THE SPARE ROOM

Chronicler of Montreal's Jewish ghetto, Richler wrote the novel and film that launched Richard Dreyfuss's career, THE APPRENTICESHIP OF DUDDY KRAVITZ. THE SPARE ROOM is apparently a radio play he wrote for the CBC. The packaging doesn't tell us when it was produced or who produced it. It is an autobiographical memory piece, narrated by one of the sons, about a family that rents out its spare room during WWII, first to an immigrant fleeing the Nazis, then to a young would-be writer. The production is admirably lean and straightforward; professionally, if not exceptionally, acted. While the text, like much of Richler's fiction, is bittersweet, the unnamed director errs on the sweet side. Y.R. (c) AudioFile 2002, Portland, Maine [Published: APR/MAY 02]