Praise for The Operator

“What if you could listen in on any phone conversation in town? With great humor and insight, The Operator by Gretchen Berg delivers a vivid look inside the heads and hearts of a group of housewives and pokes at the absurdities of 1950s America, a simpler time that was far from simple. Think The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel in the suburbs—with delicious turns of jealousy, infidelity, bigotry, and embezzlement thrown in for good measure. The Operator is irresistible!”

—Kathryn Stockett, author of the New York Times bestselling novel The Help

“I finished reading The Operator in an unstoppable rush and it was every bit as glorious, gossipy, delicious, and perfect as I’d hoped. Absolutely heaven!”

—Jill Mansell, New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of Maybe This Time

“In this well-plotted comic drama of small-town life, Berg combines the technicolor gloss of a Cary Grant film with the humdrum humor of Garrison Keillor. She keeps the surprises coming right until the end.”

—Daily Mail (UK)

“Funny, sweet, secretive, and full of fascinating 1930s, ’40s, and ’50s period details. . . . A poignant look at life in a small town with its nosy neighbors, thorny families, imperfect romances, scandalous pasts, and gratifyingly just desserts. Nothing is as simple—nor as dreadful—as it seems.”

—Laurie Frankel, New York Times bestselling author

“Berg’s debut novel captures the plucky spirit of a 1950s telephone operator, the charm of a Midwest small town, and the secrets that threaten to change both of them forever. . . . Fans of Fannie Flagg or Katarina Bivald’s The Readers of Broken Wheel Recommend will soak up the small town flavor.”

—Booklist

“A perfect evocation of small-town America, complete with all its bitchy rivalry, petty snobberies, secret affairs, and a few seismic scandals.”

—Sunday Mirror (UK)

“Berg’s storytelling is warm, sympathetic, and witty. . . . There are more than enough quotable lines to fill a couple of reviews.”

—Kirkus Reviews

“What began as an unassuming story about life in a small town turns into an exploration of identity and family in 1950s Ohio. . . . Highlights the diversity of life experiences often overlooked in recollections of the time. This original look at midwestern life is recommended.”

—Historical Novel Society

“The Operator is a fun, light, and intriguing story, [with] several edge-of-your-seat moments. . . . Berg does succeed at making the reader want to keep turning the pages to find out Vivian’s big secret—as well as the consequences when all is revealed.”

—Associated Press

“A compelling debut novel.”

—Star Tribune (Minneapolis)

Copyright

This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously and are not to be construed as real. Any resemblance to actual events, locales, organizations, or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.

Dictionary definitions used throughout the text are from Merriam-Webster.com, 2018 (https://www.merriam-webster.com).

P.S.™ is a trademark of HarperCollins Publishers.