Rating: 
Summary: Finding out what the little key unlocks...
Review: Although it took me a little while to get involved in this book, once I understood what was going on, I was hooked. Siddalee Walker is 40, successful professionally, and in love with Connor, who is a wonderful man. But Sidda doesn't feel like she knows how to love, and so she has decided to postpone her wedding. Sidda's mother, Viviane, is very angry with Sidda for what she sees as the ultimate betrayal (read the book to find out what it is). So when Sidda writes to tell her mother the news of the postponement of the wedding, Vivi is torn between staying mad at her oldest daughter, and helping her out. Vivi's 3 best friends (Necie, Caro, and Teensy, along with Vivi, are amazing women who are known as the "Ya-Yas"!) talk things over with her, and Vivi decides to help Sidda by sending the scrapbook of the divine secrets of the Ya-Yas. Sidda has taken a solo trip (solo except for her dog) to try and sort things out, and though she is grateful for her mother's sending of the scrapbook, she is frustrated by the mounting questions that the pictures and momentoes in the scrapbook provoke - questions that she doesn't have the answers to. What is really "Ya Ya" (charming) about this book is how Sidda's questions are answered by Vivi's recollections in later chapters - recollections that only the reader is privvy to - whereas Sidda is still floundering around trying to figure things out. Then the Ya-Yas, minus Vivi, show up at Sidda's private retreat to help her sort through her memories of her mother, the feelings and questions, and though they don't have all the answers, they have stories to tell Sidda to help her fit the puzzle pieces in place. So, does Sidda and her mother ever reunite? What happens with Sidda and Connor and the wedding? And what am I talking about, "finding out what the little key unlocks"? (Ok - a small clue - there is a tiny little key tucked into the scrapbook that Sidda finds; she is at a loss for what the key unlocks, but sharing a memory with Connor helps her to remember...)READ THE BOOK and find out!!! It's such a satisfying read! And yes, there are some very funny moments in this book - but you'll also need your kleenex close by. Enjoy!
Rating: 
Summary: A Good Read
Review: I don't consider this life-changing literature, but I can't dismiss it off-hand, either. The beef with this book seems to be that the characters are "white trash" who use "hokey" language, and tend to live lives that are less than perfect, which is a judgment call I don't buy. It's a bit contrived, and, as usual with these books, everyone's beautiful and colorful. But I did identify with the child of an alcoholic, a child of emotionally distant parents, with losing a love before you have a real opportunity to enjoy it, with someone who finds it safer to wrap herself in the empty baubles of the world and push away the bonds of family and friends that are the true fulfillment of a life. She's not deeply drawn, but Sidda's meditations on the nature of love are thought-provoking. My favorite line is Vivi's resolution to go home, hug her four babies, the man she has married and "do my best to give thanks for gifts, strangely, beautifully, painfully wrapped." Isn't that what we all have to do, in the end?
Rating: 
Summary: Like It, But Little Altars I Loved
Review: This story will make much more sense if you read Little Altars Everywhere first. That being said, this is the story that reveals the uglier side of the two books. Definitely heart-wrenching at times, it's life at both its worst and best. The characters are delightful and entertaining. Overall, this is worth the time to read.
Rating:
Summary: Divine Secrets of the YA-YA SISTERHOOD: ¿Fairy Godmothers¿
Review: "You know everything about female friendship. You've been bosom
buddies with Caro, Necie, and Teensy for over fifty years. You are the expert." This is what Siddalee Walker wrote in a letter to her mother asking to give any information she could about her close relationship with her life long friends the "The YA-YAs" in the book written by Rebecca Wells called the Divine Secrets of the YA-YA Sisterhood. The author's purpose in this book is to help the reader understand that friends are an important part of life, and that it is not hard to love. The author shows this with Sidda as she tries to decide whether or not to marry Connor McGill, her fiancé and co-worker. This is a great book that will keep its audience on the edge of their seat wanting to read more. This book tells a story about a mother-daughter relationship. "Tap-dancing child abuser." That is what the New York Times called Vivi Abbott Walker. A journalist interviews Sidda because of the play she directs called Women on the Cusp. The journalist twists her words around making it seem as though Vivi is a bad mother. Vivi is furious! She shuns Sidda, and this leads to Sidda postponing the wedding with Connor McGill because she does not think she can learn how to love. The YA-YAs, - Caro, Necie, and Teensy, convince Vivi to send the "Divine Secrets," a scrapbook of the four girls' lives growing up, to Sidda. They hope this will help Sidda understand her mother and not give up on love. Sidda has flashbacks while looking through the scrapbook of the times her mother would take her and her three siblings to Spring Creek to swim in the waterhole, and how her mother made their birthdays so special. "Those early birthday moments were liminal, Sidda thought." However, stubborn Vivi still will not forgive Sidda because of what the article said. Sidda decides to call Caro, her godmother, for some advice about Connor and for a story to some of the pictures in the book. Caro is very helpful and Sidda tries to understand what her mother went through as a child and a mother.
