I listened to this book on the way to and from my sister's house (13 hours away). This isn't my usual reading fare, but I needed something light and eI listened to this book on the way to and from my sister's house (13 hours away). This isn't my usual reading fare, but I needed something light and entertaining for the long trip, and Ladies' Night definitely filled the bill. This is NOT War and Peace. It isn't meant to be War and Peace. It's not a serious treatise on women of divorce. You must suspend a bit of disbelief in parts. It really is fluffy and silly. But I have to say, I really enjoyed it. Added bonus--I lived, for a short time, in on the border of Sarasota and Bradenton, so I could picture where some of the action took place. That made it more enjoyable. The reader was excellent, by the way, if you choose to go audible on this one. Again, this isn't my usual sort of book, but, for what it was, I found it quite entertaining....more
How much can one person take? (spoiler alert), in this novel that spans almost three decades of Dolores Price's sorry life, Lamb has her lose her fathHow much can one person take? (spoiler alert), in this novel that spans almost three decades of Dolores Price's sorry life, Lamb has her lose her father through divorce, get raped at age 13, lose her mother through death, get tortured and bullied through high school and a very brief college career, move away and marry a narcissistic wastrel, and on and on. Somehow, through all the despair, Lamb keeps me interested. There is debate as to whether Wally Lamb is an amazing channeller of the female voice of his main character, Dolores Price. I'd say he does a pretty good job of it. He does a distractingly good job with details that recall decades--from songs playing on the radio, to Soap Operas of the 60s and 70s.
Like others, I found myself a bit annoyed with the "beached whale" symbolism used in a novel about a fat woman. It felt a bit too obvious and pejorative. And some of the connections were a bit contrived--how she finds Dante, for instance. But, overall, I found some inspiration in the story he tells. And some truth to the idea that life doesn't have to be dreary, no matter what it throws at you. It's more of a polka party. Oprah was right on this one. It's worth the read. ...more
I know nothing about NASCAR--in fact, I think it's kind of stupid, but I did like this little, playful romp through the hijinks of some new Evanovich I know nothing about NASCAR--in fact, I think it's kind of stupid, but I did like this little, playful romp through the hijinks of some new Evanovich characters. It's fun fluff. Just the thing to pass some empty vacation time. ...more
There's not much to enjoy in this book. It's not terrible for chick lit, but it's not particularly good, either. It's about a woman "in her 60th year"There's not much to enjoy in this book. It's not terrible for chick lit, but it's not particularly good, either. It's about a woman "in her 60th year" who decides that, rather than continuing to attempt to fully engage in life, she'll just live her life with a sort of "screw it" attitude. She'll enjoy her grandchild, but when it comes to learning a language, or doing anything else, forget it.
I am quickly hurtling toward 60, and I don't like the main character at all. I mean, by the time you hit 60, you finally have TIME to learn a new language and join book clubs and start to explore your interests, and, at the beginning of the book, the main character is talking about the steadily increasing number of funerals she has to go to, and the fact that all middle aged people want to hang out with young people. What? Maybe in England funerals are a major social occasion for 60 year olds, but not where I live! The wry, sardonic humor of the main character comes off as whiny to me. I didn't hate this book, and it did make me giggle at times, but, for the most part, I wasn't that into it....more
Since I sort of liked the first of this series, I thought I'd go for the second. And, I realized why I don't spend a lot of time reading this chick liSince I sort of liked the first of this series, I thought I'd go for the second. And, I realized why I don't spend a lot of time reading this chick lit, heaving breast stuff. We've married off Cam in the first book, and now we work on getting Ethan married off. Breasts heave a little more substantially in this book--a bit more steamy sex than in the first. For me, that's not a selling point, but I realize for others it is. Mixed-up Seth is still mixed up, but getting better. Anna, inexplicably, hasn't been fired for marrying one of her young client's guardians, but they get back from their honeymoon, and even though she's now practically the kid's mother, she still is his social worker. So, plausibility is thin. My main complaint is that this is so danged predictable that it's ridiculous. Meh....more
This isn't the sort of book I normally read. I had a long road trip, and, for escapism, this filled the bill. It actually wasn't that bad. InterestingThis isn't the sort of book I normally read. I had a long road trip, and, for escapism, this filled the bill. It actually wasn't that bad. Interesting premise, decent, natural dialog, well-developed characters, and a bit of bodice ripping; not too much and not too graphic. I kept turning the pages, so, yeah, I can see why Nora Roberts sells. Any real life social worker who did what Robert's character did would have serious boundary issues and would have had her ass fired in no time. However, this is escapism, and therefore I will not quibble about that too much. I will now go back to my regularly scheduled reading of classics, etc....more
First of all, props to Chris Bohjalian for getting northern Vermont in the 80's pretty much right. I know it as an area with a few more junked cars inFirst of all, props to Chris Bohjalian for getting northern Vermont in the 80's pretty much right. I know it as an area with a few more junked cars in the dooryard than he seems to portray, but he's pretty accurate when it comes to aging hippies in the area, and the mud and the sugaring.
