Reviews

Other People's Houses by Abbi Waxman

emilybunty's review against another edition

4.25

i genuinely just love the way this author wrote & i feel like anyone could relate to frances’s experiences & thoughts, i mean nothing super super big happened so it could seem slow sometimes, but it was so realistic just life that could totally happen to anyone, i want to have the same attitude as frances when i’m older, fuck anne not for cheating but she was just annoying my god, also hearing about the cancer broke me a little

curiouslykatt's review against another edition

emotional funny lighthearted reflective fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

“Maybe your life is a well-orchestrated series of elegant vignettes, with perfect photo opportunities every ten minutes, but if you’re anything like the rest of us then you’re lurching from one near-disaster to the next, crossing your legs every time you cough so you don’t pee your pants after having had four children.”

This was a brutally blunt, laugh out loud riot of a read. This is by far one of the most relatable books I’ve read in a long time and I truly think every reader will say “oh, I’ve been there.” 

The story starts with Frances driving the neighbourhood kids to school in the daily carpool, and let me tell you Frances is someone I want to have a glass of wine with. Her inner thoughts are just absolute top tier, but she doesn’t let a lot of those thoughts out. She’s saint Frances. She’s that mom, the one who helps, the one who handles everything for everyone. After one of the neighbour kids forgets a bag for school, Frances being the do-it-all mom she is, returns to that home to get the bag. Enter Frances stumbling upon Anne, her neighbour, partaking in some early morning shenanigans with a man who is definitely not her husband. Things get very chaotic as the other neighbours get a whiff of the local scandal. 

What unfurls is an interconnect story of how one affair reverberates through all four families. As one marriage is imploding publicly, cracks begin to show in the other families and their own drama is bubbling to the surface. 

Waxman does a phenomenal job writing laugh-out-loud scenes while balancing some heavier topics that many parents and seemingly happily married people are forced to confront. 

At the end of the day, the grass is just as patchy next door as yours is, nobody uses a coaster, but if you’re the neighbour who would vacuum the lawn while drama is going down at the house across the way, I’ll bring the wine and we can be friends. 

ewillis95's review

emotional funny lighthearted reflective

5.0

jackienelson's review against another edition

emotional funny hopeful reflective medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

papertraildiary's review against another edition

3.0

I really like Abbi's writing style and the way she notices things. I laughed out loud in public a few times with this one. If you're kinda nosy and like reading interconnected stories, you'll like this. But maybe not if you're really not into Mom Life (all the soccer games).

wanderlustyaf's review

emotional medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

katietotallybooked's review against another edition

funny lighthearted medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

5.0

My Thoughts: I actually had a lot of fun reading this book. It was light, entertaining, and drama-filled - like just pure suburban drama which can definitely be my thing! It almost reminded me of Desperate Housewives? (Which I loved!). I felt so much joy while reading it and this is the perfect example of a pleasure read for my reading tastes. 

I am a bit surprised at my five-star rating, but I really don’t have any criticisms of the book. The only thing worth noting is since this book was published in 2018, other than some of the pop culture and diet culture references are already a bit outdated. But this didn’t impact my reading experience much at all. 

If you haven’t read anything by Abbi Waxman and you enjoy Contemporary Fiction, I would encourage you to give her a try. I have read 3 of her books and enjoyed each of them. I look forward to reading more! 

amandabales's review

funny medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.5

So... I don't know.

A part of me enjoyed this story. Neighborhood drama? I love that when I'm in the right mood. But I can't get past a couple of things.

1. The fatphobia and body shaming in this book is disgusting and makes me wonder about the author's views. Are her other books like this? If so, I'm not interested. It was so tiresome to read the same insults over and over.

2. I can barely think of a likeable character in this entire book and there are MANY characters.

3. One of the characters has a potty mouth. It seems like the author thinks using the f-word is a character trait. It feels forced and cringey. There was also one sentence at the end of a chapter that took the Lord's name in vain and made me want to quit right then. Disgusting and unnecessary.

Overall, I can't recommend for those reasons.

kaf417's review against another edition

medium-paced

3.5

momgoose626's review against another edition

emotional funny hopeful lighthearted medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0