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3.36 AVERAGE
3.36 AVERAGE
I liked this book very realistic actually made me cringe at some things that she described very enjoyable read
DNFs are very *very* rare for me but this came close - I actually lost the book for a week or two and didn't fret about it : ) I don't know, it seems like an inelegant mishmash of romance novel, chick lit, historical/political commentary . . . meh, it just didn't hold my interest and some of the characters seemed indistinguishable, like the two male real estate agents. Sorry, I know this author is a favourite of some folks so I'll have to look for some of her other work to see if I like it better.
I got tired of reading this book because I didn't like the characters, and it kept hinting at things obviously like "but if I hadn't gone that night, I might not have met her, and that would have made my life today very different", but doesn't satisfy the hints quickly enough to keep me interested.
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
emotional
funny
hopeful
mysterious
reflective
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Body horror, Cancer, Child death, Chronic illness, Confinement, Death, Genocide, Gun violence, Sexual content, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Xenophobia, Blood, Excrement, Vomit, Antisemitism, Islamophobia, Medical content, Grief, Religious bigotry, Death of parent, Murder, Pregnancy, Fire/Fire injury, Abandonment, Colonisation
lighthearted
reflective
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Dear Ms. Lewycka,
Please stop trying so hard to be entertaining. Just have a cup of tea and try to calm down.
Sincerely,
Your Readers
The plot: Georgie is in the middle of the breakup of her marriage when she meets an old woman who lives in her neighborhood. The old woman, Mrs. Shapiro, is seemingly a crazy old cat lady/hoarder. But she has some sort of secret that Georgie really wants to figure out. Meanwhile, Georgie's teenage son has become convinced it's the end of the world, causing problems of his own.
My issues with this book (and I had many): It was way too descriptive about the disgusting sights, smells and foods in Mrs. Shapiro's house. If it makes my stomach turn on every page, I'm probably not having a good time reading your "comic novel." The word "gunge" doesn't need to appear on every page. Also, if it's supposed to be funny, you may want to consider that describing this woman wearing old, dirty clothes in her filthy home eating spoiled food and having her cats urinating on everything is not actually going to be funny to a lot of people, just sad.
Georgie reads like someone who has recently arrived on planet Earth. She doesn't know anything about anything; it's a major revelation for her when she realizes that a revenge scenario wouldn't work because *gasp* she completely forgot that men don't sit down to pee. (Seriously.) It's a running "joke" in the book that she mishears everything. Fine, but she accepts whatever she originally hears as though it must be fact. Yes, I'm sure the woman's name is Mrs. Goodknee, and the nursing home is called Nightmare House. In return, people keep getting her name wrong, calling her Georgia, Georgiana, Georgina, etc. (oh, the hilarity). But when someone who thinks her name is Georgia asks her teasingly, "The US state or the country?" about her name, she can only mumble "I'm not good with geography." This is because Georgie is an idiot.
Georgie is also a budding writer, so we're treated to bits and pieces from her romance novel. They are intentionally terrible, I guess, although it's never made clear that Georgie should have all her fingers broken to keep her from continuing her writing aspirations. The problem with including fictional bad writing in your book is that it has to be appreciably more terrible than the book we're actually reading. In this case, I think it's a draw.
Oh, and hey, among all this other nonsense, the book is about World War II, and Jews and Palestinians and the conflicts over a homeland for both of them. If you're thinking "Uh, I'm not sure how that could fit in with everything else previously described in any sort of way that's not either shoehorned in or completely inappropriate," you're getting the idea. It's both.
Recommended for: people who like watching comedians struggling to be funny and failing, people who watch Hoarders and laugh though it.
Quote: "In the bottom of the fridge I found three black, wizened human fingers. It took me a moment to realise they were carrots."
Please stop trying so hard to be entertaining. Just have a cup of tea and try to calm down.
Sincerely,
Your Readers
The plot: Georgie is in the middle of the breakup of her marriage when she meets an old woman who lives in her neighborhood. The old woman, Mrs. Shapiro, is seemingly a crazy old cat lady/hoarder. But she has some sort of secret that Georgie really wants to figure out. Meanwhile, Georgie's teenage son has become convinced it's the end of the world, causing problems of his own.
My issues with this book (and I had many): It was way too descriptive about the disgusting sights, smells and foods in Mrs. Shapiro's house. If it makes my stomach turn on every page, I'm probably not having a good time reading your "comic novel." The word "gunge" doesn't need to appear on every page. Also, if it's supposed to be funny, you may want to consider that describing this woman wearing old, dirty clothes in her filthy home eating spoiled food and having her cats urinating on everything is not actually going to be funny to a lot of people, just sad.
Georgie reads like someone who has recently arrived on planet Earth. She doesn't know anything about anything; it's a major revelation for her when she realizes that a revenge scenario wouldn't work because *gasp* she completely forgot that men don't sit down to pee. (Seriously.) It's a running "joke" in the book that she mishears everything. Fine, but she accepts whatever she originally hears as though it must be fact. Yes, I'm sure the woman's name is Mrs. Goodknee, and the nursing home is called Nightmare House. In return, people keep getting her name wrong, calling her Georgia, Georgiana, Georgina, etc. (oh, the hilarity). But when someone who thinks her name is Georgia asks her teasingly, "The US state or the country?" about her name, she can only mumble "I'm not good with geography." This is because Georgie is an idiot.
Georgie is also a budding writer, so we're treated to bits and pieces from her romance novel. They are intentionally terrible, I guess, although it's never made clear that Georgie should have all her fingers broken to keep her from continuing her writing aspirations. The problem with including fictional bad writing in your book is that it has to be appreciably more terrible than the book we're actually reading. In this case, I think it's a draw.
Oh, and hey, among all this other nonsense, the book is about World War II, and Jews and Palestinians and the conflicts over a homeland for both of them. If you're thinking "Uh, I'm not sure how that could fit in with everything else previously described in any sort of way that's not either shoehorned in or completely inappropriate," you're getting the idea. It's both.
Recommended for: people who like watching comedians struggling to be funny and failing, people who watch Hoarders and laugh though it.
Quote: "In the bottom of the fridge I found three black, wizened human fingers. It took me a moment to realise they were carrots."
Now, if anyone's interested in reading Marina Lewycka, a piece of unrequested advice: stick to [b:A Short History of Tractors in Ukrainian|828387|A Short History of Tractors in Ukrainian|Marina Lewycka|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1230834822s/828387.jpg|4240781] and (probably) [b:Two Caravans|1740908|Two Caravans|Marina Lewycka|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1187640835s/1740908.jpg|2086107] - I haven't read the latter but I listened to the author reading from + talking about it and it seems pretty interesting.
As for this one, the glue (holding together the way too many characters and subplots) is the thing this book needs most, despite the author's constant references to it.
As for this one, the glue (holding together the way too many characters and subplots) is the thing this book needs most, despite the author's constant references to it.
emotional
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
reflective
relaxing
fast-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
Content Warnings
Minor: Animal death, Hate crime, Racism, Forced institutionalization, Antisemitism, Islamophobia
Almost as good as Tractors, but better than two caravans. Truly a novel that will stick with you! You can read my full review here https://tcl-bookreviews.com/2014/12/15/a-novel-that-will-stick-with-you/