THE BLOODY ENGLISH WOMEN OF THE MAISON PUCE

In this delightful satire, an Englishwoman named Alice Barnes decides to embrace the change that has been thrust upon her: Her husband has dumped her for a younger model. She impulsively spends more than she can afford on a tiny flat on the Riviera, only to find that the colorful fellow tenants she imagined speaking French with are also English, except for the television star, who is from Texas. The expenses, views, and weather are not as advertised either. Helen Lederer can't do an American accent for beans, but it's fun to hear what she thinks we sound like, and everything else she does in this winning performance she does impeccably. B.G. (c) AudioFile 2003, Portland, Maine [Published: AUG/SEP 03]