Judy

Judy is a middle-aged woman living in Cambridge, Massachusetts with her husband, Gary, and son, Teddy. Both of Judy’s parents have passed away, and her marriage has all but dissolved. Judy is lonely and begins to wear the family dog, Charlotte, in a baby sling to alleviate her sadness. Judy is preoccupied by her perceived lack of necessity to her family. She does not feel as though she has a strong relationship with her son or her husband. She feels alienated and isolated.

Judy and Gary are technically separated at the beginning of the novel, but they continue to live together because of financial constraints. Judy is spiraling, also dealing with writer’s block. She is the author of There’s a Bird on Your Head, a classic children’s novel that was turned into a television show. Rather than working on her novels, Judy is a...