In 1977, Corman's Kramer vs. Kramer gave a voice to the bitterness of divorce; 27 years later, the author offers this reassessment of the matter. Manhattanites Karen and Rob Burrows divorced four years ago, working out joint custody of their adolescent son, Tommy, in "the most humane settlement" their lawyer had ever seen. As they reapply themselves to the careers that pulled them apart, they can't imagine that such a "perfect" divorce might have adversely affected Tommy-and yet his school work suffers. Tommy manages to get into college, but then, after one semester, he announces he's "done with" it. His troubles take a toll on Karen and Rob and their new relationships, but after Tommy strikes out on his own, he gets in touch with his creative side, and a bit of luck turns everything around for a happy ending. Corman illustrates upper-class Manhattan life with easy familiarity and chronicles Tommy's college application process with knowing humor. Although some analysis of the divorce is overly spelled out ("Karen and Rob attempted to rewrite a failed marriage with a successful divorce so their son could move gracefully and unharmed into his future"), Corman writes with a warm and wise empathy that could strike a chord with many. (Sept.) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved

His parents aim for a civilized divorce, but a teenaged boy still goes off the rails. (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.

Corman returns to the subject of his bestselling Kramer vs. Kramer (1977) in a feel-good story about the long-term results of divorce. Rob and Karen Burrows divorced four years ago, when their son Tommy was 13. No ugly causes like adultery were involved, just the pressures of two careers colliding. Rob, who manufactures playground equipment, has remarried well: Vickie is a warmhearted, divorced mother of two. Karen, who runs a crafts-store/gallery in Manhattan's Soho, is involved in a comfortable, undemanding relationship with Bill, a widower. As Tommy approaches high school graduation, he's a well-adjusted, likable kid whose wit comes out in the cartoons he writes for the school paper. High-achievers that they are, Rob and Karen grudgingly accept that Tommy's grades and SAT scores limit his college choices. He ends up at a decent small college in Pittsfield, Massachusetts, but after an unpleasant first semester experience, he breaks the news to his parents that academia is not for him. As Tommy establishes an independent blue-collar life for himself in Pittsfield, Rob realizes that he's in danger of sinking his second marriage if he doesn't spend more time with Vickie and her kids. Stung by Bill's lack of interest in Tommy's problems, Karen breaks up with him (but not to worry: another, even nicer, widower is waiting in the wings). Meanwhile, Tommy falls into a dream job with a major American artist who recognizes the boy's artistic gifts and engineers his enrollment at Rhode Island School of Design. As Rob and Karen share their ongoing concern for their son, their friends can't understand why they divorced. Readers may not, either. The two seldom argue, display no discomforting sexual yearnings, exhibit mild nostalgia. The tart realism of the early scenes, where the two do struggle with private disappointments and ambivalence, quickly dissipates into a sweet pudding of happy endings. Competent. Bland. If only real life were so nice. Copyright ©Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.