The real Mrs. Tobias : a novel
(Book)

A multi-generational story about the deeply complicated relationships between mothers- and daughters-in-law, told through three women who marry into the same family. It's 2015 in New York City, and three women all known as Mrs. Tobias--Veronika, the matriarch, her daughter-in-law Mel, and Mel's daughter-in-law Birdie--are trying to navigate personal difficulties, some of which are with one another. Veronika and Mel, despite having little in common, are both psychotherapists who are more skilled at helping other people than solving their own problems. Birdie, still dealing with the culture shock of moving to New York City and marrying into the Tobias clan, is pushed to her limit when her husband gets into trouble. No amount of badgering from his steely grandmother, smart-mouthed mother, or disillusioned wife can convince him to own up to what he's done. Overwhelmed, Birdie bolts--along with the couple's young daughter--to her Midwestern hometown, hoping that space, warmth and wisdom from her own feisty grandmother will help her find a path forward. And though Birdie begins to find comfort in unexpected places--a local bookstore and the arms of her old boyfriend--her absence stirs up long simmering troubles back home forcing the Tobiases to reconsider their relationships to each other, and ultimately, what it means to be a family.