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3.91 AVERAGE
3.91 AVERAGE
The main characters in this book, sisters Jo and Bethie, are women you can't help but fall in love with and cheer on through life. The plot takes a few unexpected turns that make the story all the more enticing. I kept wanting to read on, wanting to know what happened next. Wonderful read!
I enjoyed this, but it was a bit meandering, and as others mentioned, contained quite a few historical inaccuracies that often made me ask "what year is it again?" Despite me being invested in the characters, some of them were a bit one-note and at times the story seemed disconnected due to the big jumps between sections in terms of years that had passed.
Enjoyable read, but not engrossing.
Enjoyable read, but not engrossing.
Following the life of sisters Jo and Bethie, one theme runs throughout the book: It’s never too late.
Five stars because this book so accurately portrays the challenge of being wildly different from your siblings and how complex those relationships can be. This was RELATABLE.
I loved this book. It’s long and took me a while to read, which is unusual considering I loved it, but nonetheless following Bethie and Jo through their lives was so enjoyable. This is a book about two sisters and the choices they make. It’s character driven and explores how relationships can change over time. There are numerous relationships between females and it was intriguing seeing how small personality differences can completely change the course of that relationship.
Thank you NetGalley for the advanced copy of this book. Mrs. Everything by Jennifer Weiner was an ambitious story: spanning the lives of two sisters. The characters were rich and they did a lot of living! I enjoyed the parallels between Jo, the older sister, and her daughters with the lives of herself and her sister. It is amazing how the generations and their ways of childrearing and dealing with complex personal and family issues affects people for years to come. I enjoyed seeing the adult sisters grow emotionally through the years, and I felt invested in both characters. Their relationship to each other was probably their most important emotional bond, and I enjoyed seeing them work through serious issues, but always come back to each other. I enjoyed my time reading this book!
I'm rating this one about 3¾. I liked it a lot, but there were times when it really seemed to drag. I also got caught up in some of the inaccuracies. In her attempt to portray 'the 60s', it seemed that the author shifted the time line a bit so that everything in her story was happening 3-5 years before it really happened. One glaring example is when she talked about the girls being on the Michigan campus and the fashions there—bell bottom jeans and long hair. She set this in 1962, which was still pretty much the 50s and the tail-end of the beatnik era. Kennedy was still alive and the Beatles weren't really a thing yet. They were around, but the hadn't made their US tour and they certainly didn't look like hippies. Another example is the Vietnam War protests—she had them too early, during Kennedy's term. They didn't get going until after LBJ took office and escalated the war. There are other examples of facts she placed at the wrong time, or inconsistencies, and you can find some of those mentioned in other reviews.
That said, once I got into later parts of the book, the errors were't so glaring and the story moved along pretty quickly. I did enjoy the book.
That said, once I got into later parts of the book, the errors were't so glaring and the story moved along pretty quickly. I did enjoy the book.
What a beautifully layered and nuanced story, so elegantly told. Each character’s storyline moved gracefully through time like threads interwoven to make something beautiful. It’s heart wrenching and triumphant and bittersweet. It’s like a quiet roar.
Why did I assume this was chick lit. It is not. The ain character loses sight of her dreams and needs in the midst of taking care of everyone around her. Timely, timely, timely.