The Lady Who Liked Clean Restrooms Summary
J. P. Donleavy

The Lady Who Liked Clean Restrooms Summary

Sebastian Dangerfield's appeal is that of a charming rogue, but as critic William Nelles has pointed out, he also "is something of a snob"; and Donleavy agrees with the point made by William Grant that Dangerfield is "a failed conformist rather than a romantic rebel." Donleavy's novels frequently cross a line separating social satire from a kind of sneering cynicism which gives a characteristic edge to his work, but sometimes makes it difficult to feel as sympathetic toward his protagonists as the author seems to. The Lady Who Liked Clean Restrooms continues Donleavy's concern for the necessity of "facing life's adversities with grace and style," but differs significantly from much of his previous work in that the narrative focus, for the first time, is a woman. This transformation enables Donleavy to reconsider some of his implicit endorsements of the behavior of his male protagonists, and then to go...

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