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jeremynelson0899's review against another edition
funny
lighthearted
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
3.5
Funny and thought-provoking. Though not quite as funny as the previous installments, as it felt haphazardly put together at time, it still made for an entertaining read.
fionaab's review against another edition
funny
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
lizzy_kiddle's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
lori_89's review against another edition
funny
lighthearted
relaxing
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
4.0
girlgangoftwo's review against another edition
emotional
funny
lighthearted
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
5.0
jules_writes's review against another edition
5.0
Not perfect, but it was a lot of fun to read.
At times it was more like a collection of stories rather than a fully plotted novel. But it had me laughing out loud more than once.
A fun festive read.
At times it was more like a collection of stories rather than a fully plotted novel. But it had me laughing out loud more than once.
A fun festive read.
crystalmethany's review against another edition
funny
lighthearted
- Diverse cast of characters? No
3.0
barbora_hodor's review against another edition
2.0
This is the 4th book in the Why Mummy series by Gill Sims. As the title suggests, this is a Christmas themed, booze fuelled, rollercoaster ride full of emotions. Christmas is about spending time with your family and collecting the precious moments, which will be forever part of your ‘memory album’.
We are back with our main character Ellen, whose precious little moppets fled the nest. Her daughter Jane announces that she is not coming home from uni for Christmas as her boyfriend Rafferty asked her to come skiing with him in Verbier and she said yes. Ellen’s son Peter is taking a gap year and is currently somewhere off his tits in East Asia, getting wasted at a beach party and therefore he is also ditching the prospect of spending Christmas with his parents.
After we get through this absolute earth shattering drama of Ellen finding out her precious little moppets are not coming home to spread the festive cheer, read A Christmas Carol in front of the fire place and frolic in the frost riddled fields, we finally get to the main point of this story, which is a papier-mâché of Christmasy memories that no one really asked for.
Previously, I absolutely loved the rumbly nature of Sims’ humour and the often out of touch expectation Ellen had of her life and her family. However, I think I reached my tipping point and perhaps I outgrew this style of humour altogether. Ellen’s ineptitude to have any confrontation without an overly emotional response or enormous amount of alcohol was quite tedious. Oh and when she was required to be a responsible adult, she got wasted with her son’s classmates while one of them kept referring to her as MILF, which she found exceptionally flattering.
All in all the story felt disjointed. I would also suggest that we didn’t need 320 pages of moderately funny Christmas anecdotes that I can’t imagine many people asked for. However, I did enjoy the return of the ridiculous characters that Sims created for this series. Still I believe this series should be put to bed once and for all and left to rest in peace without being dug up every year for some financial gain.
We are back with our main character Ellen, whose precious little moppets fled the nest. Her daughter Jane announces that she is not coming home from uni for Christmas as her boyfriend Rafferty asked her to come skiing with him in Verbier and she said yes. Ellen’s son Peter is taking a gap year and is currently somewhere off his tits in East Asia, getting wasted at a beach party and therefore he is also ditching the prospect of spending Christmas with his parents.
After we get through this absolute earth shattering drama of Ellen finding out her precious little moppets are not coming home to spread the festive cheer, read A Christmas Carol in front of the fire place and frolic in the frost riddled fields, we finally get to the main point of this story, which is a papier-mâché of Christmasy memories that no one really asked for.
Previously, I absolutely loved the rumbly nature of Sims’ humour and the often out of touch expectation Ellen had of her life and her family. However, I think I reached my tipping point and perhaps I outgrew this style of humour altogether. Ellen’s ineptitude to have any confrontation without an overly emotional response or enormous amount of alcohol was quite tedious. Oh and when she was required to be a responsible adult, she got wasted with her son’s classmates while one of them kept referring to her as MILF, which she found exceptionally flattering.
All in all the story felt disjointed. I would also suggest that we didn’t need 320 pages of moderately funny Christmas anecdotes that I can’t imagine many people asked for. However, I did enjoy the return of the ridiculous characters that Sims created for this series. Still I believe this series should be put to bed once and for all and left to rest in peace without being dug up every year for some financial gain.