The Post-Birthday World: A Novel

This dazzling new novel from the Orange Prize-winning author of the international bestseller We Need to Talk About Kevin takes a psychological and deeply human look at love and volition

Does the course of life hinge on a single kiss? Whether the American expatriate Irena McGovern does or doesn''t lean into a certain pair of lips in London will determine whether she stays with her smart, disciplined, intellectual American partner Lawrence, or runs off with Ramsey-a wild, exuberant British snooker star the couple has known for years. Employing a parallel-universe structure, Shriver follows Irena''s life as it unfolds under the influence of two drastically different men. In a tour de force that, remarkably, has no villains, Shriver explores the implications, both large and small, of our choice of mate-a subject of timeless, universal fascination for both sexes.