The Dive From Clausen's Pier

Rating:
Summary: a painfully slow read...
Review: I really wanted to like this book. The premise seemed interesting. The characters started out with promise. Unfortunately it didn't take long for the story to get drawn out and the characters became hum-drum. I think this would have been a better book if it was shorter...it seemed like much of it was just "filler."
The ending also wasn't what it could have been. I did finish it, always looking at my nightstand where Lovely Bones was waiting. That book I am flying through.

Rating:
Summary: AMAZING!!
Review: This was the first book in a long, long time to make me cry! I was weeping through the last few chapters. Her characters were so real and flawed that they were totally believable. I read this book in 2 days because I was unable to put it down!

Rating:
Summary: Gripping Page-Turner
Review: The Dive From Clausen's Pier is one of the best books I read this year. It's powerful, realistic and heartwrenching without being melodramatic. I found the book to be a page-turner and couldn't put it down until I finished it.

The central plot of the novel revovles around Carrie, who is losing interest in her high school sweetheart to whom she is engaged. She is experiencing restlessness and boredom in the relationship, and with her life in the town, Madison, Wisconsin, where she grew up, and which she has never left. She wants to end her relationship with Mike, when he has a diving accident that renders him a paraplegic (this all happens in the first few pages of the novel, so I'm not giving anything away).

The rest of the novel deals with the aftermath of the accident, and how it impacts both Carrie's and Mike's life. Carrie is overwhelmed with guilt and grief. She desperately wants to leave Mike and Wisconsin for a new, exciting life in New York. But what kind of person would she be if she left Mike now when he needs her the most?

On the other hand, what kind of life would she have if she stayed? Should she be true to her self and begin a new life in New York? Should she pursue her dreams and desires of becoming a fashion designer, exploring a new lifestyle and pursuing her romantic feelings for someone else?

These are all decisions Carrie must face. The brilliance of the novel lies in the conflicting emotions that you, as the reader feel. You are at once rooting for Carrie to leave Mike and begin a new life, while at the same time, feeling the horror of such a a betrayal. Mike is a likable character. He loves Carrie, and has been a loyal and devoted boyfriend. While wanting Carrie to leave Mike, you also want her to stay. How can she be so selfish as to leave this loving man when he has to face life as a paraplegic?

That is Carrie's dilemma, and the reader's too. I sincerely don't know what I would do in the same situation, but I think the author renders Carrie's decisions with a realism that does not leave room for either choice rendering a happy ever after life.

I won't reveal anything else about the plot because it would be a disservice to the reader. The life issues the author explores in this powerful novel makes it a must-read, and should be on top of everyone's wish list.

Rating:
Summary: Exceptional Story!
Review: This book really touched me in a way that I cannot really explain. It shows how life as you know it can slip away in an instant and the life that new is changed forever.
This is the story of Carrie Bell and her fiancee Mike Mayer. They are high school sweethearts, college sweethearts, and at one time, they were the best of friends. But recently, Carrie has been feeling like she is pulling away from Mike and she doesn't really know why. This leads them to the fateful day when they take their Annual Memorial Day trip to Clausen's Pier. In a boyish attempt to impress Carrie, Mike decides to dive off the Pier, not realizing that the water is three feet lower then normal. The rest of the story changes their lives. But it doesn't only change the lives of Carrie and Mike, but their friends as well. Jamie, Carrie's best friend begins to feel alienated and so do most of the other people in Carrie's life.
This was a book that I could not put down. Carrie and I are the same age when this book starts and I just really connected with her character. I think that a situation when a loved one gets hurt is something that every one can relate to, or at least relate to the fear of. Carrie is a multi-faceted person and I was really able to see her on many different levels.
Anne Packer did a great job on this book, her storytelling was wonderful and realistic and I really felt that I was in Carrie and Mike's circle of friends. I highly recommend this book to everyone and it is one that I will remember for a long time to come!

Rating:
Summary: Great read until the end
Review: This book caught my attention because I'm personally at a crossroad in my life -- recently part of a massive layoff -- and am actually pursuing a business in creative sewing. Thought this book would "show me the way" that a woman gets past her dependence on men and makes her own way.

While I did enjoy the characters in the book, especially the people in New York, the ending was a huge disappointment.

It's an enjoyable book.

