Nine Months in the Life of an Old Maid

1st edition (publ. The Dial Press)

Nine Months In The Life Of An Old Maid, published in 1969, is the second novel of Judith Rossner. Divided in two parts, the book details the complicated relationship that two sisters have with each other and the other members of their eccentric family.

Plot

Beth Cane, the thirty-year-old titular character, narrates the story. Beth is socially isolated and emotionally fragile, having been hospitalized for nervous conditions on several occasions. She lives with her older sister, Mimi, a mystery writer, and her brother-in-law, Barney, a poet. Unemployed, unmarried, and never having left home, Beth is very dependent on her sister, which the ultra-responsible Mimi encourages. The three of them, along with their servants, make their home at Yiytzo, the family estate. Yiytzo, which means "the egg" in Russian, had been established by Beth's communist parents, Josh and Lily, in 1929. Josh and Lily, who were narcissistic and not particularly interested in their children, grew tired of communism. The two got the opportunity to live in California because Josh, a semi-successful novelist, got a job as a screenwriter. They left the young girls in care of servants and rarely visited because, according to them, "you could not raise children in Hollywood."

Set in the 1950s, the novel opens with the two sisters awaiting the arrival of their older half-brother Vincent. (Lily had abandoned her first husband along with eleven-month-old Vincent to run off with Josh.) Mimi isn't particularly happy about Vincent visiting; they don't get along well and Vincent enjoys provoking her. Beth, who has always liked her brother, is on edge about the fact that Lily is coming as well. Lily and Josh informally separated many years before and Beth resents the fact that her mother will only visit when Lily feels that Josh is likely to be at Yiytzo. Beth gets along well enough with her father but does not feel much of a bond with him.

Mimi and Barney decide to go out alone before the guests arrive; they get into a one-car accident, driving their car partially off the road. They are unhurt and go to bed after resolving to call the mechanic the next day. After they go to their room, their neighbor from down the road, Max, knocks on the door. He has bumped into Barney and Mimi's car and decided to place a lantern on the trunk to warn others that the car is there. Beth invites him in and discovers that he is a former classmate of Vincent's. He leaves after drinking tea and inviting Beth to look at the house that he is renovating.

Vincent arrives the next day and Lily arrives shortly thereafter. Lily, who has only come to see Josh, doesn't take much of an interest in the children, angering Beth and Vincent. Mimi announces that she is pregnant after her mother and brother leave.

Vincent visits again later that summer. Lily also visits again, having found out that Josh plans to visit. Mimi happily announces her pregnancy to her mother who suggests that Mimi have an abortion if she doesn't want it. This reduces Mimi to tears. Vincent, who is also hurt by Lily's insensitive behavior, storms out of the house during the meal and doesn't even return to get his wallet. Beth ends up quarreling with her mother. Josh arrives via motorcycle on the last day of Lily's visit. During the visit, the family discovers that Josh has decided to sell most of the 42 acres (170,000 m²) that make up the estate in order for the town to widen the road near their home. Beth is deeply upset by this decision and begins to feel resentful toward her father.

When Thanksgiving comes around, Vincent visits with his girlfriend's son, who immediately bonds with Mimi. Mimi and Vincent also resolve their differences and bond which causes Beth to feel left out. She impulsively decides to leave the house and visit Max. Max is getting ready to visit someone else and invites Beth along. She reluctantly goes and decides not to tell Mimi where she is going in order to make her worry. Beth and Max leave shortly thereafter and Max takes her home. Max becomes a regular visitor afterwards.

When Christmas rolls around the entire Cane family descends on Yiytzo. Vincent brings his girlfriend as well as her son this time. Josh and Lily, who travelled together in Spain, come to the house together. Josh gives Mimi and Barney the deed to the house and the acreage immediately surrounding it. He also gives Vincent a few acres nearby. Beth, angered all over again by Josh's determination to sell the land, quarrels with her father who drunkenly curses and insults her. At this point, Max, who has given Beth a beaded purse as a gift, convinces her to take a walk with him. During the walk, Max suggests that Beth marry him and move into the house that he has been renovating. Beth, not particularly eager to marry, promises to think about it.

As Mimi's due date approaches, Beth begins to feel increasingly anxious. Beth, who dislikes children, isn't thrilled with the idea of being an aunt. One night, when both sisters are suffering from insomnia, Beth tells Mimi that Max asked her to marry him and that she seriously considering the offer, despite her ambivalence. Mimi and Barney, who had been up drinking in the kitchen, think this is a bad idea and vehemently oppose it. Beth asserts her right to marry as well as her right to keep her previous hospitalizations a secret from Max. Mimi, who has always felt hostile toward Max, begins to cry.

Mimi goes into labor a few weeks later. Beth impulsively decides to run to Max's house, failing to put on shoes or a coat first. She shows up at Max's house with cold bleeding feet and accepts his proposal. Barney calls early in the morning and announces that Mimi gave birth to a girl. Beth and Max marry and, at the end of the book, have been together for a year.

Critical reception

A 1969 review from the New York Times: "What is wrong with [the characters] is the absence of love. The author dissects this primary flaw--and, with great sensitivity and style, shows how it affects the development of each of the Canes, and their relationships with one another...All these cross-purposes flourish in an unusual literary climate rich in universal implications." ^[1]

Bibliography

Rossner, Judith (1969). Nine Months In the Life of an Old Maid, The Dial Press, 70-80498

References

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