Pulpy and Midge

Brian Lembeck – 'Pulpy' – takes life slow and steady. He likes his office job, and he likes his gentle, figurine-collecting boss, Al. He even likes the bitter receptionist, though he's the only one who does. He likes his wife, Midge, too, and their ice-dancing lessons. Midge works as a candle-party hostess &x2013 she quit her office job when Al's dog ate her pet pigeon and Al promised Pulpy a promotion. But when Al retires and the tyrannical Dan takes over, the promotion vanishes. And then Dan's oversexed wife, Beatrice, takes a shine to Pulpy, and Dan starts to think Midge is one hot tamale. Soon, the receptionist is smitten with Pulpy, Midge can't get rid of Dan and Beatrice, and Pulpy''s job is in jeopardy. For once, Pulpy just might have to take a stand. 'Westhead is an expert in creating tension, whether it is between or within characters. Because almost everyone in Pulpy and Midge is polite, the tension inhabits the spaces between lines, cold as ice. Like I said, I'm not used to reading books about nice people; I'm even less accustomed to reading very nice books about very nice people that completely terrify me.' – Broken Pencil (Fiction Book of the Issue) 'Dan … could go head-to-head with Meryl Streep in The Devil Wears Prada as the worst boss ever … Westhead has a talent for dialogue (much of the novel centres on conversations between characters) and she uses it to cunningly draw convincing character sketches and illustrate the banalities and small dramas that characterize office life.' – FFWD