"The day her twins leave home, Eva climbs into her bed and stays there. For seventeen years she's wanted to yell at the world, 'Stop! I want to get off!' Finally, this is her chance.

Her husband Brian, an astronomer having an unsatisfactory affair, is upset. Who will cook his dinner? Eva, he complains, is attention-seeking. But word of Eva's defiance spreads.

Legions of fans, believing she is protesting, gather in the street, while her new friend Alexander the white-van man brings tea, toast and an unexpected sympathy. And from this odd but comforting place, Eva begins to see both herself and the world very, very differently ..."

"I laughed until I cried." That hits it pretty well. At first it might be very funny, later you just feel sorry for Eva.

On the bench. Happy new year!