The brothers
Frederick Barthelme

Weird ironies of American mass culture highlight the quandaries of characters reaching middle age in Barthelme’s understated, low-key tale of filial relations and midlife crises set in contemporary Mississippi. Shortly before his 44th birthday, recently divorced Del Tribute relocates to Biloxi, where his brother Bud lives. But Bud is on the road to Hollywood, where he seeks revitalization and success, and Del finds himself sharing a house with his attractive sister-in-law Margaret. Their mutual affection rapidly goes beyond acceptable bounds, creating guilt, awkwardness and confusion upon Bud’s return. While Del begins a new life that soon includes Jen, a sexy young true-crime buff, Bud and Margaret try to repair their marriage, and all four grapple with their changing relationships. The author revisits  themes of love, sex, marital strife, divorce and midlife depression set against the landscape of postmodern America.