Add this copy of The Man Who Lost His Wife to cart. $13.61, very good condition, Sold by ThriftBooks-Reno rated 5.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Reno, NV, UNITED STATES, published 1977 by Penguin Group.
Add this copy of The Man Who Lost His Wife to cart. $13.61, good condition, Sold by ThriftBooks-Dallas rated 5.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Dallas, TX, UNITED STATES, published 1977 by Penguin Group.
Add this copy of The Man Who Lost His Wife to cart. $13.61, fair condition, Sold by ThriftBooks-Atlanta rated 5.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Austell, GA, UNITED STATES, published 1977 by Penguin Group.
Add this copy of The Man Who Lost His Wife to cart. $13.72, very good condition, Sold by Zardoz Books rated 4.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Westbury, WILTS, UNITED KINGDOM, published 1972 by Pan MacMillan Books.
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Add this copy of The Man Who Lost His Wife to cart. $15.56, fair condition, Sold by John C. Newland rated 4.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Cheltenham, Glos., UNITED KINGDOM, published 1970 by Collins Crime Club.
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Seller's Description:
Used-Acceptable. Ex lib hardback in VG dustjacket. Ex lib-remains of label & minor biro marks on front end paper; page fore-edge slightly grubby; binding tight; dust jacket not price-clipped, with small shelf-label on spine. A good reading copy.
Add this copy of The Man Who Lost His Wife to cart. $19.65, good condition, Sold by Wonder Book - Member ABAA/ILAB rated 5.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Frederick, MD, UNITED STATES, published 1970 by HarperCollins Distribution Services.
Add this copy of The Man Who Lost His Wife to cart. $20.00, like new condition, Sold by Scene of the Crime Books rated 4.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Niagara Falls, NY, UNITED STATES, published 1977 by Penguin Group.
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Seller's Description:
Fine. First Penguin paperback edition first printing of this stand alone novel. A hint of sun fading to the spine. In near fine condition. Trade paperback (US). Glued binding. 203 p. Audience: General/trade.
Add this copy of Man Who Lost His Wife to cart. $21.05, very good condition, Sold by Cambridge Rare Books rated 4.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Cambridge, Gloucestershire, UNITED KINGDOM, published 1970 by Collins.
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1970-10-12. Collins. Hardcover. VERY GOOD Illustrated DJ clean and intact, internally and externally good, pages clean, minimal wear to DJ, spine slightly faded, shelf wear, 8' x 5.5'
I picked up Julian Symons?s The Man Who Lost His Wife expecting to find another first-rate British parlor room mystery after the manner of Agatha Christie. What I found instead was a lighter version of the black comedies/social satires written by Waugh and Huxley.
The title character, Gilbert Welton, is the head of a faltering publishing firm that needs an influx of capital and one or two bestselling authors as clients. Nonetheless, the middle-aged Gilbert believes that he is happy ? after all, he has kept his good looks, he has a beautiful and much younger wife and a surprisingly well-adjusted adult son from a previous marriage. Then his wife announces offhand that she needs to take a break to figure out what she wants out of life. Gilbert starts to pay attention and notices a number of disturbing things. His wife has changed her appearance and perfume, she is flushed and breathless in the presence of Gilbert?s talented junior partner, Max, and, most disturbing of all, she has a red mark on her shoulder that was likely left there by some other man?s mouth.
Soon his wife takes off for a vacation in Dubrovnik. The already anxious and suspicious Gilbert receives a telegram from Max, who is supposed to be on business in Italy, advising that Max is on his way to Yugoslavia. Gilbert takes the next flight to Yugoslavia and goes chasing after his wild goose of a wife. Gilbert is so singularly inept at wife-finding that I found myself repeatedly laughing out loud. The head of the Sarajevo police sums up Gilbert nicely, ?you assume too many things, you feel too much and think too little.?
In this novel, Symons pokes fun at the psychosexual confusion of middle-aged males, social stereotypes and cultural norms. There is more than a passing nod at Evelyn Waugh. As usual, Symons demonstrates his insight into psychology. I was particularly pleased to see male mid-life crisis from perspective of a middle-aged male.
Although Symons is best known for his mysteries and detective fiction, he was a remarkably versatile writer, producing historical studies, literary criticism, and true crime novels as well. With The Man Who Lost His Wife, satire is added to his list of genres. This is one of Symons?s best books.
