On the HahaFiction shelf
Six of One
by Rita Mae Brown
Runnymede
Louise and Julia Hunsenmeir have a lifetime of grievances to keep them busy in Runnymede, Maryland. Known as Wheezie and Juts, the sisters belong to a community of women whose private lives spill beyond the town's social rules. Julia's daughter, a bisexual writer, tells their story alongside that of lesbian heiress Celeste Chalfonte and her household.
From the publisher’s blurb
“Wheezie and Juts spend their whole lives in Runnymede, cheerfully quibbling about everything”Read the full description at Bantam publisher description
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What makes it funny?
The sisters can turn driving lessons or child-rearing into another round of verbal combat. Reviewing the novel for The Harvard Crimson, Susanna Rodell praised its bawdy dialogue and the sisters' habit of remembering their affection only occasionally.
The comedy at work
Brown brings the scale of American history down to the kitchen door. A scene quoted in the contemporary review greets the news of Germany invading Poland with a warning about letting flies through the screen. Public catastrophe has to compete with the household's immediate priorities.
Try this if…
Readers drawn to outspoken women and long-running family arguments will find plenty to follow here. The wider community gives lesbian and bisexual characters room for love and friendship.
Good to know
Expect profanity. The contemporary Crimson review enjoyed the dialogue but found the writing uneven and the community too idealized, with serious conflicts settled easily.
More funny family comedy
Sources & further reading
- Contemporary review
Review
- Publisher
Publisher
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