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3.56 AVERAGE
3.56 AVERAGE
Still a huge Jane Green fan! I have yet to find a book that Green has written that I haven't enjoyed. I read 60% of The Sunshine Girls in one day on an airplane. I finished it on the return trip, not able to read much while on the trip. I felt for the Sunshine girls, with their mixed feelinas about their mother. The issues and mixed emotions between mother and daughter(s), while magnified for the purpose of the story, were very real. This family was very dysfunctional but there was enough love to help them to rise above the dysfunction to appreciate and lean on those who matter most; family.
Dollycas’s Thoughts
The Sunshine Sisters is about a DYSFUNCTIONAL FAMILY. (Yes, all caps). Ronni is concerned about herself and her career. Her daughters learned at an early age how to read her moods and when to “duck and cover”. As soon as they were old enough they got out of her house, rarely visited, and didn’t really stay in touch with each other. Nell still lives nearby with her son and has the most contact with Ronni. Meredith is in London pretending to be happy. Lizzy landed in New York as a chef. She is married with a son but her marriage is rocky. When their mother calls them all home they assume it is for one of her big dramatic displays but are shocked by her appearance and they know there is something really wrong with her this time. This pulls the girls together until they learn her final wishes.
First I have to say the cover of the book is very misleading. Reading the synopsis I thought this would be a story about a family coming back together after a dysfunctional upbringing with a happy ending but it took a dark turn with a trigger theme for me – suicide. While different than what my family experienced it still gave me pause.
The characters were all so different, each had their own ways of dealing with things. The sisters fit the stereotype many believe of children. The eldest being the strongest, steady, independent, but in Nell’s case she closes herself off from so much, happy on her farm, alone. The middle child, Meredith, is the people pleaser with low self esteem, thinking she needs to settle for what is offered. Lizzy is the baby of the family and most like her mother. She got everything she ever wanted and she inherited a drive from her mother to pursue her dreams while following in her footsteps of putting her family last.
The pace of the book was a little slow in the beginning. It didn’t really grab me until about halfway through. It picked up near the end but that was where the theme became problematic for me. The saving grace for me was that that the sisters were starting to evolve and look at themselves and their relationships differently. When they were together they were more engaging than the parts of the story when they were on their own.
This is the first Jane Green novel I have read and while it was not an off the charts read for me it was still a good story. There are some heavy topics so for me this is not the summer beach read I expected from the cover. It ended the exact way I thought it would which made me a little sad. I do want to read more by this author because I think the subject matter just weighted me down this time.
The Sunshine Sisters is about a DYSFUNCTIONAL FAMILY. (Yes, all caps). Ronni is concerned about herself and her career. Her daughters learned at an early age how to read her moods and when to “duck and cover”. As soon as they were old enough they got out of her house, rarely visited, and didn’t really stay in touch with each other. Nell still lives nearby with her son and has the most contact with Ronni. Meredith is in London pretending to be happy. Lizzy landed in New York as a chef. She is married with a son but her marriage is rocky. When their mother calls them all home they assume it is for one of her big dramatic displays but are shocked by her appearance and they know there is something really wrong with her this time. This pulls the girls together until they learn her final wishes.
First I have to say the cover of the book is very misleading. Reading the synopsis I thought this would be a story about a family coming back together after a dysfunctional upbringing with a happy ending but it took a dark turn with a trigger theme for me – suicide. While different than what my family experienced it still gave me pause.
The characters were all so different, each had their own ways of dealing with things. The sisters fit the stereotype many believe of children. The eldest being the strongest, steady, independent, but in Nell’s case she closes herself off from so much, happy on her farm, alone. The middle child, Meredith, is the people pleaser with low self esteem, thinking she needs to settle for what is offered. Lizzy is the baby of the family and most like her mother. She got everything she ever wanted and she inherited a drive from her mother to pursue her dreams while following in her footsteps of putting her family last.
The pace of the book was a little slow in the beginning. It didn’t really grab me until about halfway through. It picked up near the end but that was where the theme became problematic for me. The saving grace for me was that that the sisters were starting to evolve and look at themselves and their relationships differently. When they were together they were more engaging than the parts of the story when they were on their own.
