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Love in the Afternoon, and Evening

Essays and Conversations on Soap Operas
Brief Description
Part cultural analysis, part backstage tour, Love in the Afternoon, and Evening is a love letter to a misunderstood, often-dismissed American genre. Critics, friends, and soap obsessives Charlotte Druckman and Mayukh Sen invite readers into a conversation that ranges from topics both serious (race, reproductive rights,... Read More
Format: Paperback / softback
$5600
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A celebration of the quirks, intricacies and hallmarks of a beloved but culturally undervalued art form: the American soap opera

Book Hero Magic formatted this description to make it easier to read. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! Description

Part cultural analysis, part backstage tour, Love in the Afternoon, and Evening is a love letter to a misunderstood, often-dismissed American genre. Critics, friends, and soap obsessives Charlotte Druckman and Mayukh Sen invite readers into a conversation that ranges from topics both serious (race, reproductive rights, queerness) and fun (fashion! long-lost daughters! evil twins!).

Like any great soap, they structure their essays for surprise and emotional payoff, including interviews with divas Susan Lucci (All My Children) and Erika Slezak (One Life to Live), an exploration of the greatest soap satire ever made, deeper cuts like a Who's Who of the best-of-the-best actors on Falcon Crest, and much more.

Together, these thoughtful essays get to the bottom of what makes a soap, tracing a throughline to reality TV and the shows that continue to hook us day and night with drama and emotion. Love in the Afternoon, and Evening will make you want to bust out your shoulder pads and binge your favourite show all over again.

Book Details

INFORMATION

ISBN: 9781324075561

Publisher: WW Norton & Co

Format: Paperback / softback

Date Published: 12 May 2026

Country: United States

Imprint: WW Norton & Co

Audience: General / adult

DIMENSIONS

Spine width: 18.0mm

Width: 140.0mm

Height: 211.0mm

Weight: 220g

Pages: 272

About the Author

Charlotte Druckman is an award-winning writer, author of Skirt Steak, and creator of the collection Women on Food. Her work has appeared in the New York Times, the Wall Street Journal, and New York Magazine, among others. She lives in New York, where she was born and raised. Mayukh SenΒ is the author ofΒ Love, Queenieβ€”aΒ finalistΒ for the 2025 National Book Critics Circle Award forΒ Biographyβ€”andΒ Taste Makers.Β He isΒ aΒ 2026 United States Artists Fellow and teaches film and television reporting and criticism at New York University. He lives in Brooklyn, New York.

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