She's Come Undone

Rating:
Summary: A Marvelous Book!
Review: What an inteligently writen book. It was a marvelous read. I can't remember the last time I found such beautifully flushed out woman characters. What A Great read. It now tops my top three books of the 2002.1) "She's come undone" by Wally Lamb 2) "Self Matters" by Philip c. Mcgraw and 3)"Babytales: A Pregnancy Companion" by M.S. Woodson.

I'm reading the Nanny Diaries...We'll see if this makes the list.

Rating:
Summary: Stunning and Beautiful
Review: This is the second book by Lamb that I've read and once again I was very impressed and very moved. This story is written so well that you don't even notice that you're reading it -- which is a true sign of wonderful pennmenship. The reader BECOMES Dolores Price which is proof of Lamb's mastery of the English language. As an aspiring writer myself I am astounded and inspired by Lamb's writing style and his technique.
I am also in awe of Mr. Lambs ability to get into the female psyche so well. Dolores is a deep, believable character who is real and whom I love and cherish. I felt her pain and her strength and the tale of her many battles is an excellent one.
Many have complained that they found this novel to be too depressing but I would like to point out that Wally Lamb is not a fairytale writer - he's a realist and life follows in the pattern of his novels. His novels are true-to-life and THAT is what makes them so excellent and so moving. The realism.
It's a beautiful novel that remains on my mind at all times. I strongly suggest that you read this or his other novel which is even better "I Know This Much is True"

Rating:
Summary: She's Come Undone Is Amazing!
Review: I came upon this book while I was in 8th grade, I have read it many times since, but am writing this review as a sophomore. The book is compelling, and will keep a normal reader reading until the very end. As readers we notice Lamb's amazing ability to write as a real person, who has pain, joy, and a hellish life in general. Another amazing aspect is the authors sex. He writes so convincingly when the sexual encounters come up in the book, he writes as if he were a real woman, and more importantly if he himself were the actual Dolores Price. Through the entire book Dolores Price is faced with adversity, adversity that is depressing, and dangerous. You can't help but feel sorry for Dolores Price as you encounter the adversity along with her. The novel is one word is: spectacular. This novel should be required reading for high school students everywhere. It is a triumphant story of a almost real person who struggles and feels pain just as we all do, and furthermore Dolores Price will be a heroine to you whether or not it was depressing.
Oh, yeah.. Don't give the book 1 star just because it was "depressing" I'm pretty sure that was the point. It teaches us all to try our best to pull through hard times, and triumph over the adversity. It also teaches us that we should stand up for ourselves, and shout to the world what must be heard. I reccomend this book to all, but especially people struggling with hard times, it will give you confidence to succeed, and to be yourselfs. The final lesson and most important is that we were all born individuals, and we should have the courage to remain individuals no matter what anybody thinks. Read SHES COME UNDONE!

Rating:
Summary: The Best Book Ever!
Review: I picked this book up while on vacation in MN a few years ago and couldn't put it down. I read the entire thing in less than 24 hours. It made me laugh and cry. I was so amazed at the fact it was written by a male and yet so convincingly female. I recommended it to all of my friends and every one of them felt the same way as I did. One of the most personable, easy to relate to book I've ever read!

Rating:
Summary: No Star!
Review: When this book is not simply boring it is downright depressing. If you like to wallow in misery go for it, but I think most of us have had enough misery in our lives without suffering someone else's vicariously.

Rating:
Summary: Hard life but good read
Review: She's Come Undone is the story of Delores between ages 3 and 40. The story starts with her earliest memory and ends with her current life situation. Nothing ever seems to go right in Delores's life- in just a few short years, her lives through divorce, incessant teasing by classmates, obesity, a somewhat unwilling lesbian experience, suicide attempts, abortion, mental abuse, adultry, mental illness and other life-alteirng experiences. You feel her pain and her anxiety, but you will also laugh at some of her experiences and her thoughts.

I didn't realize this book was as dark as it is when I started to read. I would tell others what was going on in my book, and they couldn't believe I was reading such a sad tale. Yes, it is sad, but the novel just grabs you from the start, and you can't put the book down. You want to know what happens next- what does Delores decide? Did she really do that? Why won't she say yes? Her character is well developed, and I never found myself asking, "Now, just where did that plot line go?" The book is not confusing- you know who all of the characters are, and they are described very vividly, so you end up with a real mental picture of who they are both physically and mentally.

I am also one who can't believe this book was written by a man. Wally Lamb definitely did his homework when he wrote as Delores- his voice made an effective female character.

This is definitely one of the better Oprah's Book Club books!

Rating:
Summary: I have a physical aversion to this book
Review: Some books make you laugh and/or cry out loud. Not only did this book make me cry (repeatedly) but before I could force myself to finish it I threw it across the room and let it hit the wall with a resounding crash. It IS well written. But it is senseless in its depravity. I felt like it was wallowing in everything that can possibly go wrong in life. So when I cried it was not catharsis, it felt like I had been violated. Like Lamb had penned these sentiments to tear the sorrow out of me and put it on display for no good reason.

Now I will admit that I don't usually go for tear-jerkers. I've had to deal with a lot of tragedy in my early life (loss of a parent) and don't really need anything to jog my memory. Still I can take serious literature, but for some reason the idea of reading this novel again (or finishing it) fills me with horror. I get the same gut reaction (to wretch) from this book that I get from "The Red Badge of Courage."

It just seems so morbid to read a book about someone who for a majority of the book has literally NO REASON TO LIVE. Why vicariously glimpse a life that is not even pathetic, just horrible... If you like this sort of My-life-is-so-bad-my-mother-never-loved-me tangle, be my guest. ...

Great cover art though, no question.

Rating:
Summary: What a read!!
Review: This book was really great. I really don't read these kinds of books, i tend to read fantasy, but this was something total different than im used to. from the first few pages, i was hooked and couldn't put it down.
The story is about a troubled life of a girl how is raped at a young age. She goes through so many things, it's amazing she stayed sane. There were deaths, rapes, weight issues, roomates, everything people deal with in life. One thing i really like (don't worry, this won't spoil anything) was how she kept meeting the people whose film she had developed

Rating:
Summary: VERY VERY Good!
Review: Years after reading I still feel its one of the best books I've read. I realized that my feelings, my history doesn't set me apart. Honestly I bought it because of an interesting cover but once inside I couldn't stop reading.

Rating:
Summary: Well, it kept me reading!
Review: I thought it was amazing that this was written by a man, the female point of view was really well done. I have to admit that I am not a consistent reader since I am a college student and am mainly reading textbooks. This was my summer read for last year and while it took me a while to read, it did keep me interested enough to finally finish it. This was an accomplishment for me since I think this a rather long book. Anyway, I would recommend this book if you are having a bad day because it always made me feel lucky that I wasn't in the lead character's shoes!