Having Everything

A Harvard Dean with a perfect life discovers a dark side he never knew he had--or wanted--in this "sharp, moving, poignant" novel (The Washington Post Book World). Philip Tate is a man who has everything--youthful looks, a beautiful wife and loving family, and a distinguished deanship at Harvard. But a night-time drive will lead Philip to jeopardize everything in a moment's flirtation with the forbidden. For on that drive he will meet the Kizers: beautiful, troubled Dixie and brilliant, kinky Hal. And by stepping into the Kizers' house and into the midst of their sad marriage, Philip sets in motion the near ruin--and perhaps the salvation--of his entire world . . . In a "heavily ironic chronicle of professional success, inward misery, and middle-aged sexual guilt," John L' Heureux reminds us that sometimes--in both marriage and life--having everything is not enough (Publishers Weekly).

About the Author :
The author of over twenty volumes, which include poetry, short story collections, and novels, John L'Heureux is a highly distinguished writer. He has taught at Georgetown University, Tufts, Harvard, and served as Lane Professor of Humanities in the English department at Stanford University for over thirty-five years. He has received numerous favorable reviews in the New York Times and elsewhere for his poetry and novels; writing Fellowships from the National Endowment for the Arts upon two occasions; and was awarded a Guggenheim Grant to do research for his novel, The Medici Boy. This is all in addition to having twice received the Dean's Award for Excellence in Teaching, and many other tributes to his talent and developed skills. John L'Heureux is now retired and lives in California with his wife Joan, also a teacher and writer.

Review :
"John L'Heureux is perhaps today's most frightening novelist because his characters, for all their strange behavior, are not freaks or misfits. They are the people we see and know. . . . Having Everything is an unforgettable exploration of what it means to become fully human." --The Seattle Times "A master of spoof and irony . . . As the book moves forward to a conclusion that readers will sense is going to be catastrophic, it is impossible to stop turning its pages." --The Washington Times "Witty . . . [A] heavily ironic chronicle of professional success, inward misery, and middle-aged sexual guilt." --Publishers Weekly "L'Heureux's work is distinguished by his writing about adults, his fine ear for the poverty of dialog that often exists between husbands and wives, and the frequent irony of parent-child exchanges." --Library Journal "L'Heureux is a masterful prose stylist who creates full-bodied, flawed characters enmeshed in life's problems." --Booklist "A kind of biblical sojourn . . .Witty and interesting." --Kirkus Reviews