This book is very effective because it shows that true friends will be there no matter what. The YA-YAs are four girlfriends that stand by each other through thick and thin. They love each other, and when their families have problems, they become each other's family. "If she could, Caro would have taken her friend Vivi away from that house of hate to the Gulf Coast, where her parents had a cabin. She would have taken care of her because she loved her." Sidda stays at a Cabin at Lake Quinault to try to figure out her problems. The cabin is relaxing and helps her focus on the problems she needs to face. A lot of the flashbacks take place in Louisiana at Pecan Grove, where Vivi and Sidda grew up. Pecan Grove is a place that everyone comes to and they know they will be welcomed. "Kids would show up at Pecan Grove without even an overnight bag, because they knew Vivi Dahlin could supply what they needed." The setting makes the reader feel comfortable, as if they are actually there with the characters. This book is great because there are so many flashbacks of the YA-YA's lives as children and as early mothers. It makes the reader feel as if they are right there with them every step of the way, through the characters blissful moments and their heartache. This book, however, is somewhat hard to follow at times because it skips from one chapter talking about Sidda, to the next talking about Vivi's past. Wells does a great job of foreshadowing what will happen toward the end, but she waits way too long to let the audience know. Toward the last few chapters the reader is ready to be done with the book. Overall, this book was hilarious! The stories that Vivi wrote about as a child will actually make the reader laugh out loud. The YA-YAs are a rambunctious group of girls who know how to live life to its fullest. This book definitely deserves four stars. Read it to find out why!
Rating:
Summary: It was well-written but the story line was frustrating
Review: A friend recommended this book to me; after her enthusiastic review of it, I had to buy a copy. I have to admit that Wells has a good writing style, particularly her flair for brief accurate details as she brings to life the southern flavor and setting of the story. But I had a problem with the story line itself; too depressing and frustrating to read for very long. I found myself skipping parts - especially the conflicts of yet another disturbed childhood, complete with typical dysfunctional parental figures and other down-on-their-luck characters. I found it hard to care about these storybook people. The Ya-Ya bunch did not strike me as sassy and original at all; instead, they spent a lot of time examining their own navels, so to speak. The ending - where mother and daughter finally and supposedly bond - lacked substance. I wasn't convinced they had really come to terms, not after so much dreary buildup. A good storyline should leave the reader with a sense of satisfaction or a new awareness. For some readers, this book has done that. But I'm afraid my overall response to it was: Hey, we all have problems.
Rating:
Summary: Simply Divine
Review: I saw the movie which was made from this book first, and while I like it, I wasn't just blown away by it. Then I read the book. Boy, did they ever not do justice to this story! The book is so much better. With excellent writing on the same level as "The Bark of the Dogwood" or possibly some of Jan Karon's novels, this tour-de-force story will keep you enthralled from the first page to the last. And it goes beyoned the "womens' empowerment" theme, for there's so much more to this tale: Southern culture, family dysfunction, and power struggles within the family. I just can't recommend this book enough.
Rating:
Summary: The Neatest Grandmothers
Review: I have to say I first watched the movie then read the book. I loved both. They are different, of course like many movies and books differ, but I will not tell you where.
This book connected with my southern pride. These women were sweating the southern smell. Their actions, manners, their life all had southern traits. It was a novel that made me feel like Southerners are really something fun, not a bunch of hicks, but can still be classy and at the same time have fun.
It was an adventure with women who had lived adventurously all their lives. It was a ride with the coolest people. The main characters that were older women had always had fun , but with the time and culture they had grown up they never knew how to embrace their children like they should. My grandmother recently had a stroke, and this book showed me how lucky I am to have a grandmother that cared so much.
I recommend this book to anyone, but I think only southern female's could appreciate this novel to the full extent.
Rating:
Summary: Divine!
Review: I loved this book and the pre-quel, Little Altars. I've about warn out my DVD too! Definitely a book I could get lost in time and time again. Fantastic story line and Rebecca has a wonderful writing style. Any book that can make me laugh and cry is a good book worth reading.
Rating:
Summary: Great Book!!
Review: The Ya-Ya Sisterhood is a great book about the relationship beteween a mother and daughter. Viviane Walker has a very close group of friends that call themselves the Ya-Yas. The Ya-Yas include Caro, Necie, Teensy, and Vivi. They have been friends since they were kids. I really liked the Ya-Yas. Viviane's daughter, Sidda, is a famous theatre director and fiancee. She was having an important interview for a newspaper article when she told the interviewer about some rough times she had with her mother as a child. The article made Vivi seem to be a horrible mother and person, which Sidda did not intend. Because of this, Vivi and Sidda have a huge fight. During their fight, Sidda is sent the scrapbook full of the Ya-Yas secrets. While Sidda looks throught the book, the novel flashes back to Vivi and the Ya-Ya's childhood. These flashbacks are funny, interesting, and some are very sad. They were my favorite part of the book. Read the book to find out what happens!
Rating:
Summary: One of my top three
Review: This is one of my top three picks for all-time great books. The other two are FRIED GREEN TOMATOES and THE BARK OF THE DOGWOOD. But of the three, SECRETS is by far the best. I did see the movie also and wasn't jumping up and down. But the book is great--the style of writing, the pacing, the wonderful and eccentric characters--everything in it is first rate. Don't passt his one by.
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