The Four Temperaments: A Novel (Ballantine Reader's Circle) - Softcover

McDonough, Yona Zeldis

3.52

125 ratings by Goodreads

9780345451187: The Four Temperaments: A Novel (Ballantine Reader's Circle)

Softcover

ISBN 10: 034545118X ISBN 13: 9780345451187

Publisher: Ballantine Books, 2003

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The spellbinding story of a father and son, both married, who fall in love with the same alluring ballerina.
Oscar Kornblatt has been a first violinist with the New York City Ballet for so many years that he scarcely notices the throngs of eager young dancers who fill the ranks of the corps de ballet. But Ginny Valentine catches his eye, and when he comes to know her he becomes utterly enchanted by her. One night when Ruth, his quietly independent wife, is away, he brings Ginny back to his Upper West Side apartment and the two become lovers.

While the affair doesn’t last, Oscar’s attachment to Ginny continues to flourish. He invites her to join his family for Thanksgiving dinner, where she meets and falls in love with Oscar’s eldest son, Gabriel, home from San Francisco for the holiday. Gabriel, married to a beautiful, highly unstable woman, finds himself falling under Ginny’s spell. As the bonds of the family begin to erode, Ruth takes drastic and shocking measures to salvage what is most precious to her: her baby granddaughter, Isobel.

Set against the glamorous, exciting world of the New York City Ballet, The Four Temperaments explores the ways in which love and marriage are tested. Through its unforgettable cast of characters, this novel reveals how the demands of the flesh can suddenly, almost inexplicably, turn lives upside down. With the assurance and virtuosity of a seasoned storyteller, Yona Zeldis McDonough presents the powerfully sexy story of two adulterous affairs and imbues them with an irresistible emotional undercurrent.
From the Hardcover edition.

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From the Back Cover:

"In this complex and sparkling debut, McDonough writes of marriage and infidelity with precision and grace. The characters are deftly drawn, set in the glamorous world of the ballet. Ginny Valentine is a love object you won't soon forget, every good woman's nightmare, and every man's fantasy. What a great read!" –Adriana Trigiani, author of Big Stone Gap and Big Cherry Holler

"I cannot resist a book about a ballet dancer, and better yet a book that takes us backstage both at the theater and at the home of Ruth and Oscar Kornblatt. The Four Temperaments blends a family saga, a love story (times two), and the narrative of an ambitious and fiery ballerina into one delicious whole." –Jane Hamilton, author of Disobedience and A Map of the World

About the Author:

Yona Zeldis McDonough is the editor of and a contributor to The Barbie Chronicles: A Living Doll Turns Forty and All the Available Light: A Marilyn Monroe Reader. She has written several children’s books and lives in Brooklyn, New York.
From the Hardcover edition.

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