Customs Violation
Originally published in 1987, Customs Violation is a hilarious and heartbreaking account of the ongoing war between the sexes.
“Of course women are the superior gender, Rhoda dear. Example? I defy you to name one man who can urinate and tie his shoelaces at the same time.”
After a fifteen-year break, fate brings customs agent Floyd Beck and lingerie czarina Viola Flury back together again. Their rekindled romance plays out against the early days of women’s lib, when both sexes were adapting to their brave new world with varying degrees of triumph, bewilderment, and denial. The supporting cast includes canine psychiatrist Portia Clemens, a rabid libber who thinks nothing of sex change operations for her male dogs; the mad Chef Eggli, sausage maker par excellence; flamboyant and volatile Nestor Buffez, who considers silk pajamas his business suit; George Hash, recovering from his divorce in a barrage of singles bars; and Breeze Squawfoot, an unrepentant cougar on the prowl. The action ricochets between JFK Airport, northern New Jersey, and the Swiss Alps in this “wisecracking, irreverent spoof of modern sexual mores” (Kirkus Reviews) with “truly funny repartee” (Publishers Weekly).
PRAISE
“Almost every line, scene, and situation has you laughing. So why does Weber leave you with a lump in the throat?”
Los Angeles Times
“Sexual rancor can be extremely amusing and luckily a few writers know it. Harold Pinter is one and another is Janice Weber…plenty of smiles, chuckles, and belly laughs.”
New York Times
“This is a genuinely funny book. It strengthens Janice Weber’s place among the country’s foremost comic novelists.”
John Barkham Reviews
“A burst of fresh air. The author makes fun of just about everything and reminds us that contemporary literature can still be fun.”
Richmond Times-Dispatch