Introduction

“Friedman writes with the female fury of Ferrante.”—Lauren Yu-Ting Bo, On the Seawall

A daring, erotically charged novel about ambition, desire, and the dangerous pursuit of self-knowledge.

Ina is a 41-year-old literary scholar on the cusp of professional success. With a coveted university job, a kind husband, and a book on Eugene O’Neill due in months, her life appears enviably stable. But when an impulsive kiss with a stranger shatters her self-control, Ina finds herself plunged into an erotic and emotional freefall.

She tells herself it’s research—a brief detour before returning to real life. But what begins as a flirtation becomes a reckoning with everything Ina thought she wanted: marriage, intellect, control. As she navigates the ecstatic confusion of newfound desire, she risks upending her work, her relationship, and her understanding of who she is.

Set in Brooklyn and Manhattan at the turn of the millennium, Don’t Stop is a bold, immersive debut that explores what happens when a woman dares to want more—of the world, of her body, of herself. Bonnie Friedman delivers a novel of transgression, transformation, and unapologetic longing.

“A moving, laser-eyed story about love, desire, betrayal, and destiny, which manages, mysteriously, to be simultaneously funny and profound.”—Michael Cunningham

“Luminous, evocative, and original.”—Christina Baker Kline

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Excerpt

O’Neill had gone up the mountain to the tuberculosis clinic and had come down a different man. She explained this to Sybille’s students the fourth time she met with them. In previous weeks she’d resorted to exercises from Janie’s textbook, but she’d gotten tired of that and saw they had too. She could at least share what she knew of the writer who’d changed American theater. Her own pages had been due the week before but it was too alarming to think about. Besides, the only actually important aspects of scholarly work—outweighing all else—were its originality and force, and these were gathering within her. She had no idea of the precise pub date of the monographs and articles she admired. “Get it to me when you can,” Marguerite had said, because obviously quality was what counted. No, today shewanted to consider the major event that had altered O’Neill. ... view entire excerpt...

Discussion Questions

From the publisher - added by Pauline:

1. At its heart, Don’t Stop is a coming-of-age story, albeit one that takes place later in life. Why do you think stories of the midlife are resonating so widely right now? Is it a symptom of something greater?
2. Do you think Ina’s pull towards Jack stems from a place of newfound passion, or dangerous obsession? Is there room for both? Where is the line between the two states? Does it begin as one and end as another? At what point in the novel do you think this shifts, if at all?
3.Ina thinks that her affair with Jack is a product of dissatisfaction in her marriage. Do you think infidelity often stems from cracks in one’s established relationship or does it have more to do with the individual? Is it possible for an individual to outgrow an actually good marriage?
4. Ina attributes starting her affair to no longer feeling attractive. How important do you think feeling attractive is to one’s wellbeing? Does this change as we age? Does it differ between men and women?
5. Some readers have seen this novel as depicting a journey of the soul. Do you think a spiritual journey can begin in bed? In what ways does Ina end up a different person spiritually by the end of the novel?

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