{"product_id":"close-of-play-modern-plays","title":"Close of Play (Modern Plays)","description":"\u003cp\u003eIt is characteristic of Simon Gray to place a witty, intellectual hero center stage, and then systematically and ruthlessly reveal the barrenness of his soul and spirit. In CLOSE OF PLAY (the title is a cricket term) the central figure is Jasper Spencer, a celebrated literary figure and family patriarch, who sits mutely on stage while his children and their spouses, one by one, reveal their innermost concerns and problems to him. One son, a BBC television newscaster with a drinking problem, suspects that his wife is unfaithful and may leave him; another son, a doctor facing a malpractice suit, feigns devotion to his often-betrayed wife, who is pregnant with their fifth child; while the widow of a third brother, who hates everyone in sight, tries to develop a meaningful relationship with her troubled son, who is suspected of homosexuality and theft. While the stories they tell are absorbing, lively, and filled with humor, they are also, on a deeper level, uncommonly revealing giving eloquent testimony of the profound unhappiness that underlies this ostensibly content and even placid household.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cdiv class=\"sb-details\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eAuthor:\u003c\/strong\u003e \u003ca href=\"\/collections\/simon-gray-books\"\u003eSimon Gray\u003c\/a\u003e (all their books in stock)\u003cbr\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eFormat:\u003c\/strong\u003e Paperback\u003cbr\u003e\u003cstrong\u003ePublished:\u003c\/strong\u003e 1979\u003cbr\u003e\u003cstrong\u003ePages:\u003c\/strong\u003e 58\u003cbr\u003e\u003cstrong\u003ePublisher:\u003c\/strong\u003e Eyre Methuen\u003cbr\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eISBN:\u003c\/strong\u003e 9780413458407\u003c\/p\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e","brand":"Eyre Methuen","offers":[{"title":"Standard Secondhand — £2.68","offer_id":47911326548145,"sku":"SB-0413458407-C3","price":2.68,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0618\/2669\/5345\/files\/0413458407.jpg?v=1789707049","url":"https:\/\/sellbooks.co.uk\/products\/close-of-play-modern-plays","provider":"Sell Books .co.uk","version":"1.0","type":"link"}