth the read. the narrator was great, I felt that Raver captured the main characters very well.

Just a perfect BOOK!

Oh, how I love these characters! What a witty delicious tale and how perfectly Narrated by Lorna Raver!

What is the point?

Slow start. Slow middle. Goes nowhere for over six hours. Then, a sad slow end. So many other, better book choices. Go with anything else. This is a bore.

This was surprisingly very good. The narrator was excellent ❗️

This author has a special gift of making the characters come alive. It felt like I was watching a play instead of listening to a book. This is the first time I’ve had this experience so vividly. It was wonderful. I can see myself listening to this book 3-4 times a year just as you would watch your favorite movie.