Hallie Ephron's "There Was an Old Woman"

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Hallie Ephron made a splash writing suspense with Never Tell a Lie published by HarperCollins in 2009. In a starred review, Publishers Weekly called it “stunning” and a “deliciously creepy tale of obsession.” USA Today: “You can imagine Hitchcock curling up with this one.” It was nominated for multiple awards, including the Mary Higgins Clark Award, and was adapted for film as And Baby Will Fall for the Lifetime Movie Network.

Here Ephron dreamcasts an adaptation of her new novel, There Was an Old Woman:

There Was an Old Woman is about two women. Thirty-something Evie Ferrante who is a hipster New York museum curator, and Evie's mother's 91-year-old neighbor, Mina Yetner, a retired bookkeeper who once worked in the Empire State Building.

Each of their worlds is coming apart. Acerbic, opinionated, resilient Mina is terrified that she's not so slowly losing her mind. Evie has been dragged home to deal with her alcoholic mother who's been hospitalized -- again. But this time, the usually tidy home where Evie grew up has turned into a hoarder's nest, and Evie's mother was never a hoarder.

Mina and Evie form a bond of friendship across a gap two generations wide, and it's that bond that keeps them both sane.

Here's my dream cast:
Mina Yetner: Julie Harris (remember, The Belle of Amherst?)
Evie Ferrante: Jennifer Garner

Can't you just see them side by side?

Learn more about the book and author at Hallie Ephron's website and blog.

The Page 69 Test: Never Tell A Lie.

Writers Read: Hallie Ephron (April 2011).

--Marshal Zeringue