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megankwicks's review against another edition
2.0
Did not love my first Wally Lamb book. It was...weird. Why was he seeing ghosts? Why was his daughter doing the report of the beer girls? Why is a man writing about feminism in this way? Why, why, why? I just didn’t seem to care about anything in this book and find myself forgetting what it was even about. I’m a big 1920s nerd and know a lot about the time, but still didn’t care about the vintage drama.
Eh. It wasn’t great.
But! Who wouldn’t want a video recording of their whole entire life? 💋
Eh. It wasn’t great.
But! Who wouldn’t want a video recording of their whole entire life? 💋
mcearl12's review against another edition
1.0
I'm sorry. I love almost all of Mr. Lamb's novels and Wishin' and Hopin' was a sweet little story, but I did not enjoy this book at all. It doesn't read like any of his other works and while the intent is laudable, the end result is sorely lacking. I hate saying this...but the writing was not at all up to what I've come to expect from Mr. Lamb.
lozanos's review against another edition
funny
mysterious
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
2.5
mschrock8's review
3.0
What an interesting way to tell a family history: through ghosts and old movies.
Felix had me from the beginning for crying during "Up!"
Felix had me from the beginning for crying during "Up!"
the_enobee's review against another edition
3.0
I loved reading more about the Funicello family as I am a fan of Wally Lamb's Christmas ditty, Wishin' and Hopin'. However, the family's story felt shoe-horned into this other story about a haunted theater. And the haunted parts felt anything but ghostly. I wish that this story would have been told without supernatural intervention in a more straight-forward manner. Either that, or the supernatural needed to actually feel like more than a plot device. Still worth a read for Wally Lamb fans, especially if you enjoyed Wishin' and Hopin'. If this is your first foray into Mr. Lamb's work, I would recommend a different book such as She's Come Undone or This Much I Know is True.
ers407's review against another edition
4.0
I think this is my least favorite Lamb work. It’s written beautifully, I just didn’t connect to the film side of it.
lisawhelpley's review against another edition
4.0
Not even close to my top favorite Wally Lamb books, but the writing is beautiful and I really enjoyed it.
onespaceymother's review against another edition
3.0
Definitely felt like this book worked overly hard to “woke,” but still only focused on the white women, and only examined sexism as it related back to trauma of a female relative. This is to say, while the narrator was witty and charming and I enjoyed the historical elements, this didn’t quite hit the tone it needed to be truly aware or pack a punch.
emckeon1002's review against another edition
4.0
This is what Wally Lamb does to you. He lures you in with a story that's charming, and funny and a bit hokey, that features the ghosts of silent film stars past, and some mumbo-jumbo about time travel via film clips playing in an old theater, flash backwards, and flash forwards, and then he goes for the jugular. Incredibly we trip from the sentimentality of celluloid heroes to a very real world where mental illness goes ignored and undiagnosed, tragic death stalks the halls of a cheap walk-up, childhood trauma blossoms into a family crisis and the realization that real life has no Hollywood ending. Classic Lamb. Of course, I was lured by the promise of learning whatever happened to Felix Funicello (a Lamb alter-ego?), and, of course, discover that this is both pre-quel and sequel. BTW, the Kubiak twins get an honorable mention, and there are more popular culture shout-outs than you can wave a Twinkie at. BTW, I read most of this book the traditional way, ink on paper, but listened to several chapters via the metabook, and enjoyed the performance reading, and the extra music and clips.