The Convention of Wives

by Debra Green

Dina and Julia first meet at a surgical convention and bond over frustrations with their husbands' demanding schedules. But geography, time, and growing families make maintaining their friendship difficult and their relationship eventually falls apart. One of them is left to wonder why; the other has a secret. But neither of them knows that decisions made by family members decades earlier have set them on a collision course.

Years after their friendship ends, Julia gets word that her daughter has suddenly become seriously ill--and she and Dina must decide whether they can face the history that now unites them and muster the maturity to rescue their emotionally tattered families.

A sweeping saga that follows generations from a shtetl in Odessa to the comforts of Scarsdale, an uprising in Glasgow to servitude in the Caribbean, and a trek through the Alps to a displaced persons camp in Italy, The Convention of Wives is a story about the ever-evolving messiness of friendship and marriage, and the wonder of survival.

Genres: Historical Fiction, Fiction

324 pages, Paperback

First published September 20, 2022

Reviews

[Linda · Rating 5 out of 5]

Debra Green has constructed a layered story that cuts across cultures, religions, and time periods to deliver a profound message: secrets have consequences. Those consequences leave emotional scars, dysfunctional legacies, and, in this case, the physical impact of a genetic disease. Gaucher disease affects mainly those with Ashkenazi Jewish backgrounds. The careful research and clever way the author weaves this rare disease into the story to divulge family secrets is riveting. However the message is one of universal interest---women face unique challenges, to be a friend, a wife, a mother and to compromise for the good of the family, to forgive the unforgivable, and to move forward in spite of these challenges. If there is a point to reading fiction, it is to borrow lessons from the lives of these characters for our own lives. An engaging story and informative book.

[Suzanne Parry · Rating 5 out of 5]

By weaving story lines from centuries past into her contemporary story of two women and two families, Debra Green makes the vivid point that our lives are shaped by long historical processes as well as by the choices we make. Dina and Julia bond over the shared struggles of marriage, motherhood, and their desires for selfhood that often seem just out of reach. Their friendship unexpectedly cools and decades later we learn the explosive reason why. There are plenty of appealing twists and turns but throughout the author draws the complex relationships with a light and accurate hand and considers the nature of forgiveness and the possibility for personal growth that is within all of us. An engaging portrayal of marriage and relationships in all their messiness.

[Esther Erman · Rating 5 out of 5]

In The Convention of Wives, Debra Green has constructed a complex story of the intersections of two families. The past and present interweave in a manner reminiscent of depictions of DNA strands winding around each other to produce each person’s genetic composition. Jewish Dina and Roman Catholic Julia meet when they accompany their doctor spouses to medical conventions. With much in common as doctors’ wives, the women soon become friends. But the shocking appearance of a medical disease casts the past, present, and future in a harsh new light. I highly recommend this intriguing historical/contemporary novel.

[Suzanne Moyers · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved this book. Every chapter--whether about the Ukraine or Scottish generations, or the contemporary characters--had its own intriguing arc, keeping me on the edge of my seat and wanting to read more. I can't choose which of the deftly-woven threads was most intriguing; I felt connected on some level to all of them and the fact they connected back to one another made the pay-off even more fulfilling. And that ending was satisfying without being mawkish or sentimental.
This book has something to offer to those who like both historical and contemporary fiction. Put it on your to-read shelf.

[Julie Baker · Rating 3 out of 5]

The story is told in flashbacks and real time, sometimes getting jumbled as to why your reading this now. The story is about two women, at the same point in their lives, who connect due to their circumstances. The Women bond and share then seem to move back into their lives doing this over and over until a secret is revealed. How thing play out is interesting to watch but I feel the story ended abruptly.

[Debbioconnor · Rating 2 out of 5]

Meh. Too jumpy, too confusing, don’t bother.

[Susen Edwards · Rating 5 out of 5]

"The Convention of Wives" is a story of friendship, of family, of secrets revealed and yet to be revealed. But it’s so much more. Debra Green’s debut novel takes the reader on an epic journey through the centuries, exploring tradition, Jewish culture, and ancestral struggles. Her characters are human, flawed, and above all, relatable. It’s a novel well worth reading!