Rating:
Summary: Could have been more...
Review: Ann Packer seems a capable writer and, if anything, 'The Dive From Clausen's Pier' shows her promise. Unfortunately her debut novel is uneven. The dialogue feels unnatural, like an after school special's view of how people in their early twenties talk (we certainly don't begin every conversation with 'What's up?,' or refer to our female friends as 'girl' as often as these people do). Packer's characters also lack depth -- a crippling blow to her novel as complex, identifiable characters are an essential part of morality tales like this one. They act like cardboard cutouts: this is Rooster, Mike's loyal best friend with a temper; or Jamie, Carrie's petulant best friend who can't seem to mature beyond college; or Mike's domineering mother, whose fierce expectations keep Carrie tethered to Mike's bedside. These basic character descriptions are all that there is to these people. They never change, never do anything to challenge your perceptions of them, and are all hopelessly selfish. The only character who is not only concerned with themself is Carrie and that is because it is her struggle that gives the book its plot. Had Carrie been more than a one note character her story could have been a moving one. Packer's writing itself is good. She gives a nice sense of setting and has a strong descriptive style. This is where her promise is most evident, and it will be interesting to see how she fares in her next novel. If she masters these elements her writing will have all the makings of the perfect guilty pleasure.

Rating:
Summary: Glurge
Review: If you are looking for gripping drama keep walking.

The best way to use this book is as a self help guide as Carrie (the protaganist) weighs choices for pages without end.

Their was one character I cared about. One character in the bunch who was central enough to register and wasn't so emotional immature that I could care about his history.

It led me to soul searching. But that was for more satisfying than the book itself.
And the ending would've angered me to no end if I were emotionally invested enough in the characters to BE angry.

I just felt I was wasting my time.

To the Good?
Packer captured the monotony of a life that has never changed nicely. The claustrophobia of sameness.

The difficulty of making life altering decisions before you feel ready.

But in the end?
I didn't care about any of it.

Rating:
Summary: zzzzzz....
Review: I thought Dive from Clausens Pier was one of the most boring things I have ever read in my life. Pages and pages of this book are spent describing sewing...and it's not a sewing manual. I thought surely that all the sewing talk would actually lead to Carrie's finding a new career, but no. Apparently, we just get to hear about it endlessly and it goes nowhere. Much like the rest of the book. Terrible.

Rating:
Summary: A very emotional read
Review: This is one of those books that is both hard to read and hard to put down. This book was sad from start to finish, and it really made you think about what you would do if the man you wanted to break up with suddenly had an accident that left him paralyzed and hopeless, and it also made you think about the real meaning of love (which goes beyond romance and diamond rings). This is a great book to read if you've just graduated from college and are starting out on a life of your own or if you've just broken up with your boyfriend (or girlfriend). It will make you question whether the choices you've made are because it's what's comfortable and what everyone expects of you, or because that is what you truly want.

There were a few flaws in the novel, though:

--The main character, Carrie, is often hard to root for. She is very impulsive, indecisive, and flighty. While we find ourselves questioning what we would do in her situation, ironically, Carrie shows us what we SHOULDN'T do (i.e., immediately run away, burn bridges, and get immediately involved with another man who is twice your age). I wasn't sure if the author wanted us to root for her, feel sorry for her, or what.

--I LOVED the beginning, which describes the aftermath of Mike's accident, but the novel takes a strange detour when Carrie heads for New York City. The whole middle section of the book devoted to this venture seems out of place. The whole time I was wondering what was going on with Mike and her friends back home. They were the only characters I cared about, not her New York friends. The author should have spent less time on the New York section and more time developing the Madison characters.

--The author leaves a lot of loose ends. She doesn't explain characters and situations fully. For instance, I never understood the significance of Carrie's obsession with sewing and fashion. Was it a form of escapism? Was it something she could control as opposed to what was happening with Mike? The author never makes this clear. I'm hoping this means she will be coming out with a sequal to explain things further, and not that she's a bad storyteller.

Overall, though, a good read with a few frustrating aspects.

Rating:
Summary: I liked this book.
Review: This was not your typical chick lit book, but might have had a bit more depth to it. I enjoyed this book and had fun going on her journey with her. Not everyone or everything turned out perfectly, but it was a satisfying ending.