Helpful Score: 3
I have to admit that I almost stopped reading after the first few chapters but I thought, let me keep going to see how this turns out. I did finish the book but it wasn't one that resonates with me after I closed the cover. The characters seemed flat and I wasn't really drawn to any of them. A quote on the front of the book from Lauren Weisberger says, "Makes Desperate Housewives look like amateur hour." As I was reading, I can picture this book as a weekly television show and see it working, it just didn't seem to work in book form. There were several short chapters that I wondered why they had been included, as the character for that short chapter had not appeared prior and did not appear afterwards. It seemed a bit disjointed and random and felt it could have been edited better to take those parts out. The writing was mediocre and I felt it and the story could have been more developed. I am not discouraging others from trying this book, it just wasn't my cup of tea.
For Adults Only! This was a book that could nearly be classified as SciFi in my opinion (the scenarios the characters got themselves into were not anything I've come close to experiencing). I couldn't relate to any of the characters (theif, stalker, swinger, adultress). There a handful random chapters that didn't seem to tie into anything. The end left some things unwrapped, but I was ready for it to be over! I did finish the book, and while it wasn't the worst thing I've read, I won't be keeping it to read again.
New Yorkers, and especially those who live in Brooklyn, must be a breed apart. This novel, set in Prospect Park West, a nice enclave in Brooklyn, follows a group of young mothers and their small children as their lives intersect in Brooklyn. Status conscious, brand name seeking, competitive parents with an astonishing bundle of neuroses, this book has little appeal for those who live outside this rarefied enclave. I really could not sympathize with any of the characters- the pill popping kleptomaniac actress, the "hasbian" (former lesbian) who still seeks out women, the adulteress, the social climber, the blackmailer, the cheating husbands, the spoiled children. I really wanted to like this book, but just didn't. I did slog through to the end because I wanted to see how it ended up.
Got this from a "Today Show" summer book list. I can see why/how the native New Yorkers might relate to it, but I really couldn't. It wasn't bad, nor stand-out good. Disclaimer: Raunchy~adults only!