This is the first Jane Green novel I have read and while it was not an off the charts read for me it was still a good story. There are some heavy topics so for me this is not the summer beach read I expected from the cover. It ended the exact way I thought it would which made me a little sad. I do want to read more by this author because I think the subject matter just weighted me down this time.
Iv heard a lot about this author and it is the first time that iv read her work. I was not disappointed! A really good plot that got me in tears from sadness and from laughter.
Ronnie Sunshine has had a dramatic life, she has been selfish, popular in the movie business and flirtatious with famous directors! She has had a full life, but one thing she regrets, and thats missing out on being the kind of mother she wishes she had been. Her three girls are now all grown up, with issues of their own that seem to be shaping their lives not exactly the way they intended. Cpuld Rpnnie jave loved them more? Or at least tried harder? And is it too late to begin a relationship that shpuld have been there years ago... now Ronnie is sick, and the three girls come together (a very rare thing) and in a matter of days, their worlds change, their lives explode with new feelings. Will Ronnie die with the knowledge that her daughter's are now safe and have eachothers backs? Or will it all end horribly. A lovely written book. Some surprises here and there. Charming and clever. Loved it.
Ronnie Sunshine has had a dramatic life, she has been selfish, popular in the movie business and flirtatious with famous directors! She has had a full life, but one thing she regrets, and thats missing out on being the kind of mother she wishes she had been. Her three girls are now all grown up, with issues of their own that seem to be shaping their lives not exactly the way they intended. Cpuld Rpnnie jave loved them more? Or at least tried harder? And is it too late to begin a relationship that shpuld have been there years ago... now Ronnie is sick, and the three girls come together (a very rare thing) and in a matter of days, their worlds change, their lives explode with new feelings. Will Ronnie die with the knowledge that her daughter's are now safe and have eachothers backs? Or will it all end horribly. A lovely written book. Some surprises here and there. Charming and clever. Loved it.
Unlikely dialogue and character development, information dumping, and a plot you could see coming from a mile away. This is a let down. I miss the days of Jemima J.
While this contained some heavy topics, it was still the perfect beach read
A quick, enjoyable read, super for a summer weekend.
I thought the characters were almost 'stock', meaning they were almost charicatures personality-wise, due to their reactions to their upbringing. One was aloof and withdrawn, one with low self-esteem who resorts to eating for comfort, the third, a golden baby - outgoing, driven and beautiful. While I was riveted by how Jane Green moved the story forward with their drama and came to a satisfying conclusion, I felt at time that it had an 'after-school special' approach to the themes. By that I mean it was light yet with a few good messages, but they were rather predicatable and almost cliche.
I thought the characters were almost 'stock', meaning they were almost charicatures personality-wise, due to their reactions to their upbringing. One was aloof and withdrawn, one with low self-esteem who resorts to eating for comfort, the third, a golden baby - outgoing, driven and beautiful. While I was riveted by how Jane Green moved the story forward with their drama and came to a satisfying conclusion, I felt at time that it had an 'after-school special' approach to the themes. By that I mean it was light yet with a few good messages, but they were rather predicatable and almost cliche.
See my full review here:
http://stephsbookramblings.blogspot.com/2017/05/the-sunshine-sisters-by-jane-green.html
Thanks!
http://stephsbookramblings.blogspot.com/2017/05/the-sunshine-sisters-by-jane-green.html
Thanks!
Jane Green is at her best with this book. The Sunshine Sisters is the story of three complicated sisters and their even more complicated mother. Ronni Sunshine is a famous actress and mother to three daughters: Nell, Meredith, and Lizzy. Each sister is her own unique person and becuase of their mother's cold hearted mothering they all pull away from each other once they have grown and are living on their own. Until their mother calls them all home for one very important reason.
Told in alternating points of view between these four women The Sunshine Sisters was an enduring story. One of heartache, understanding, forgiveness, and love. Bravo Jane.
Told in alternating points of view between these four women The Sunshine Sisters was an enduring story. One of heartache, understanding, forgiveness, and love. Bravo Jane.
