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melohpa's review against another edition
3.0
See my review at https://topplingbookpile.blogspot.com/2019/08/every-last-one-by-anna-quindlen-q.html
aleigh88's review against another edition
5.0
It was an amazing story, very tragic, but very deep. I couldn't put it down, I loved the main character, she was so many things for her family. You didn't see the twist of the book coming.
suebee135's review against another edition
4.0
Mary Beth Latham is living an almost perfect life. She has a loving husband and three great children. Her daughter, Ruby, is the oldest of the three and about to start her senior year of high school. She is dealing with typical teenage issues: choosing a college, a painful breakup with her boyfriend, and preparing herself for adulthood. Mary Beth’s twin sons, Alex and Max, are facing different issues. Alex has always been the popular and athletic twin and Max has always lived in his brother’s shadow. Mary Beth fears that Max is becoming depressed and begins bringing Max to a therapist for counseling. While focusing on Max and his treatment, Mary Beth and her family suffer a horrific tragedy that no one could have predicted. This is the heart wrenching story of a family’s suffering and recovery from an act so violent that no one is left unscathed. While the subject matter is disturbing, this is ultimately a story of love, loss, and the will to carry on.
linesuponapage's review against another edition
2.0
I've read many other Anna Quindlen's books which have been excellent, this is not her best. I'm sad, I wasted my time as I have too many books to read.
As a mother of three children, I would've expected to be super affected by the book, I was not. Don't get me wrong, the middle hit me raw, although I kind of saw it coming. How did Mary Beth not see something horrible coming her way? I fell in love with Ruby, as she was a kindred spirit, but even she wasn't fleshed out enough for me. All her children were just too flat from a mother's view...
It took me a few weeks to actually get though the book. I just wasn't feeling it. I plugged on. Quindlen has some beautiful obscure words in this story and some beautiful sentences but it just wasn't as good as her other books or collection of columns. Sorry.
As a mother of three children, I would've expected to be super affected by the book, I was not. Don't get me wrong, the middle hit me raw, although I kind of saw it coming. How did Mary Beth not see something horrible coming her way? I fell in love with Ruby, as she was a kindred spirit, but even she wasn't fleshed out enough for me. All her children were just too flat from a mother's view...
It took me a few weeks to actually get though the book. I just wasn't feeling it. I plugged on. Quindlen has some beautiful obscure words in this story and some beautiful sentences but it just wasn't as good as her other books or collection of columns. Sorry.
annels789's review against another edition
4.0
Every time I read something by Anna Quindlen, I end up wishing that she lived next door. She clearly understands so much about the mix of joy and pain at each stage of motherhood. I loved the start of this book with its descriptions of the hidden undercurrents in the relationships between the main character and her teen-aged children, husband, and friends in this outwardly happy, successful family. Then the "tragedy" hinted at on the back cover occurred. It was so outrageous that it felt like a punch in the nose. I put the book down angrily and refused to read it again for several days. It felt like the kind of plot device poorer writers are forced to throw in to give their work emotional impact. Quindlen's quieter insights are dramatic enough without the use of this "big event". Nevertheless, I am glad I did finally pick the book up again and finish it. It made me cry several times, but it was written so sensitively and honestly that I no longer felt cheated by this gifted writer.