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3.52 AVERAGE
3.52 AVERAGE
This book took me a little while to get into, but I the end it was a good summertime read.
As the wife of someone who is addicted to narcotic pain medications, I felt like this was extremely well written and accurately expressed the emotions of both the addict and her spouse.
Seems very well-researched, would have liked to see the character in the beginning stages of her addiction since the book started after her addiction already started.
It should be noted that I am in no way, shape, or form the target audience for this book. I usually enjoy reading books about people or characters I have nothing in common with-- books that show me a world I would not otherwise get to see. Here, not so much.
I guess for me, this topic seems sort of overdone, and done better elsewhere. I get that denial is a big part of addiction, but I didn't really need to sit through 200 pages of it. By page 12 you could see where it was going and by the end I was doing some serious skimming to make it through. Especially during the random talent show/skit part. What was that?
Also, all the supporting characters were really, really obnoxious in my opinion. I was ready to ship her child off to boarding school and divorce the shit husband about a 1/3 of the way in. I've never met such a whiny, unlikeable group of people. I couldn't believe when she got back with her husband at the end....that can't be a healthy relationship. Sort of feels like she did a lot of settling at the end, which, though probably very realistic, was sort of a depressing note to end on. That's REALLY not a life I would ever want.
Last thing-- what was up with the old lady at the retirement home? Was that a cameo character from another book? That was such a random scene for me. What's that quote by Chekhov? "If you say in the first chapter that there is a rifle hanging on the wall, in the second or third chapter it absolutely must go off. If it's not going to be fired, it shouldn't be hanging there."
Overall, sort of a blah read that I was happy to be done with.
I guess for me, this topic seems sort of overdone, and done better elsewhere. I get that denial is a big part of addiction, but I didn't really need to sit through 200 pages of it. By page 12 you could see where it was going and by the end I was doing some serious skimming to make it through. Especially during the random talent show/skit part. What was that?
Also, all the supporting characters were really, really obnoxious in my opinion. I was ready to ship her child off to boarding school and divorce the shit husband about a 1/3 of the way in. I've never met such a whiny, unlikeable group of people. I couldn't believe when she got back with her husband at the end....that can't be a healthy relationship. Sort of feels like she did a lot of settling at the end, which, though probably very realistic, was sort of a depressing note to end on. That's REALLY not a life I would ever want.
Last thing-- what was up with the old lady at the retirement home? Was that a cameo character from another book? That was such a random scene for me. What's that quote by Chekhov? "If you say in the first chapter that there is a rifle hanging on the wall, in the second or third chapter it absolutely must go off. If it's not going to be fired, it shouldn't be hanging there."
Overall, sort of a blah read that I was happy to be done with.
oh my goodness.. one month later and I couldn't for the life of me remember ANYTHING about this book. I actually had to read other reviews and even after that I could only hear a faint bell.
Downgrading to 3 stars... started off @ 4. whatever.
Downgrading to 3 stars... started off @ 4. whatever.
This was an interesting book. I hadn’t read a Jennifer Weiner book in a while but remembered liking them. I didn’t really connect with the main character and found the story a bit boring. It was an easy read but the ending was not good. I don’t think this author is for me.
"The day had stretched endlessly before me - weepy daughter, angry husband, piles of laundry, messy bedroom, a blog post to write, and probably dozens of angry commenters lined up to tell me I was a no-talent hack and a fat, stupid whore. I need this, I thought, letting the bitterness dissolve on my tongue."
Allison Weiss is a busy working wife and mother who finds that the painkillers she was prescribed for an injury helps relieve some of the stress that threatens to overwhelm her daily. With a pill, she worries less about the financial burden of the mortgage, has more patience with her beautiful but sensitive daughter's tantrums, is less distressed by her father's cognitive decline, and has the energy she needs to meet her work deadlines. But soon one pill a day isn't enough to take the edge off, nor is three, nor five, nor ten or even twenty...
In All Fall Down, Jennifer Weiner confronts the stereotype of an addict. Allison is reasonably representative of the modern, suburban, middle class woman juggling not only marriage, motherhood and career but also a myriad of other demands, such as the care of aging parents and financial concerns. Despite her increasing reliance on pills (Vicodin, Percocet, Oxycontin) sourced both from legitimate prescriptions, and later supplemented by purchases from clandestine internet based businesses, Allison dismisses the notion of herself as an addict, even as her life begins to fall down around her.
With realism, compassion and a touch of humour, Weiner charts how easily Allison slides into addiction - her retreat into denial, her growing desperation for her next pill and the damage her it begins to inflict on her family and her career. It all seems frighteningly possible, though opiates have never done much for me (I was once prescribed Oxycontin for an injury and they made me so violently ill I strained my vocal cords and damaged my inner ear, leaving me with laryngitis and vertigo for a week), I found I could relate to her desire to soothe the pressure, and the relief the pills must have offered.
While the first half of the book focuses on Allison's downward spiral the second focuses on her struggle to recovery. Eventually forced into rehab, Allison still refuses to accept her status as an addict, she doesn't relate to the women with whom she shares a room or group therapy and so continues to take refuge in denial, until she is finally confronted with the truth and begins to rebuild her life, day by day.
All Fall Down is a well written and thought provoking novel, gently confronting the issue of prescription addiction in an accessible manner sure to resonate with her audience.
I had such high hopes for this one, but simply couldn't get into it. It was difficult to read, with almost too much character development, if that even makes sense. Perhaps I just couldn't understand the main character and her life or maybe I identified with it (not in the same way) and that made it weird. The third section of the book was the most enjoyable - an inside look at rehab. The fourth section - after rehab - was cobbled and seemed to just happen...with little to no explanation on how rehab actually went. Either way, I was frustrated throughout and kept hoping for something different, something more.
Also, the chapters were so LONG. Literally, it was like reading a textbook with limited breaks.
Also, the chapters were so LONG. Literally, it was like reading a textbook with limited breaks.
My friend Ashley and I identified some flaws in the storyline, but I liked it. Not sure how a fictional 4 year old managed to get on my nerves so much. Probably all the SHOUTING!