The Wapshot Scandal (1964) By John Cheever

 

I just finished reading The Wapshot Scandal by John Cheever. It is a sequel to his 1957 book The Wapshot Chronicle, a book I liked a lot. Because of that I’ve been eager to read the sequel, confident it would be more of the same, which would have been enough for me. It was that, and then some, hardly your standard sequel.

The first book was set in the fictional town of St Botolphs, MA and tells of the Wapshot family, prominent in the town for generations. It ends at the funeral of Leander Wapshot, for which both of his two sons have returned.

The Wapshot Chronicle

The Scandal picks up several years later, providing a brief review of the boys’ respective stories. Coverly is living on a military base with his wife Betsy and a son. Moses is living the life of a successful businessman, with his wife Melissa in an upscale suburb. Then, some interesting things happen.

Coverly gets a letter from his Aunt Honora, the family's matriarch asking him to visit her. He does, arriving alone by train. When checking in with Aunt Honora she tells him they can’t successfully sell or rent the house he and Moses inherited equally from their parents. The prospective buyers/renters claim the house is haunted.

Coverly goes to the house he grew up in to spend the night. In the middle of the night, he is awakened by the ghost of his deceased father. Coverly flees the house, and town, without even confirming to Aunt Honora that it is in fact haunted.

Long stories short: Coverly’s wife Betsy has mental health issues, is prone to fantasy, and holds him responsible for their low standard of living on a military base. Moses’ wife Melissa is a bored suburban housewife who ends up having an affair with a teenage boy named Emile who delivers their groceries. IRS visits Honora because she has failed to pay any taxes for years and they are about to confiscate everything from her.

Next up: Honora (on the friendly advice of a local Judge) withdraws all her cash funds and flees to Europe on an ocean-liner ahead of her arrest, and has an onboard “friendship” with a gigolo stowaway. She will settle in Rome. Melissa, confronted by her husband, will also head for Europe ending up in suburban Rome. And unbeknownst to Melissa, Emile, stressed by it all, will join the merchant marines heading to Europe. Emile ends up in a “meat market” where he is purchased, splitting the funds with the market owner – and of course, his purchaser at the meat market auction is none other than Melissa.

There are multiple “other” escapades in this book, some of which are hysterically funny (Honora’s audience with the Pope for instance). The Wapshot Scandal reads in places as off the wall as though it could have been written by Kurt Vonnegut.

Like I noted earlier, not your standard sequel, but a fun read.

Recommendation: yes. One could read this as a standalone novel, but my recommendation would be to read The Wapshot Chronicle first.