Rating: 
Summary: What the...?? Bestseller??
Review: My cousin and I read this book for a book club we are in. We read it while we were on vacation together. Both of us could barely get through the book and had to keep eachother going by finding ridiculous references and descriptions of Carrie's boyfriend, Kilroy (yes, Kilroy.) The best part of the book for me was when my cousin finished it and threw it on the bed with a sigh of disgust followed by a sigh of relief. The book itself, however, annoyed us so much that even sitting on a beach at a luxury hotel in Cabos could not make us feel better about having to read it.
Rating:
Summary: Who is this character? Why would I even like her?
Review: I am almost halfway through the book and I've relived more of my teenage sewing experiences than I've developed any sort of connection to the character. And frankly, it makes me glad I don't sew anymore. I find myself hating her for being too perfect. She so quiet and gentle...puts everything away after her sewing sessions, feels guilty for spending money on fabric (but not for running away apparently). GET REAL!!!
Perhaps if the author had told the story from Mike's point of view or from his mother's point of view it could have been a likable story. But I just don't CARE what happens to Carrie Bell.
Furthermore, why is New York chosen to be the city that holds the answer for her? Cliche (again!) I guess I could have believed it more if she had stopped and had the same experiences in Chicago. I can just picture this girl in NY...the girl that puts her fabric scraps away and packs her silk robe in tissue paper is intrigued by the broken down digs of an acquaintance simply because it's not Wisconsin!...what about cockroaches? I'd like to see her reaction to cockroaches or an occasional rat that comes to visit her cubicle in this hell hole!
The other night my husband couldn't sleep, so I started reading this book aloud to him. I told him the premise, but he fell fast asleep while I read about Carrie's trip to the fabric store.
I think I'll take another reviewers advice and read the last 4 pages.
Look for a nice hardly-used copy for sale here or on eBay very soon!!!
Rating: 
Summary: Compelling coming-of-age story
Review: As "The Dive From Clausen's Pier" opens, Carrie Bell is having doubts about her engagement to her high-school sweetheart, Mike Mayer. When Mike becomes paralyzed after diving into shallow water, Carrie is faced with a dreadful choice: stay in a place and role that had become suffocating to her, or leave and be known as the woman who abandoned her fiancé in his time of need. Despite being a college graduate in her early 20's, Carrie has little identity of her own, and her responses are often those of an adolescent. In her flight to New York City and subsequent drifting, she appears selfish and erratic, obsessing about clothes as if to forge an identity from the outside in. I found Carrie's story to be compelling, but the book is uneven in its writing and pacing. The author's rich descriptions made Madison, WI, completely real to me. By contrast, her Manhattan was vague and unrecognizable - and I'm still trying to figure out how Carrie managed to survive several months there with no income. At times, Carrie's indecision was frustrating, and her decisions even more frustrating. I found the ending more satisfying than some other reviewers here, not because I agreed with Carrie's choice, but because it seemed to arise out of her own emerging sense of self - like her or not, Carrie is becoming her own woman.
Rating: 
Summary: Speaking of a dive...
Review: Actually I didn't find this book nearly as bad as some of the reviewers stated. Though I don't belong to a "well rounded highly educated book group", as one reviewer wrote, I do enjoy reading and found this book very well written. I didn't care for Carrie and probably wouldn't have her as a friend, but the story did keep my attention. It was well written and I would recommend it. If your'e looking for the Great American Novel, this isn't it. If you are however looking for a book that keeps your attention and entertains you, you won't be disappointed.
