When We Were Bad by Charlotte Mendelson

When We Were Bad
Charlotte Mendelson

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Published: 2007

Shortlisted for the 2008 Women's Prize for Fiction

In North London, Claudia Rubin is in her heyday. Wife, mother, rabbi – and sometimes moral voice of the nation – everyone wants to be with her at her son Leo’s glorious wedding. That is until Leo bolts and the gleaming bubble surrounding the Rubins threatens to burst.

Frances – Claudia’s calm, mature, married daughter – tries to hold the nucleus of the family together, but the stress forces her to re-examine her own life, leading her to make a decision as shocking as Leo’s.

And Claudia’s husband, Norman, has an uncharacteristic secret, the imminent unveiling of which he is powerless to stop…

When We Were Bad is a spellbinding, witty and poignant portrayal of a family in crisis, in love, and in denial.

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