Significant Others

by Armistead Maupin

Paperback, 1987

Status

Available

Call number

PS3563.A878S51987

Publication

Perennial (HarperCollins) (1987), Edition: 1st, Paperback, 274 pages

Description

Tranquillity reigns in the ancient redwood forest until a women-only music festival sets up camp downriver from an all-male retreat for the ruling class. Among those entangled in the ensuing mayhem are a lovesick nurseryman, a panic-stricken philanderer, and the world's most beautiful fat woman. Significant Others is Armistead Maupin's cunningly observed meditation on marriage, friendship, and sexual nostalgia.

User reviews

LibraryThing member AlexTheHunn

Maupin's delightful and fascinating characters find their way through San Francisco in the late 70s. AIDS and social awareness has crept into the lives of the inhabitants of Barbary Lane. The party is winding down.

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LibraryThing member miketroll

Maupin’s Tales of the City series (including this book) set in San Francisco is easy to read, gently amusing, lightweight, often sentimental and saccharine. Probably a big influence on TV shows like Friends and Sex In The City. More recently, Alexander McCall Smith has successfully emulated

Maupin's achievement of writing his novels in the 44 Scotland Street series as daily newspaper instalments (in The Scotsman).

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LibraryThing member miketroll

LibraryThing member thorold

Most light-hearted of the second group of three books, with a wonderful farcical story line involving neighbouring all-male and all-female holiday retreats. There's a new romantic interest for Michael, whilst Mary Ann and Brian and DeDe and D'Or all find their relationships being tested. AIDS is

still there in the background, but we're allowed to feel a little bit more positive about life.

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LibraryThing member jeffome

Very very fun. A fast-moving ride. I recently finished 'Babycakes' after several years since reading the earlier books in the series and I had a little struggle with that one reconnecting with the cast of characters. Since they were still fresh in my mind, i figured why not continue on. And what a

great idea! This is like a sitcom in book form. Interesting, flawed characters plunging through life, making some bad decisions while doing their best.....all start on a collision course for a ridiculous clash of cultures. Silly situations populated with silly people that you cannot help but root for. Slightly dated, for sure, but it was my time, so I'm thrilled with the dated-ness. Do not think this would necessarily stand so well on its own without the context of the earlier books, but well worth the brief amount of time invested to barrel through. Think I'll read the final one in this series soon. Yay.

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LibraryThing member Cassandra2020

Better to review these together as my comments will almost certainly apply equally.

If you're not already aware of the Tales of the city books, then you're missing a treat. I think they were originally written as a newspaper serial, so the chapters are short & snappy. All the characters interlink,

some directly, some in the most haphazard manner, but always in an amusing and touching way.

Mostly they are centred on Mrs Madrigals house in Barberry Lane, San Francisco and her wierd & wonderful tennants. They fall in and out of love, find they are related in random ways. In particular, there is a strong thread of non-traditional(desperately searching for a better work here, but just can't put my finger on one) relationships and how AIDS ravaged the gay community in San Francisco.

These two books are the last in the original series (although he has written a couple more since - along the lines of a 20 years on catch up for a couple of characters) and follow the usual pattern. I guess they're really a written Soap Opera, but so much better.

Always a delight to read & always a very quick read as you can't put them down until you find out what happens & how all the the threads are going to come together. Better search out the 20 year catch ups now!

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LibraryThing member Mary_Beth_Robb

This my favorite of the series having attended the music festival this was based on. I hadn't laughed that loud from a book in a long time.

LibraryThing member sunnydrk

Sadly, almost every character in this particular book annoyed me, except Michael and DeDe. This was the "darkest" books yet in the series. I found nothing "uplifting". I guess that's how life goes - and this is about the characters lives.

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