Begley, Louis

For ardent Fitzgeraldian Auchinclossians: take with caviar, Veuve Clicquot, a fine cigar, and white gloves for the ladies, please.

Although there's a fair amount of activity, this dry comedy of manners seems almost willfully static, as the bland and proper Schmidt digresses in a Henry Jamesian manner and remains strangely removed from reality. For discerning readers awaiting another Schmidt adventure, Begley delivers once more, but others may look elsewhere for their reading pleasure. [See Prepub Alert, 9/11/11.]

Rebirth is when a character moves from a frozen/hard/dark/sick/decayed state (where your boss is most of the time) to a liberated/warm/awakened/healthy/growing state (where my gf is most of the time)...

Hispanic waitress Carrie has spurned his marriage proposal, and daughter Charlotte remains chilly, but lawyer Albert ("Schmidtie") Schmidt is back for another round (after About Schmidt and Schmidt Delivered)...