Rating:
Summary: Interesting premise with little payback
Review: The author presents an interesting story with a twenty three year old woman making a tough decision regarding a boyfriend whom she had once loved and now feels an obligation to stay with and offer endless support. The choice to leave is not one that I condemm, but rather one that might happen to a young woman who felt trapped even before her boyfriend was injured. However, the second part of the book is almost like a flight of fancy. The main chracter, Carrie, finds a free place to stay, she never gets a job, and she finds a complex older man as a lover. All this happens in the tough town of New York. With a talent that should have been a wakeup call years earlier for a career path, Carrie is set for a life away from her hometown. Instead of learning to make amends with her family and friends and live with her decision and progress with her new life, the author takes the easy way out and Carrie turns her back on both the man and career path she loves in order to be a martyr to her friends and family back home. This is a cowardly way out of a complex situation. I got the impression that the author thought that this was the only way that the character could redeem herself. What started out as an engrossing well written book ended on a high note straight out of a 1950's melodrama.
Rating: 
Summary: WOW
Review: This was the recent selection for my book club... and I can't wait for our discussion on it... This was a book that completely caught my attention. It was hard to put down, yet, I didn't want it to end! The characters were great... wonderful development as I immediately felt I knew them... they will all remind you of someone you know or knew! The dive off Clausen's Pier is the catalyst for a tale of coming to terms with difficult decisions... to confront issues of love, friendship, abandonment... and how well does anyone really know anyone else. How well does one know oneself? This book made me cry and really think about how hard life can be sometimes, and what does it mean, and how meaningful relationships can be, whether they are long or short term...
Rating: 
Summary: The Dive from Clausen's Pier
Review: The title entices. But the book is unsatisfying. Don't waste time with these characters. They are all selfish, pitiful, co-dependent bores. Carrie Bell's personal quest barely keeps the plot moving forward through settings which are stereo-typical images of New York and the Midwest. Readers are offered a predicatble ending with trite explanations about motives. As for the 'intimate and emotional' thrills, touted on the back cover? They are more like 'guilt trips and loosely defined moral values'. Send this book to the bottom of Clausen's reservoir.
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Summary: One sorry girl
Review: It is a good read but I kept waiting for something that never happened and that's why I only gave three stars. Carrie, the main character, is nice but boring. She is searching for something and yet I do not think she ever found it. I didn't like how she hasn't really accomplished anything while in NYC, and I also didn't like that she constantly apoligizes for everything.
Rating:
Summary: Don't bother
Review: If I could give this book 0 stars I would. I can honestly say that it is the worst book I've ever read. Packer's main charater, Carrie, is unlikable, indecisive and just down right annoying. As a matter of fact, all of the charaters are annoying. Trust me, any other book you pick will be 10 times better than this one.
Rating:
Summary: Carrie Bell is as real as any character I've ever read
Review: I picked up The Dive from Clausen's Pier on a whim, after reading the back cover and finding it intriguing. From page one, I was hooked. While it might not be the most original story, I found that I couldn't put it down. I was impressed by how real I found Ann Packer's characters, and by the end of the novel I felt as though I knew Carrie and Mike all very well. I usually only find the desire to write a review if I have something either fantastic or horrible to say about a book. This novel definitely did not inspire such passion, but upon reading some other reviews, I felt as if I had to defend the character of Carrie Bell. I was genuinely surprised to see how many negative reviews this book has gotten. What I found most shocking is how more than a few people have said that they have never disliked a character more than they did Carrie Bell. For me, it was the opposite. I related immensely to Carrie. I understood why she did everything she did. I understood why she left, and why it was so hard for her to return, and how much pressure she felt. I do not think Ann Packer could have described such a situation more accurately. Perhaps I understood where Carrie was coming from because I myself am close to her age and in a similar place in my life... I don't know. Regardless, the one thing that I never thought Carrie was or could be, was cold hearted. I don't understand why so many people have found her character so unlikable. Like I said before, I understood why she did everything she did, and I feel as though if I was in that situation, I would have done the same thing. I don't think that makes me cold hearted. I think it makes me human. I highly recommend this novel. While it may not be the most intriguing and suspensful story, I fell in love with the characters and all the issues it brought up. How much do we owe the ones we love? It addressed it perfectly and realistically. It's definitely not the greatest book I've ever read, but it struck a chord in me. I think it's a remarkable debut novel, and I look forward to see what else Ann Packer has in store.
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