Frank and April Wheeler are a young married couple in the 50's. They dream of greatness and success, they believe themselves to be different from the vulgar and mediocre suburb crowd who surround them. He works in the same company his father used to work in an office administrative role related to sales that he couldn't even define -- so little he has to do, an experience completely opposite to that of his failed broken father.

The novel begins with an amateur performance in which April participates. The idea is that there could be a new company in the suburbs. However, the night is a disaster, and April is left musing her failure - she should have been able to rise to the challenge, as she trained as an actress. All the neighbours attend to the occasion, which makes her failure all the more public. Frank tries to console her, but he can't seem to say the right words. Back home, to their perfect home with personality. they keep too silent.

But this disastrous night will bring out other consequences: April has the idea of moving to Paris so that Frank can quit his boring job and can find out what he really wants to do.

And it's so well-written. I can't avoid but quoting page 332 --- I have never read anything like this before, and it's so close to my personal experience!

"The whole point of crying was to quit before you cornied it up. the whole point of grief itself was to cut it out while it was still honest, while it still meant something. because the thing was so easily corrupted: let yourself go and you started embellishing your own sobs, or you started telling about the Wheelers with a sad, sentimental smile and saying Frank was courageous."