Diandra Reviews It All

Synopsis: “Until the day of Merriwether’s departure from the house—a month after his divorce—the Merriwether family looked like an ideally tranquil one” we read on the first page of Other Men’s Daughters. It is the late 1960s, and the streets of Cambridge, Massachusetts, are full of long-haired hippies decked out in colorful garb, but Dr. Robert Merriwether, who teaches at Harvard and has been married for a good long time, hardly takes note. Learned, curious, thoughtful, and a creature of habit, Merriwether is anything but an impulsive man, and yet over the summer, while Sarah, his wife, is away on vacation, he meets a summer student, Cynthia Ryder, and before long the two have fallen into bed and in love. Richard Stern’s novel is an elegant and unnerving examination of just how cold and destructive a thing love, “the origin of so much story and disorder,” can be.

Other Men’s Daughters has left me torn because, as a woman, you never know how to feel about a man cheating on his wife. Yet, the whole premise of this Richard Stern, American classic is that Harvard physiologist Robert Merriwether has the perfect life, despite, feeling so dissatisfied. It is in this crack that a deep-seeded chaos brews within Merriweather and, eventually, his surroundings.

Stern has a way of painting the inner turmoil of a human being so that even the most “unforgivable” becomes understandable. Robert Merriweather tussles between frustrating and fragile to the audience. For all success, great children, great wife, and a great career, he feels so stale inside. He become the quintessential example that “having it all” means nothing if you do not FEEL it. If you, as a reader, overcome the wealth Merriweather has and, at times, the self-made stresses he seems to worm through his mind and surroundings, you begin to see a humanity that is oddly reflective of everyone. Moreover, it explains why seductress Cynthia Ryder seems to take Merriweather for a sensual ride with such brisk seduction. She is beautiful and sparklingly smart, but the way Merriweather falls for her to the point of uprooting his entire life, as is, leaves you dumfounded. This man, for all his intelligence and esteem, is willing to take a spiritual jack-hammer to “feel” again, which make Cynthia Ryder appear more like a mystical symbol to Merriweather. Sure, she is sexy and plays like a “flower-child” version of Lolita, but the 1960’s era definitely amps up Merriweather’s desire to go from the staple of standard, societal culture to a man seeking to counter it in any way.

There is a sadness to Merriweather as a character, which might have leaped out to me because I have watched too much Oprah. Yet, his willingness and even eagerness to say “goodbye” to what he knew and destroy the lives of his family was a sign that this man carried a deep sadness. You do not tear everything you have unless you feel it worthless ,which, of course, many readers will walk away feeling that Robert Merriweather is selfish and self-centered. In a way, he is, and Richard Stern’s meticulous, detailed writing allows you to dissect Robert like a psychologist reaching for his or her PHD. Thus, whether or not you agree with the events and character choices committed in Other Men’s Daughters does not matter compared to how merciful and wise you grow from learning about their motivations. To Buy Richard Stern’s Other Men’s Daughter Click Here.