The Mermaid Chair

By: Sue Monk Kidd

Narrated by: Eliza Foss

Length: 10 hrs and 18 mins

Publisher's summary

A transcendent tale of a woman's self-discovery—the New York Times-bestselling second work of fiction by the author of The Secret Life of Bees and The Book of Longings

Inside the church of a Benedictine monastery on Egret Island, just off the coast of South Carolina, resides a beautiful and mysterious chair ornately carved with mermaids and dedicated to a saint who, legend claims, was a mermaid before her conversion.

When Jessie Sullivan is summoned home to the island to cope with her eccentric mother’s seemingly inexplicable behavior, she is living a conventional life with her husband, Hugh, a life “molded to the smallest space possible.” Jessie loves Hugh, but once on the island, she finds herself drawn to Brother Thomas, a monk about to take his final vows. Amid a rich community of unforgettable island women and the exotic beauty of marshlands, tidal creeks, and majestic egrets, Jessie grapples with the tension of desire and the struggle to deny it, with a freedom that feels overwhelmingly right, and with the immutable force of home and marriage.

Is the power of the mermaid chair only a myth? Or will it alter the course of Jessie’s life? What happens will unlock the roots of her mother’s tormented past, but most of all, it will allow Jessie to discover selfhood and a place of belonging as she explores the thin line between the spiritual and the erotic.

©2005 Sue Monk Kidd (P)2005 Penguin Audio

Critic reviews

"Book clubs, start your engines. Sue Monk Kidd's first novel, The Secret Life of Bees, has sold 3 million copies since 2002.…Those are big shoes to fill, but Kidd acquits herself admirably with The Mermaid Chair….Both novels drip with vivid images of hot Southern afternoons, droning insects, swooping birds and oases in which nature is the fabric of life. It is a tapestry strengthened by bonds between women that bridge pain and loss. Most important, both have passages of beautiful writing… Kidd wrote two well-received memoirs before turning to fiction. But perhaps the answer ultimately given by The Mermaid Chair is that a storyteller also can change course and come of age in the middle of her life."—USA Today

"Her writing is so smart and sharp, she gives new life to old midlife crises, and she draws connections from the feminine to the divine to the erotic that a lesser writer wouldn't see, and might not have the guts to follow."—Time

"(A) rewarding second novel by the author of the bestselling Secret Life of Bees. Writing from the perspective of conflicted, discontented Jessie, Kidd achieves a bold intensity and complexity that wasn't possible in The Secret Life of Bees, narrated by teenage Lily. Jessie's efforts to cope with marital stagnation; Whit's crisisof faith; and Nelle's tormented reckoning with the past will resonate with many readers. This emotionally rich novel, full of sultry, magical descriptions of life in the South, is sure to be another hit for Kidd." —Publisher's Weekly, starred review

Frankly, A Dissappointment

I am a fan of Sue Monk Kidd but this book dissappointed me. The female character is a bored housewife who finds a distraction in an unexpected setting. And that distraction happened to be a man who was as much running away from his life as she was.

Mixed in is a crazy mother who is trying to cast out her own demons. Maybe I am too dense to have connected everything, because I couldn't.

The Secret Life of Bees dissappointed me as well, but this book did so even more.

This book was not even close to the same reading..

....experience as it was when reading "The Secret Life Of Bees"....it was a good story and the characters were likeable enough....it touched on painful lessons and on letting go of one life and beginning another...changing who you thought you were to someone you really are supposed to be....there was a bit of blood (chopping off fingers) and the scenery and island were beautiful....but the story did not sweep me away and make me adore it like I did "The Secret Life Of Bees"....

Thoroughly enjoyed this book

Great narration of a story that has this little past middle aged woman thinking a out life

THE MER

Having just finished Sue Monk Kidd?s, THE MERMAID CHAIR, I find the need to voice my feelings about this profoundly wise, engaging and thoroughly enjoyable book. Ms Kidd has again created a vivid world of ordinary characters whose emotions contain the complex, extraordinary meaning of our daily lives. Her prose permits the reader to divine the very soul of her characters.

Ms Kidd?s is a special gift I hope she will share with her readers again soon.

I really wanted to love this book.

I read The Secret Life of Bees and thought it was a 5 star book. So I was excited to find Sue Monk Kidd's second novel. While I enjoyed the book, it was not as compelling as "Bees." In "Bees" every story line is woven into the fabric of the book. I found the Mermaid Chair a bit lacking in that department. There are too many holes and not enough back story to fill them. I was left with an incomplete picture of why characters behaved in the way they did. It was a good read, just not so compelling that I would make a point to recommend it to friends.

Mermaid Chair

Very light but intuitive story about a women experiencing a mid life crisis. In the process, she unravels secrets of her past while learning more about what she needs to feel alive and fulfilled. Much more realistic than some might admit or others might realize. Emotional adventure could be reflective of either a male or female. Definitely worth the time and adventure.

A story about longing and passion

Every middle aged woman longs for a change, only some will be moved so fully to do so. This story is about that woman. Longing and desire move this story from start to finish. I loved every word.

Good romance story

This is a great summer read/listen, perfect for the beach or sunbathing by a pool.

Remarkable

Beautifully written! Sue Monk Kidd swept me away to Egret Island. I was right there, her descriptions of island life and the colorful people were so vivid. And what more could we ask for - a middle-aged woman dealing with a stagnant marriage, a questionably sane mother (and her rather offbeat but always entertaining friends), the mystery of her father's death many years ago, her wonderful relationship with her college-age daughter, and her steamy affair with a man who should be off-limits. Wow! Kidd's probing of all the things that make us tick - and make us human - is truly masterful. A very worthwhile read!

Lovely Story, Beautifully Written

Enjoyed the story, the narration and the wonderful writing of Sue Monk Kidd. Many hours of enjoyment