The Wife

1992. American novelist Joe Castleman has been named this year's recipient of the Nobel Prize in Literature, the award not totally a surprise but the "telephone call" a relief nonetheless. Joe's wife, Joan Castleman, the two who met in 1958 when she was a student in his Creative Writing class at Smith College, he married to his first wife Carol at the time, is equally as excited, she who is prepared to take on the subordinate role in supporting this Nobel journey with and for him as she has with almost everything else in his life. With their daughter Susannah nearing the end of her pregnancy, the only person that will accompany them to Stockholm is their son, David Castleman, an aspiring writer himself. Although closer to his mother, David is searching for his father's approval instead for his first major writing effort in he being "the writer", that approval which seems difficult for Joe to provide regardless of his true views which places a strain between son and father. Much to Joe's chagrin, who also is on the trip to Stockholm is Nathaniel Bone, who is doing research for an unauthorized biography on Joe. The pressure Nathaniel places on Joe and Joan to cooperate with him increases as Nathaniel has received a contract for the biography, the interest greater with Nobel laureate attached to his name. As a greater spotlight is placed on Joe and only by association on Joan in support of him, Joan may come to reevaluate the role she willingly first took on early in their marriage when he was just starting his writing career and that she has played up until now.