Hard to believe this book about midwifery and malpractice, told from the perspective of a 14-year-old girl, is written by a guy, but it is. And he does a great job of building suspense throughout the story. The characters are believable and, for the most part, well drawn. There are several almosts that I wish he had let himself go to, but he didn't. Almost a love affair between the narrator and her sort-of boyfriend Tom. Almost a love affair between the lawyer and the narrator's mother. But Bohjalian didn't take anything in a torrid direction. He simply explored the death of a woman in the midst of labor, the lawsuit that followed, and the resulting family fallout. So, why the tease? That was annoying to me. It was also sort of clear that parts of the story occurred to Bohjalian and weren't thoroughly worked into the story. Spoiler Alert: Right in the middle of the book, he seems to suddenly decide that the daughter will grow up to be a doctor. I'm also really bummed that (spoiler alert) mom winds up dying. I loved the bit at the very end, though, that throws everything up into the air. I love what he had the daughter do. And I'll leave it at that. Ah, Mystery!...more
**spoiler alert** The book blurbs suggested this story is "hilarious." No. Amusing at points? Yes. Witty repartee at points? Yes. "Hilarious", however**spoiler alert** The book blurbs suggested this story is "hilarious." No. Amusing at points? Yes. Witty repartee at points? Yes. "Hilarious", however, is an overstatement. And it definitely uses the hackneyed devices of chick lit--motherhood, unwanted pregnancy, breast cancer, affairs, the wife having her career vs. following her husband's career. About the only missing element is breast-heaving sex. So, I'm rating this on the "chick lit" scale, not on the "timeless classics" scale. So, a 1 is pretty bad.
Briefly, the story follows the struggles of three late-twenties-to-early- thirty-something sisters as they face their delays to maturity and finally grow up. The story is told through first person plural as all three sisters, which, while innovative, is also mighty distracting.
This author has very noticeable favorite words, also a distraction. She is a big fan of "sweat". Rose, the sister who has the least to sweat about, sweats a great deal in the first part of the book. Eventually, most everybody else sweats, too. The author also likes things that are "thick". On page 338 (spoiler alert) all of this thickness and sweatiness culminates in the phrase "thick sweat". I cringed when I read it. The book also takes advantage of "kitten heels" more often than is necessary, which must be a new hallmark of chick lit.
The sisters' father is a Shakespeare scholar who teaches at a small liberal arts school in Ohio. He has coached his daughters (all of whom are named after Shakespearean daughters) in the Bard, and they often speak in Shakespearean quotes to one another. These sisters are all "weird", in the older, Shakespearean, sense of the term as "fated." In modern parlance, they aren't that weird, unless reading all the time counts as weird. I guess it is. Two of them are really screwed up, but in all the normal ways--having affairs, stealing, getting pregnant. One sister, the eldest, of course, is at home already, taking care of mom. The other two sisters have screwed up their lives at approximately the same time and come home to start over and, ostensibly, to help take care of mom. Thus the action begins.
The sisters are like a Case Study of Adlerian Ordinal Position theories. According to Adler, the oldest child is the CARETAKER--and this oldest child never waivers from CARETAKING. The middle child is UNSURE OF HER PLACE IN THE WORLD--and this middle child is UNSURE OF HER PLACE IN THE WORLD. The youngest child is CAREFREE/IRRESPONSIBLE--and this youngest child is CAREFREE/IRRESPONSIBLE. GOT THAT????? You WILL get that because the actions of the sisters follow this script with goose-step precision. Guess what moves the plot forward? Every sister learns to break free of their particular ordinal characteristic--all toward the very end of the book.