[Marty · Rating 5 out of 5]

A secret is revealed

Julia and Dina, wives of medical students become best friends. This book describes their mistakes, and the mistakes of their ancestors. I think if I had read this book 25 years ago I would’ve been judgmental and biased about the completely normal mistakes that Julia, Dina and their husbands made. But as a woman who has lived through infidelity, a divorce, aging parents and family members with life threatening illnesses, I no longer have room to judge. This story reminds us that we need to value our family— those individuals who we are biologically related to and those that we choose to love as family. Debra Green shows us that women, no matter their religion, race, or background all have something in common— their strength! And sometimes women don’t think they are strong enough or beautiful enough or intelligent enough. But that isn’t true. Our strength is in our love, forgiveness, perseverance and our very beings.
Thank you for the opportunity to read this book— I received it as a Goodreads Giveaway.

[Sharon]

Non linear storytelling is almost always a no for me unless the book is really good… so this was a DNF. Not only not linear, but a lot of characters who only get one chapter.

Dina & Julia become friends at a convention, Julia sleeps with Dina’s husband, and her youngest child is his; revealed after the girl becomes ill. They meet up in 2001 to hash it out & frankly, if I were Dina, would’ve slapped Julia into space, she’s so ambivalent about not only sleeping with the man but their friendship. Julia, you are a cornflake girl. Get bent. Dina, leave your workaholic cheating husband.

But everyone hugs, everyone learns & is united at a wedding as Dina waxes poetic on family & history & uniting different backgrounds/ eyeroll. And surprise, Dina’s husbands nanny was Julia’s mother!!! That’s why he was attracted to her? Gross. These characters need therapy.

[Heidi · Rating 5 out of 5]

When two doctors’ wives form a bond at a medical convention, neither knows how much their families will become intertwined . . . or how much they already are. Going back in time through family trees across cultures and continents, Debra Green weaves a compelling tale about everyday men and women caught up in the sweep of historic events and the constraints of their times and traditions. Closer to the present day, Dina and Julia struggle to find meaning in their marriages, families, and their own growth through the crucible of all-too-human failings that threaten to break them apart. We can all relate, but would we forgive? Readers won’t be disappointed by an ending that rings true.

[Gretchen Staebler · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book. Intertwined families in all their messiness. Mistakes made, secrets kept, forgiveness granted, new relationships forged. All of it kept me reading to see what came next. I enjoyed the back stories of the generations, and how the two families (one Christian, one Jewish) got from (horrific) historic times to present day. I was grateful for the family trees in the front of the book—it got confusing at times! Green is skillful writer and kept all the juggling plates in the air.

[Tania Moore · Rating 5 out of 5]

This captivating saga explores friendship, marriage, family secrets and forgiveness. The characters are sympathetic and relatable, and Green unspools the story with skill and insight. I was fascinated to learn about Gaucher disease, which I knew nothing about before reading the book. Green artfully navigates across cultures, continents and history as the plot unwinds to a powerful conclusion.

[Alison Solberg · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a complicated story about histories layered and tangled together. At first, it was difficult to keep everyone separate in my mind. I then realized that the point is the lives of all these women are closely woven together and instead started making my own connections and trying to see through “time” on how it would all play out. It was very well written and a great story.

[Adele Holmes · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow--a saga across time and around the world . . . and through emotions hidden deep in the human psyche. This novel has all the feels. And a major twist. Strongly developed characters and plot, satisfying ending.

[Anthony · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Convention of Wives is one of those books that you hate to put down and can’t wait to start reading it again! Two women, two families and the history that binds us all makes a riveting tale that will leave you clamoring for a second novel from this author!

[Debbie Weiner · Rating 4 out of 5]

An exploration of differences and similarities of two doctor's wives. The women, from very different backgrounds, meet at a medical convention when their husbands are residents, become friends. Debra Green does a great job developing her characters, with plot twists and family secrets.

[Ellen Barker · Rating 5 out of 5]

Debra Green's novel embraces marriage and family in multiple times, places, and religions, all converging in modern America. She has carefully woven together history and fiction to produce an engrossing tale fraught with real human conundrums. A literary novel with page-turner vibes.

[Rosanne · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really enjoyed this novel. Very Jewish themed. Loved the surprises. Learned a great deal about Goucher's Disease.

[Jennifer · Rating 3 out of 5]

Lots to learn from this book

I received this book in a Goodreads Giveaway (thank you). A nod to the headline of my review, this book was pretty educational for me. I don’t know a ton about the Jewish faith, and this book taught me some things.
There is one overarching storyline in this novel: about two couples, Dina & Rob and John & Julia. To tell their stories, there is a LOT of rewinding to their ancestors. It was pretty challenging to keep up. And I did not wholly succeed at that challenge. Way too many sidebar characters with their own storylines. Maybe adding a family tree graphic would have been helpful. I found the main characters kind of flat and annoying… very self centered without much depth. The wrap up seemed super thrown together, Almost an afterthought.