In this superb collection of short stories, Elizabeth Berg takes us into remarkable moments in the lives of women, when memories and events come together to create a sense of coherence, understanding, and change. In “Ordinary Life,” Mavis McPherson locks herself in the bathroom for a week, shutting out her husband and the realities of their life together—and, no, she isn't contemplating a divorce. She just needs some time to think, to take stock of her life, and to arrive, finally, at a surprising conclusion.<br><br>In “White Dwarf” and “Martin's Letter to Nan,” the secrets of a marriage are revealed with the sensitivity and “brilliant insights about the human condition” (<i>Detroit Free Press</i>) that have become a trademark of Berg's writing. <i>The Charlotte Observer</i> has said, “Berg captures the way women think as well as any writer.” Those qualities of wisdom and insight are everywhere present in <i>Ordinary Life</i>.