God's Gift to Women

Overview

God's Gift to Women follows Scott, an egocentric thirtysomething in crisis mode, on a long run: the 1995 New York Marathon. As the story traces his difficult, five hour trek through the streets of New York City on the coldest race day ever, it simultaneously delves into Scott’s memories of a dozen past and present girlfriends. There's Angie (his high school sweetheart, who died young), Donna, Nancy, Jamie, and Rachel, as well as Faith, Gina, Marcia, and Jane. There's Patricia, who is not to be confused with Patty, his cyber love, also known as Diva28, and Wendy, his current love and possible future wife. If the book's title takes a jab at its protagonist's obsessions, it also foreshadows his epiphany: God's real gift to women is that, if all goes well, they outlast their men.

Reviews

"Friedman's book is full of insight into what makes the modern male tick. The struggle between freedom and commitment, alienation and love, is brought forth in prose that delights with its mellifluous delicacy. God's Gift to Women is also very funny, at time even slapstick, with a fine ear for how men and women communicate—or fail to—today." —Nancy Jo Sales, contributing editor, Vanity Fair

"God's Gift to Women reminds me of Nick Hornsby's High Fidelity—except instead of a tale about a man's obsession with music, we get a book about a man's obsession with the opposite sex. I'd call this novel 'guy lit' but it's too smart, too knowing, too literary for that. Really, it's a 30-something male's coming of age story. Anyone of either sex who feels confounded by love, dating and what it all ultimately means will love this book." —Paula Derrow, editor, Behind the Bedroom Door: Getting It, Giving It, Loving It, Missing It

Author Biography

Stanford Friedman is the Senior Research Librarian for Conde Nast, in New York City. Born and raised in Springfield, Ohio, he holds an MFA in Creative Writing from Columbia University as well as an MLS in Library Science from Rutgers. His poetry and criticism have appeared in numerous national print and online publications and he is a frequent contributor to Publishers Weekly.