My feminist hackles arose throughout this book. Dad has a name. He is James. Mom has breast cancer, but she has no name. She doesn't appear to have had much of a life, as she could have married somebody else had she been willing to follow him to some exotic locale. The third person plural voice intones that they could have had a different father, had their mother married the other guy. And, biologically astute as I am, I thought, "No. Had she married the other guy, some other child may have been born, but he or she wouldn't have been you." She tells her daughters this, because she wants her eldest to give up her crack at a career so she can follow her fiance to Oxford so he can have his career. WTF? Really. What is this? 1968? So, there you have it. Hackneyed, sexist, predictable. Have at it. ...more
God, this could have been SO good! I wish Sendker's writing abilities matched his imagination, because this would have been an awesome book. As it wasGod, this could have been SO good! I wish Sendker's writing abilities matched his imagination, because this would have been an awesome book. As it was, it was okay. There is a beautiful love story in the center of the book, but it comes to an extremely trite conclusion. Throughout the novel, he relies on some extremely hackneyed devices that, with just a little effort, could have melted away into masterful writing. First device: relying on long (and I mean REALLY loonnnggg) monologue soliloquy to give backstory--he has Julia's mother gas on and on about her husband. And she speaks, not in her own voice, but in the voice of the narrator, as if the narrator is saying "See Reader? This here's the BACKSTORY, and the only way I can figure out how to communicate it is by having Julia's mother basically just blather on about the whole thing in monologue." After the mother relates this, she pretty much disappears from the novel, because the only reason she was in the book in the first place was to act as freakin' Greek Chorus. Stupid. Good writers are supposed to create the plot through action and not explain it, so he fails here. Really annoying. Second device: throughout the entire novel, he voices questions that the characters are thinking, one after the other. Reminded me of old-fashioned announcer voice-overs of "cliffhanger" moments at the end of a daily 1950's soap opera. "Did Sam turn left because he loved Lucinda? Did Sam turn right because he wanted to ignore Abigail? Or is Sam simply directionally challenged? Tune in tomorrow to find out on 'As the World Turns'!!!" (organ music swells and fades. Cut to Brillo Pad commercial). Third, the evil uncle's name was U Saw, and he's the guy who gives main character Tin Win (whom I kept wanting to call "Win Tin" as in "Win Tin Tin!") his sight back. Get it? U SAW helps Win Tin Tin SEE!!! nyuck! nyuck! nyuck! Fourth, Sendker forgets that he has another character relating the central story, which involves bits that there's no way he could have known. Finally, Sendker's ending was Sooooooo melodramatic and sappy! The love story in the middle was lovely, but, I'm sorry, it should have ended better. So, there you have it. The Art of Hearing Heartbeats gets a two from me....more
I must preface my remarks by saying that I read this book AFTER having just finished Les Miserables, Jesus Land and Love and Other Demons. So, it can'I must preface my remarks by saying that I read this book AFTER having just finished Les Miserables, Jesus Land and Love and Other Demons. So, it can't really hold a candle to ANY of those really wonderful works of literature. This does get FIVE stars for being the chickiest chick lit I have ever laid eyes on. It's about seven women living very conventional woman-y lives--all in or just out of relationships, or suffering from woman diseases (breast cancer), or doing woman-y things. Not that there's anything wrong with that, but it was just OVER THE TOP conventional girl stuff. Each woman was assigned a challenge to complete by the woman with the breast cancer, everything from learning to bake bread to getting a tattoo to shooting the rapids in the Colorado River to doing a breast cancer walk. Big deal. And supposedly they learned "deep life lessons" as they did their little adventure. Blah, blah, blah. LOTS of navel-gazing back story. Sort of like the author made up a bunch of character studies for various fiction classes and stuck them all in the same book. Mildly interesting sometimes. I didn't hate it so passionately that it sinks to the level of a one-star or zero-star horrid book, but neither would I recommend it. ...more
What true to life, comic relief! I was a nanny for a summer on Martha's Vineyard. While in college, I also took care of many vastly overprivileged chiWhat true to life, comic relief! I was a nanny for a summer on Martha's Vineyard. While in college, I also took care of many vastly overprivileged children in Winnetka as their parents jetted to Peru or China or other farflung locales. While my Martha's Vineyard family was pretty decent, I worked with many other nannies whose ladies of the house were much more along the lines of Mrs. X. The pretense was so thick you could cut it with a knife. "Maaahhrgot, I believe I left my Maaaahdras in Maahnhaaahtan." This was my favorite quote of the summer from Frasier, the man of the house. The kids were scrambling for some crumb of attention from their actual relatives, and they fell in love with us, the help. This is an over the top send up of the ridiculousness of the uber-wealthy. In some ways, though, it's pretty close to the truth. The book is a fast read, and funny as hell. I love the way these two write....more
I liked this book. It isn't war and peace, and it isn't particularly plausible, but I still liked this book. What I like most about it is that it brinI liked this book. It isn't war and peace, and it isn't particularly plausible, but I still liked this book. What I like most about it is that it brings up an uncomfortable period in our nation's history on the most domestic of levels. It also points out that white women were struggling with their own forms of inequality alongside their African American "help." Rather than taking an approach of solidarity, the white women took a position of superiority that ensured the pecking order. I lived in the south for an almost unbearable year, and I saw the attitudes of the whites toward the African Americans, and I personally experienced the incredible sexism of some southern men. There's no human being quite as emotionally insecure or morally ugly as the traditional southern male. Southern men barely get any treatment in this story, however. I am almost positive that Hilly, the most evil character in the book, was based on my former (male) boss....more
Hard to believe the enormously grounded Carrie Fisher was ever this screwed up. Yeah, it's "fiction," sort of.Hard to believe the enormously grounded Carrie Fisher was ever this screwed up. Yeah, it's "fiction," sort of....more
great idea! A story collection focused on heroines! 'Bout time somebody came up with this!great idea! A story collection focused on heroines! 'Bout time somebody came up with this!...more
Zippy is innocent, sweet, and just unpretentious, plain, white bread middle America. Also, laugh out loud funny at times. An endearing memoir of a smaZippy is innocent, sweet, and just unpretentious, plain, white bread middle America. Also, laugh out loud funny at times. An endearing memoir of a small town childhood....more
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